Following a lengthy public hearing, the Bradley County Commission denied a rezoning request on Blue Springs Road from FAR (farming, agricultural and residential) to C-3 (commercial). The request was made by landowner Mike Keller.

When the public hearing began, a representative for Mr. Keller jumped to the microphone. He explained the rezoning request is actually correcting an error made in 1998, when the property was zoned incorrectly. At this time, there was already a business operating on the property, yet was still zoned FAR. Mr. Keller’s representative stated that it should be changed to C-3 in order to help Mr. Keller get the highest value for his property.

Unfortunately, this was the only member of the audience who wanted to see the rezoning take effect. Others feared that if the property was rezoned, there would be no limit on the type of business that could come in there and didn’t trust it would be converted to a warehouse, as Mr. Keller suggested.

“When Mike Keller purchased the business in 1999, part of his due diligence as a buyer would have been to determine what the zoning was and what effect this would have on his business,” said Glenda Pritchett, homeowner who lives near the property in dispute. “Eleven years later, suddenly he’s crying, ‘Foul!’ That doesn’t seem right to me.”

Ms. Pritchett went on to point to others in the audience who opposed the rezoning. She also told the commission that the people who opposed the rezoning request represented 160 acres of land surrounding the disputed property. In the last three tax years, these individuals paid $33,800 of property taxes. “Check the property taxes records from the same three years,” Ms. Pritchett challenged the commission, “and you’ll see this county has received $0 from Mike Keller.”

After a handful of other residents echoed Ms. Pritchett’s sentiments, Commissioner Ben Atchley made a motion to deny the rezoning request. The motion failed 6-5 (with 3 commissioners absent). However, as there was no motion to permit the rezoning request, the property retained its previous FAR zoning.

In other business, Barbara Gilbert asked for help from the commission. “We’re living in a cesspool,” she said. Ms. Gilbert lives in Royal Oaks subdivision. A creek that passes through the area is highly polluted. The problem is due to a damaged sewage system at a nearby trailer park that causes “organic materials” to be in the water near the 200 homes in the subdivision. As the owner of the sewage system lives in California and has no interest in correcting the problem, Cleveland Utilities has their hands tied.

“It’s disgusting,” Ms. Gilbert said. “We need to do something.”

Commissioner Ed Elkins agreed and said the first thing that needs to be done is to determine if it is in the Cleveland city limits. Once that is determined, the appropriate governing body can figure out a course of action to correct the problem and use the cost of the repair as a lien on the owner’s property.

The commission also unanimously approved the consent agenda, which included budget amendment requests from the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office, Rescue Squad, Emergency Management Agency and the engineering department.

The next meeting of the Bradley County Commission is next Monday at noon.

daniel@danielkbrantley.com