Mayor Vetoes Ebenezer Road Rezoning Approval

MILTON, GA -- Milton Mayor Joe Lockwood has rejected a request to develop a rural plot of land on the northwestern side of the city.

Lockwood said Tuesday that he's vetoed the City Council's approval of a rezoning request to accommodate more than three dozen single family homes.

At the April 25 meeting, the Council voted 4-2, with Burt Hewitt and Lockwood opposing and Karen Thurman abstaining, to approve a request from Brightwater Homes, LLC to rezone 63.51 acres at 735 Ebenezer Road from AG-1 (agricultural) to CUP (community unit plan) to develop 45 single-family homes at a density of .707 units per acre.

The company originally submitted a plan to build 50 homes at an overall density of .79 units an acre.

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Lockwood said veto wasn't carried out because of his opposition to the project. His decision, he added "is much more focused on procedure and perception than on substance." Since April 25, Lockwood states Milton has received numerous complaints from residents about the meeting procedure and perceptions that some participants were given an "undue advantage."

"The Ebenezer rezoning touched upon issues of paramount importance to the citizens of Milton, to include residential build-out, conservation issues, community septic, view shed corridors, and other issues that directly impact how Milton will look and feel over the next decade and beyond," he said. "Decisions of such magnitude should not be made at 12:30 a.m. when all involved are fatigued; when some in the gallery feel excluded; and when the meeting process was less than optimal."

Lockwood said he'd like the Council to review the rezoning petition a second time to ensure "the decision making process is appropriate that all such citizens -- irrespective of position -- belieive it fair and impartial."

"It may be that the Council makes the same decision as was made at 12:30 a.m. on April 26," he said. "If so, that is fine."

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