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Zoning board denies plan to rezone Mount Carmel/Mill Road parcel for gas station after resident opposition
Summary
After staff recommended denial and multiple residents raised traffic, lighting and neighborhood-character concerns, the board voted 5–0 to deny a comprehensive-plan amendment and rezoning (Comp AM2502 / RZ2506) that would have allowed a Shell-branded convenience store and pumps at Mount Carmel and Mill Road.
The Henry County Zoning Advisory Board on March 12 denied a proposal to change the future land use and rezone roughly 3.66 acres at the intersection of Mount Carmel Road and Mill Road for a Shell-branded convenience store and gasoline pumps.
Staff recommended denial of both the comprehensive-plan amendment and the rezoning, saying the proposed commercial use was inconsistent with surrounding residential development and the county's comprehensive plan. "Staff recommends denial of the request to amend the future land use map from high density suburban residential to commercial, as well as denial of the request to rezone the property," planning staff said.
Applicant counsel John Jordan argued the parcel has been constrained by a new roundabout and is not economically feasible for residential development; he said the proposed site would include a 5,500-square-foot convenience store, four double-sided pumps, a small retail building and landscape buffers and that his client would operate other similar stores in Henry County. "So we're looking to request a rezoning to C-1, neighborhood commercial, so that it is complementary to the local residences," Jordan said.
Multiple residents testified in opposition, citing heavier traffic since the roundabout, potential deterioration of the area, added noise, lighting and safety concerns, and the presence of nearby gas stations. One resident said, "Adding this structure will hinder traffic dramatically," and repeated neighbors asked the board to preserve the area's residential character.
After discussion the board voted to deny the comprehensive-plan amendment and then to deny RZ2506; the chair announced the rezoning denial with a recorded vote of 5–0. The denials mean the applicant will not be able to proceed with the proposed gas station at that location under the requested approvals.
