Sunday, June 19, 2016

Rezone For Shopping Center At Corner Of Hog Mountain Road And U.S. 441 On Planning Commission Agenda

Plus Three Other Rezones

The Oconee County Planning Commission will hold public hearings on four different rezone requests tomorrow (Monday) night, including one that will have impact on everyone who uses the already busy intersection of Hog Mountain Road and U.S. 441.

ABE Consulting, on behalf of property owner Toccoa 85 LP, is asking the county to rezone 1.7 acres, with frontage on and access to both Hog Mountain Road and U.S. 441, to allow development of a small commercial shopping center.

The project is being called Ray’s Corner, reflecting the historic name of the intersection.

Also on the agenda is a rezone for two fast food restaurants on Hog Mountain Road just west of Butler’s Crossing, a request to rezone just less than 30 acres on Mars Hill Road at the intersection of Mars Hill Road and SR 316 for a supply business, and a rezone request for an office and showroom in Bogart.

The meeting starts at 7 p.m. in the Courthouse in Watkinsville.

Ray’s Corner

The projected proposed for the Hog Mountain Road and U.S. 441 intersection is on a triangular piece of land that already is partially zoned for business. The request is to convert the roughly 1 acre currently zoned for agricultural and resident use to business use as well.

Ray's Corner (CLICK TO ENLARGE)
(Rebuilt Stub Of Old Hog Mountain Road Not Shown)

The concept plan shows a single, one story building of roughly 10,000 square feet in size with parking in the front and rear.

Traffic would enter and leave the shopping center via a right-in and right-out access on U.S. 441 just north of the U.S. 441 intersection with Hog Mountain Road and via a stub of Old Hog Mountain Road.

The county and state recently repaved the Old Hog Mountain Road stub and rebuilt its connection to the new roadway via an intersection opposite the entrance to the RaceTrac station on the southwest corner of the intersection.

ABE Consulting

ABE consulting, owned by Abe Abouhamdan, chair of the county’s Land Use and Transportation Planning Committee, is representing property owner, King Howington, 2165 Union Church Road, north of Bishop.

Proposed Shopping Center At Left
U.S. 441 Ahead

The application says that the planned use of the property is for retail, restaurants and commercial offices.

The county staff report also mentions a pharmacy.

Presbyterian Homes of Georgia recently purchased the land north and west of the property for a continuing care retirement community.

Trip Estimates

Residents of subdivisions on Welbrook Road complained loudly during that rezone that the intersection of Hog Mountain Road and U.S. 441 already was clogged at busy times of the day.

Rebuilt Connection Of Stub
RaceTrac On Left

The county argued that the planned and now completed upgrades to the intersection would improve the congestion.

Abouhamdan estimates in the rezone narrative that just less than 250 average daily trips per day will be created by the shopping center.

The project will require 1,700 gallons per day of water and 1,530 gallons per day of sewer service, that narrative states.

County staff has recommended approval of the rezone request.

Two Restaurants

Beall and Company has submitted the application to rezone just less than 2 acres on Hog Mountain Road near Windsor Drive for two fast food restaurants with drive through service.

Beall is representing Stonebridge Partners LLC, 1551 Jennings Mill Road, in the request, which would convert the property from Business-1 classification to Business-2, allowing for the drive-through restaurants.

Beall said in the rezone narrative that Stonebridge Partners has contracts for two fast food restaurants on the property.

One of the buildings would be 3,806 square feet in size and the other would be 3,285, according to the concept plan. The project would require county water and sewer services.

The staff has recommended approval of the project.

Supply Business

Tew Family Investments LLC of Hartwell owns the nearly 30 acres at the south size of SR 316 and west of Mars Hill Road that is slated for development as an electrical and communications supply business.

The land currently is zoned for agricultural and residential use, and the applicant, Carter Engineering, is seeking to have the land classified for business use.

The concept plan is for one building of 9,600 square feet in size.

The project would require county water and sewer service.

The staff recommends approval.

Bogart Rezone

Claude Paten is asking the Planning Commission to recommend that just less than an acre of land on the north side of the Atlanta Highway and the west side of McLeroy Street in Bogart be changed from residential use to general business use.

Total office and showroom floor area is 2,550 square feet.

The project will get its water from Athens-Clarke County and use septic.

The staff recommends approval.

The Bogart project will go to the City Council for final action on July 11.

The other three projects will be on the agenda of the Oconee County Board of Commissioners at its July 5 meeting.

9 comments:

rightway1974 said...

Strip malls and fast food restaurants. Stay classy Oconee.

Jonathan Wallace said...

Don't forget car lots!

Anonymous said...

Anyone thinking "conflict of interest" regarding the 441/Hog Mountain Road rezone?

Anonymous said...

Looks like with all of this business coming in, residential property owners could some day get a tax break. Oh, okay, dream on, huh?

MLHeck said...

A grocery store at 53 & 78 would be welcomed!

Anonymous said...

A remarkable conflict of interest on the part of Mr. Abouhamdan, and the county elected officals and officials who enable this conflict of interest. Professional ethics in Oconee are of no concern when there's big money involved. Bleeping shameful.


"ABE consulting, owned by Abe Abouhamdan, chair of the county’s Land Use and Transportation Planning Committee, is representing property owner, King Howington, 2165 Union Church Road, north of Bishop."

zippity said...

Forget the property tax break. More development means more needed services - note water and sewage needs - plus police, roads, higher property values, etc, etc. You never get a property tax break from development, no matter what the politicians and developers want you to think. The "beautiful" development on 316/Epps Bridge is just spreading and sprawling outward.

Anonymous said...

Hey Abe, how are "restaurants, retail and commercial offices" and a possible "pharmacy" going to survive on only 250. Some of those 250 "daily trips" will be by employees. So a pharmacy, restaurant or restaurantS, and retail, along with commercial offices, can stay in business with 250 trips per day???

What the heck??!! We aren't all as gullible as Bubber!



"The application says that the planned use of the property is for retail, restaurants and commercial offices. The county staff report also mentions a pharmacy.

Abouhamdan estimates in the rezone narrative that just less than 250 average daily trips per day will be created by the shopping center."

Unknown said...

Yes, "Virginia, elections have consequences!" Just get ready for higher taxes and runaway development! You cannot say no one told you.

Sarah V. Bell