Special architectural

standards for Ga. Highway 54 west and other high-traffic corridors are

doing such a good job of preserving a residential look that the idea should

be expanded to other corridors, said county Commissioner A.G. VanLandingham.

VanLandingham's

motion to direct the planning staff to develop similar zoning "overlay"

zones on Ga. Highway 85 south and Hwy. 54 east was approved unanimously.

Commissioners

also unanimously approved new regulations requiring that special conditions

be met for self-storage facilities in commercial zoning categories. Previously,

the storage units were allowed without conditions.

In another

change aimed at addressing environmental concerns and spiffing up the

look of the county, commissioners approved new rules limiting impervious

surfaces buildings and pavement to 60 percent of a commercial or office

property. Previously there was no limit.

Environmental

concerns, especially those pertaining to storm water runoff, are increasingly

becoming topics of discussion among county officials and staff.

New federal

regulations are in place requiring that water running off parking lots

and buildings be cleaned up before it is allowed to run into streams and

lakes. Regulators also are ratcheting up their interest in protecting

groundwater recharge areas from intense development.

Similar concerns

brought resident Julie Matulia to county Planning Commission meetings

recently to argue that the new regulations approved last week are too

lenient.

Matulia, who

had earlier attended county meetings to oppose plans for a self-storage

facility on Hwy. 85 south, asked the planners to table the regulations

and tighten them up, but planning commissioners said they can always do

that later.

She sent a

packet of information to the County Commission prior to its discussion

last week, calling for close scrutiny of zoning laws aimed at encouraging

more green space.

"I hope

we will continue to monitor this and see if there are other improvements

we can make in this area," said VanLandingham in response to Matulia's

input.

Commissioner

Herb Frady suggested appointing a committee to look into her concerns,

but other commissioners didn't bite.

In another

regulation-related matter, commissioners unanimously approved a change

allowing developers to skip the site plan process if their plans meet

a list of requirements, including the use of an existing building with

no significant alterations.

The change

will eliminate a bureaucratic hassle in situations where it's not needed,

said zoning director Kathy Zeitler.

Commissioners

praised Zeitler for the idea. "This benefits everyone concerned,"

said Commissioner Linda Wells. "We should streamline government whenever

we can."

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