Palmetto’s largest rezoning and annexation move thus far in South Fulton’s summer of annexation ended Thursday with a recommendation from the city’s Planning Commission to bring nearly 1,100 acres of property into the city. Commissioners also voted to table a move to annex Willow Oak Landfill and denied at request to rezone property on Beckman Drive for condominiums.

The crowd of more than 120 filled the city’s community center for the public hearings. Mostly non-residents of Palmetto, their interest largely centered on property totaling approximately 675 acres located west of the current city limits. Covering four separate public hearings, many in the audience expressed concern that the Agricultural (AG-1) designation sought by the applicants would easily give way to dense development already evident in the city. Some of the recent troubles with residential development along Carlton Road were cited as examples. City Administrator Bill Shell responded to some of the complaints about impending residential development.

“They plan on doing nothing with this property any time soon,” Shell said.

Area residents questioned what they called large expansion with no explanation of how services would be provided or revenue generated. Also cited were complaints that the city was overly responsive to large developers.

Chairman Russell Ross, in an apparent attempt to clarify the city’s position on how the annexation request had evolved, said the applicants had approached the city in an effort to be annexed. The city, he said, had not approached anyone for the purpose of annexation. In the end, the board voted to recommend all the requests.

The board also approved the rezoning and annexation of a tract of approximately 225 acres on the city’s extreme southwest side. Residents again questioned the motives and forethought that went into the decision to recommend entry into the city.

Another proposed rezoning and annexation request involved Willow Oak Landfill, located east of the city along Roosevelt Highway. Though the proposal initially died for the lack of a “second” to the motion to annex, the board later revisited the issue on advice of city attorney Allie Cox, who said the board needed a motion to deny or table the issue. After significant opposition by area residents, the board voted 3-2 to table the motion. Prior to the vote, residents had expressed disapproval due to the smell often coming from the facility, the city’s ability to ensure that Waste Management would keep the roadway clear of trash and the city’s potential liability once the landfill was annexed. Offering a different view of the proposal, Shell said the money from the $1/ton tipping fee would amount to $500,000-750,000 annually.

The only request denied at the July 27 meeting involved a proposal to rezone property on Beckman Drive from R-3 Residential to R-5CT Residential District-Condo/Townhomes. Commissioners voted 5-0 to deny the request. This time the board apparently agreed with area residents who questioned the density the development would bring and possibility that condo ownership would lead to the properties becoming rental units, something residents said would be detrimental to the city. The applicant disagreed, citing benefits to the city, but was turned down.

At various times during the meeting, some of those in attendance stated their frustration with commissioner’s lack of response to some of the specific questions they posed and to what they described as the city’s move to bring in more land without proper research into the implications. Also unsettling to some were the reminders from commissioners that the board was simply a recommending body, passing the responsibility to the city council as the body that makes the final determination on annexation issues. Many in the audience were unimpressed with that explanation.

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