County Mayor Weston Wamp on Thursday night told an overflow crowd that Plan Hamilton will be put on hold while efforts are made to get Area 9 citizens to buy into it.
The county mayor said, "We know there are very real concerns here and that many of you want much more input. Some of you don't trust the Planning Agency."
He said a working committee will begin to meet weekly, and it will include county government officials and personnel along with Area 9 citizen leaders.
County Mayor Wamp said after the meeting, “We will not move forward with the current draft of Plan Hamilton until we gain further community input and stronger public support. In order to finalize a plan that reflects the priorities of Northeast Hamilton County, we are forming a committee of community members who will work with county leaders to address concerns and build consensus.”
He said Plan Hamilton documents remain accessible to the public at planhamilton.org. Community members are encouraged to review and provide input by emailing the County Mayor’s office here.
County Mayor Wamp said it had been planned for the Planning Commission to put their stamp of approval on the overall new zoning plan for the county on Monday, then it go to the City Council and County Commission the next month.
He said Planning Commission Chairman Ethan Collier has been asked to delay a vote, and he expects that will happen at the start of the Monday meeting.
The county mayor also pledged "to name someone in this room to the Planning Commission." He said his first appointee to the Planning Commission was not a developer, but was a minister whose wife is a school principal.
Rep. Greg Vital, a leader in seeking to preserve the rural way of life in the Ooltewah-Birchwood-Georgetown area, told the crowd at the Highway 58 Volunteer Fire Department, "High density and out-of-control growth is not what we want."
He said at one time it took seven and a half hours to get from Birchwood to Ooltewah due to the condition of the roads. He said with clogged traffic on the narrow roads due to the many subdivisions going in on former farmland "it's going to wind up taking seven and a half hours again."
Rep. Vital said, "We need to put the brakes on this growth. We don't have to swallow this."
One citizen brought up the issue of putting a moratorium on new development in Area 9 until changes are made in Plan Hamilton and it is put in place. She was told that Commissioner Steve Highlander earlier made a motion to that effect, but did not get a second.
Nathan Janeway, county director of development services, said a moratorium could be obtained "by getting six votes on the County Commission."
He said the sewer line in Area 9 "is tapped out" due to the Hamilton County Water and Wastewater Treatment Authority turning its attention to repairing leaky pipes under an expensive EPA order.
Mr. Janeway said a sewer has been pledged for some 3,000-4,000 planned housing units - many of which are in Area 9, but he said no more such commitments are being made.
He said some developers are getting around the lack of sewers by turning to septic tanks or to on-site disposal systems.
Mr. Janeway said much of Area 9 is zoned A-1, but under current zoning rules even in that zone two houses per acre can be built "by right." We said the new plan "tries to keep as much A-1 as possible."
Asked if developers can be charged an "impact fee," he said state law is very pro-developer and does not allow such fees.
A man who said he moved to North Hamilton County after South Florida "was ruined" by over-development, said, "I'm not for having my lifestyle ruined by some developer who just moves on to the next project."
Residents said they are upset by the fact that the current plan is to allow "updates" to the Plan Hamilton quarterly. They said it should be much less frequent.
They also said they don't want current commercial nodes in the district to grow, such as around the Food City.
They would also like a rule against clearcutting property.