May 23, 2017

Question:  Why was the most recent rezoning (of 3 parcels on Hopewell Road) so important?

Answer:  Council missed a golden opportunity to stop the rezoning madness in Milton.

Re-zonings and other applications by developers for special treatment are consuming vast amounts of staff and Council time and diverting scarce resources away from more important matters, such as traffic congestion.  Council spends well over 50% of its time on various requests from developers.  That is time not spent on solving issues of concern to citizens, such as traffic congestion. 

Some council members will tell you that Council is obligated to hear these zoning requests.  This is a dishonest answer.  While it is true that developers have a right to these zoning hearings, the primary impetus for developers’ requests is an indulgent council.  Developers know that that they will get a sympathetic ear at Council.  Developers know that council members Lusk, Thurman, and Kunz will vote unquestioningly for any developer request.  (Council member Lusk has even stated that he trusts developers more than our own Planning Commission, who he characterizes as unqualified non-professionals who render subjective judgments.)  So that means that developers need to find only 1 more vote on Council to get approval of their requests.  The result is that Council is deluged with developers’ requests for rezonings, zoning modifications, and variances.  And while a compliant council grants special favors to developers, Milton’s problems—many (ironically) the result of reckless development—go unaddressed.

So with the Hopewell rezoning, Council had the chance to draw a bright line in the sand regarding re-zonings that seek higher densities than are allowed by right under existing zoning.  Unfortunately, Council blew it and caved to the developer, granting twice the density than AG-1 zoning likely would have allowed.  Worse, Council opened the door to a raft of new rezoning applications that are sure to land on Council’s docket in the near future.