Commissioners conditionally approve rezoning for manufactured‑home subdivision at Staten Drive

The Dougherty County Board of Commissioners on Feb. 17 approved a rezoning request to convert a 5.53‑acre parcel at 3512 Staten Drive from R‑2 to RMHS, allowing development of a manufactured‑home subdivision, contingent on the applicant maintaining a holding/retention account for stormwater or detention features.

Angel Grama, planning director, said planning staff recommended approval and noted the area already contains a mix of site‑built houses and manufactured homes. Staff presented trip‑generation estimates (planning staff used 30 lots as a rule‑of‑thumb for subdivision planning) and said the parcel is not in a floodplain. Commissioners acknowledged constituent concerns about the visual impact of manufactured homes; staff said future subdivision proposals must return to planning with a site plan for review.

Commissioner discussion focused on whether a stormwater retention pond should be deeded to the county and on how the county typically handles detention features. Engineering and public‑works representatives said maintenance decisions are made collaboratively and that the county sometimes accepts and sometimes declines maintenance responsibility depending on design; the applicant (Todd Lanier) said if the county refused to accept the pond the developer would remain responsible.

The board approved a substitute motion requiring the applicant to maintain the holding account and passed the conditioned rezoning by unanimous consent. The planning commission’s recommendation and the board’s vote advance the project toward the subdivision stage, but final design, lotting and any required permits must be submitted and approved separately.