A variance proposal to establish 16 additional residential lots in the Lake Redwine development in north Coweta County was approved on a 3-2 vote over the objection of neighbors at the April 21 meeting of the Coweta County Commission.
Most of the neighbors speaking in opposition to the request cited issues such as traffic safety concerns and the proposal’s failure to meet ordinance requirements.
The proposal by developer Jim Mottola requested 16 residential lots on a new street linking to Redwine Plantation Drive. The large Lake Redwine development is currently populated by more than 570 lots with three access points.
Mottola said Lake Redwine is a master-planned community with a number of subdivisions and with Redwine Plantation Drive serving as a collector road.
The county’s planning department recommended denial of the variance request though the Board of Zoning Appeals recommended approval.
Even though the development was grandfathered more than two decades ago, the need for the variance is due to the requirement to have four access points under the current ordinance based on the number of homes in the development.
Mottola in his remarks said Redwine Plantation Drive is essentially a collector road even though that designation by the county did not exist when the road was constructed. The road runs the length of the large residential development but has only one driveway accessing it. The speed limit on Redwine Plantation Drive is 25 miles per hour.
County Engineer Tod Handley said an alternative to linking the proposed new road on the south side of Redwine Plantation Drive would be to construct an extension to the east to intersect with Happy Valley Road. Doing so would require accommodations for crossing a small stream.
Handley responding to questions from commissioners said there were sight distance and elevation issues on the portion of Redwine Plantation Road where the new street would intersect, adding that readjusting the new street a short distance to the west to intersect with Cove Drive on the north side of Redwine Plantation Drive would likely not be feasible.
Handley said making the new street a three-way or four-way stop at Redwine Plantation Drive should accommodate the sight distance and elevation issues.
“If driving the posted speed limit it should not be a safety issue,” Handley said, adding that commissioners could consider having a three-way stop installed.
Citing a traffic analysis, Handley said there has been no history of traffic accidents on Redwine Plantation Road in the past several years. Commissioner Bob Blackburn said information he received indicated that there have been several fender-benders in the past 10 years.
Of those speaking in public comments against the request, Lake Coweta Homeowners Association President Howard Vickery said said adding 16 houses to the development would increase the amount of traffic, adding that approval of the measure would set a dangerous precedent for future development.
Nearby neighbor Don Stephens citied the same issues along with questions about future property values.
Another speaker, Jason Ward, cited potential problems with traffic because the residential area has young children playing in the neighborhood.
When all was said, Blackburn, who said he grew up in the area, made a motion to approve the variance and to require the 3-way stop. The motion received a second by Commissioner Rodney Brooks. The vote was 3-2 with Blackburn, Brooks and Commissioner Al Smith in favor and commissioners Paul Poole and Tim Lassetter opposed.
