A dispute over 137 acres in Florida sent Washington County's rezoning process back to square one after neighbors told officials they were worried development could erode the conservation character of their Chipley community.
The proposal on the table would create 19 large residential lots, but for residents who moved there for woods, wildlife, and quiet, even a low-density project feels like a turning point.
Here's what to know
Washington County is considering a future land use map amendment affecting about 137 acres on Rolling Pines Road. Both the landowner and nearby residents spoke about it before the Planning Commission, according to WJHG.
The land is designated for conservation. The proposal would turn the section along Rolling Pines Road into 19 residential lots of three to six acres.
That request was withdrawn after the applicant decided the back 80 or so acres should not be included in the amendment, so the owner now has to revise the plan and restart the rezoning process before county officials can take it up again, WJHG reported.
Mickie Johnson, the property owner, said the proposal was meant to remain limited.
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"It's a low-impact development; it's only 19 lots. We could come in there at one-acre lots and try for that; we didn't do that," Johnson said, per WJHG.
More background
Residents said the area's conservation setting was a major reason they bought homes there.
"All the community is really upset," Tracy Anglin told the commission, as WJHG noted. "A lot of us purchased up here because we love our wildlife; we love our conservation; we love the nature and seeing the eagles, and the gopher tortoise, and the deer and everything."
What's being done?
Johnson has to resubmit the amendment without the back portion of the property included.
Another neighborhood meeting must also happen before the matter can return to the Washington County Planning Commission, giving residents another chance to raise concerns about development plans, WJHG reported.
Johnson also said the concept is intended to lessen the impact on the site. Under the plan, the project would remain at 19 lots, and the owner says wooded buffers would be left in place and properties would not be clear-cut.
"It's just so peaceful, it's just so wonderful to be out in the country and have a wonderful peaceful life. Unfortunately, all of us that purchased here that bought everything to have this conservation land, it's been disturbed now," Anglin said, per WJHG.
Where can I learn more?
For more on the tension between development and conservation, these stories look at rezoning fights in Florida and beyond.
• In Collier County, neighbors resisted a members-only golf course proposed for a decades-old citrus grove.
• In North Port, a retiree sued after city zoning changes allowed breweries and shooting ranges but not a home.
• In Arkansas' Benton County, worried locals said planners "really don't care" about neighborhood impacts.
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