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Full transcript of the Forsyth County Commissioners'
unanimous decision to deny the Wellstone application to rezone and develop the
Lanier Golf Club Property, 9/20/2007
Wellstone, LLC, ZA# 3370, A1 to MPD – District #5
There was a motion by Commissioner Ledbetter and a second by Commissioner
Harrell to deny the rezoning request by Wellstone, LLC, ZA# 3370, A1 to MPD as
follows:
This matter comes before the Board of Commissioners upon Zoning Application
3370, which is Wellstone LLC’s application to have the Lanier Golf Course, a 172
acre parcel located along Buford Dam Road at Fairway Drive rezoned from A-1 to a
Master Planned District in order to construct a residential neighborhood with a
commercial component consisting of a Continuing Care Retirement Community.
This rezoning application is now ready for Board consideration and action. To
that end, I move to DENY zoning application 3370, for the following reasons:
1. Wellstone’s own traffic study reflects that this project will result in the
generation of 3,500 daily vehicular trips that will primarily impact Buford Dam
Road, a minor arterial road in Forsyth County. While Wellstone’s traffic study
identifies various proposed road improvements to ameliorate the impact of such
increased volume, there is no proposed road improvement (short term or long
term) that will adequately address the impact of 3,500 more vehicles on Buford
Dam Road. Moreover, it would be impossible for Buford Dam Road to ever be
meaningfully widened or expanded because of its proximity to Buford Dam and the
lakes on each side of the road; consequently, Buford Dam Road will probably
never be modified in such a way as to absorb the impact of this additional
vehicular traffic. For this and other reasons related to traffic, the County’s
roadway infrastructure simply cannot accommodate this rezoning.
As part of the motion, Commissioner Ledbetter requested that this text be placed
in the record of tonight’s meeting.
There was a motion by Commissioner Laughinghouse and a second by Commissioner
Richard to amend the original motion to include five more reasons for denial as
follows:
2. The proposal submitted by Wellstone does not fulfill the requirements of the
Activity Center land use designation; specifically, the Comprehensive Plan
dictates that in an Activity Center, residential uses shall be considered
“accessory” to the center as a whole. The Forsyth County Unified Development
Code provides that an “accessory” use is one that is “incidental and
subordinate” to the principal use. Here, even if the CCRC component of
Wellstone’s plan is considered commercial, it nonetheless remains the case that
132 acres out of 175 total acres on the Wellstone site will be dedicated to
strictly residential uses. Stated another way, and giving every benefit of the
doubt in favor of Wellstone: 75% of Wellstone’s proposed development is going to
be residential. This is at odds with the County’s Comprehensive Plan which
dictates that the residential component of an Activity Center must be merely
accessory.
3. The Forsyth County Comprehensive Plan dictates that Activity Centers are to
be near “major intersections.” Wellstone’s own traffic study makes clear that
there are no major intersections near this proposed development. In fact, the
Comprehensive Plan identifies Activity Centers in the Buford/Highway 20 East sub
area as occurring at the intersection of Georgia 20 and Sanders Road and Georgia
20 and Windermere Parkway. Both are major intersections. Neither the
intersections of Buford Dam Road and Fairway Lane nor the intersections of
Samples Road and Fairway Drive are major intersections. Indeed, both Fairway
Lane and Fairway Drive are such minor roadways that they are deemed
‘undesignated’ roadways by Forsyth County. Consequently, the placement of an
Activity Center at a location without a major intersection is inconsistent with
the County’s Comprehensive Plan.
4. Wellstone has chosen to fulfill the “commercial” component of the MPD zoning
designation by means of a Continuing Care Retirement Center (“CCRC”). However, a
Continuing Care Retirement Center is a conditional use under the Forsyth County
Unified Development Code, and the only means by which a CCRC may be obtained is
by a request for a Conditional Use Permit (“CUP”). The Master Planned District
(“MPD”) provides that the application requirements for a MPD are “in excess” of
those for other zoning designations, and the commercial zoning performance
tables in Chapter 12 and the specific use requirements of Section 16-4.8
anticipate that a Conditional Use Permit is required in order to receive a CCRC
zoning. Because Wellstone has not sought a CUP for a CCRC contemporaneous with
its rezoning request to MPD, Forsyth County is unable to approve this rezoning.
5. The Wellstone plan does not comport with the specific criteria with respect
to the MPD zoning designation. For instance, Sections 20B-5.2 of the UDC
provides that MPDs should have internal roadways that favor a “grid system” over
a cul-de-sac design. This project is not consistent with that objective.
Similarly, an MPD is supposed to have interconnectivity with adjoining property.
The Wellstone proposal provides for none.
6. In addition, the Wellstone proposal must be denied for the following
additional reasons:
(a) The proposed densities are inappropriate and inconsistent with adjoining and
nearby land uses;
(b) The proposed use will have a detrimental and adverse affect on adjacent and
nearby properties and property values;
(c) The proposed use will cause an excessive burden on existing streets,
transportation facilities, utilities, and schools;
(d) The land as presently zoned has substantial economic value, and can yield a
favorable economic return for its property owner;
(e) Denial of this rezoning is directly related to and in fact benefits the
public health, safety and welfare of Forsyth County and such benefits far
outweigh any detrimental impact to the property owner that may be caused by
denial;
(f) The environmental consequences of this proposed, intense use will be
pronounced and will certainly result in greater pollution, storm water run-off,
loss of pervious surface, destabilization of downstream streams and channels,
and potential flooding of adjacent and downstream properties;
(g) This proposed rezoning and development will result in increased and
unwarranted noise, odor, visual intrusion, loss of aesthetics, light pollution
and impact on adjacent and nearby properties.
As part of the amendment, Commissioner Laughinghouse requested that this text be
placed in the record of tonight’s meeting.
Motion to amend carried unanimously.
Original motion, as amended, carried unanimously.
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