During a recent meeting of the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners, the following items were approved by a 5-0 vote, unless otherwise noted.
Commissioners…
• Approved two alcohol licenses to sell malt beverages and wine for consumption on premises and approved another business, which could already sell malt beverages and wine, to sell distilled spirits
• Renewed licenses for seven local pawn shops
• Appointed Gerald Sullivan to the county’s Board of Assessors for District 5
• OK’d consideration and possible ratification of an agreement for sale of realty for 1.719 acres for $225,000 to Ralph Gravitt, Marilyn Durand and Brenda Gravitt
Some changes have been made to a mixed-use development near South Forsyth High School.
At a meeting on Thursday, Forsyth County commissioners voted unanimously to approve county-initiated zoning condition changes to the development located north of the intersection of Brannon Road and Ronald Reagan Boulevard and on Access Drive and south of the intersection with Hood Drive, which was approved in December 2016.
“Subsequently, the board indicated it wanted to further clarify and address some issues that it believed were either not adequately addressed in the conditions or weren’t clear enough,” said Josh Scoggins, an attorney representing contract and purchaser Brannon Springs LLC.
Scoggins said the company had been working “in good faith” to settle the issues with the county and that the following changes were made:
• Increasing the area for a park amenity and reducing the number of lots around it from 13 to six
• Adding architectural enhancements
• Putting a crosswalk signal at the entrance on Ronald Reagan Boulevard
• Clarifying that all lots north of Ronald Reagan Boulevard will be age-restricted
• Donating property along the road for sidewalks.
Scoggins said the plan had a density of about 4.9 unites per acre before a lot was removed.
Commission Chairman Todd Levent, of District 3, said the company would contribute $25,000 toward the construction of sidewalks to connect with the high school. The development is also site-plan specific.
The property was originally zoned in December for about 57 acres from agriculture and community business districts to a master planned district, or MPD, for 75 residential lots with 218 attached residential units and additional commercial buildings. Two-thirds of the project will be age-restricted, and there will be 12 acres of greenspace included.
An attempt to rescind the approval for the rezoning was denied last month by a 3-2 vote, with District 1 Commissioner Pete Amos and District 5 commissioner Laura Semanson against.
County Attorney Ken Jarrard also determined at the previous meeting landowners were vested in the property as they had submitted permits the day before the meeting.
Bob Meier, president of the Woodland Park Homeowners Association, spoke on concerns over available commercial space and traffic at the meeting when the development was approved and said on Thursday he favors the changes.
“Normally, I’m the guy up here saying I’m opposed, but I’d like to say, with the fact that the recession didn’t go through, these are the right steps to make,” he said.
Meier did raise issues with traffic and County Engineering Director John Cunard said a study didn’t call for a traffic sign at the intersection of Brannon Road and Ronald Reagan Boulevard, but Levent said the county could look at it once the development is built.