The Mayor and Aldermen approved this request after a Zoning Hearing at the August 15, 2019 Regular City Council Meeting.  The action being considered today is the approval of an Ordinance for the provision of a Zoning District for the subject properties.

On August 1, 2019, the Mayor and Aldermen acknowledged the receipt of an annexation petition for 661.3 acres located on I-16, Old River Road, and John Carter Road.  The petitioners, James Gerard for the Morgan Family and Thomas Gray for Savannah Economic Development Authority, requests approval to rezone the property to Heavy Industrial (I-H) instead of keeping Chatham County's current zoning.

Chatham County currently provides the following zoning districts:

PIN 11046 01001 containing 105.2 acres: PDR-SM (Planned Development Reclamation - Surface Mining); Ownership: 50% Savannah Economic Development Authority and 50% Morgan Family;

PIN 11045 01002 containing 556.1 acres: R-A (Residential-Agriculture); Ownership: Morgan Family;

O.C.G.A. § 36-66-4

(d) If the zoning is for property to be annexed into a municipality, then:

(1) Such municipal local government shall complete the procedures required by this chapter for such zoning, except for the final vote of the municipal governing authority, prior to adoption of the annexation ordinance or resolution or the effective date of any local Act but no sooner than the date the notice of the proposed annexation is provided to the governing authority of the county as required under Code Section 36-36-6;

(2) The hearing required by subsection (a) of this Code section shall be conducted prior to the annexation of the subject property into the municipality;

(3) In addition to the other notice requirements of this Code section, the municipality shall cause to be published within a newspaper of general circulation within the territorial boundaries of the county wherein the property to be annexed is located a notice of the hearing as required under the provisions of subsection (a) or (b), as applicable, of this Code section and shall place a sign on the property when required by subsection (b) of this Code section; and

(4) The zoning classification approved by the municipality following the hearing required by this Code section shall become effective on the later of:

(A) The date the zoning is approved by the municipality;

(B) The date that the annexation becomes effective pursuant to Code Section 36-36-2; or

(C) Where a county has interposed an objection pursuant to Code Section 36-36-11, the date provided for in paragraph (8) of subsection (c) of said Code section.

Approval