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Council rejects 30-day extension of zoning moratorium after competing views on development
Summary
On April 1, 2025, Chattahoochee Hills City Council voted 3-2 against extending a 30-day moratorium on rezoning; supporters argued more time was needed to address transparency and study compliance, while opponents said existing processes should proceed. The vote followed extensive public comment about Serenbe and traffic studies.
Chattahoochee Hills City Council voted 3-2 on April 1, 2025 to deny a motion to extend the city’s 30-day moratorium on rezoning, a decision that signals majority council support for proceeding with the existing land-use review timeline.
Councilmember Lightsey moved to extend the moratorium an additional 30 days; Councilmember Schmidt seconded. The motion failed with Lightsey and Schmidt voting “yea” and Councilmembers Foster, Lowe and Peek voting “nay.” The council recorded no abstentions.
Supporters of the extension said the extra time was needed to ensure transparency and compliance with prior conditions; public commenters and some councilmembers raised concerns that conditional rezoning approvals (notably related to Serenbe) had not produced the full traffic analysis requested by the council. Councilmember Foster said, “I have done my homework and do not think 60 days will be enough time for what we need to do,” signaling continued concern among some members for a more deliberate timetable.
Opponents of the extension argued that the city should rely on established procedures and that indefinite pauses risked hindering development commitments and partnerships. The vote does not itself change any pending application status; it denies an administrative pause that would have delayed new applications for 30 days.
The moratorium motion was Item 25-020 on the April 1 agenda. The meeting record shows the council also deferred several items to the Planning Commission or future meetings and approved multiple development agreements earlier in the agenda.
