The City of Savannah as petitioner is proposing amendments to Sec. 3.2 of the Public Notice section of the Savannah Zoning Ordinance to address recent changes in State Law.  During the 2022 legislative session, the Georgia State Legislature adopted HB 1405 which resulted in changes to the Zoning Procedures Law that are applicable to local governments.

The City of Savannah engaged an outside land use attorney to review the amended rules and apply them to the Zoning Ordinance. The first change affects Sec. 3.2.5 c.3. and is related to the timing of published notice requirements.  The new language requires certain applications to have a published notice at least 30 days prior to the date of the public hearing. The second revision pertains to required notice when municipalities propose a zoning change from a single-family residential zoning district to a district that allows multifamily zoning, or when single family zoning is proposed to be eliminated.

On May 2, 2023, the Planning Commission recommended approval of the proposed amendments to Sec 3.2 Public Notice to address changes in the state Zoning Procedures Law.