North Augusta City Council approved the first reading of an ordinance rezoning a tract on W. Five Notch Road to allow a developer to build five apartments.
Developer Glynn Bruker, owner of Hardy Land, LLC., wants to remove the carwash at 322 W. Five Notch Rd., near the intersection with Pisgah Road, to build the apartments. He also owns the adjacent property and is building townhomes on that land.
The planning commission had approved the apartments and forwarded it for council consideration.
Mayor Briton Williams and councilman Eric Presnell had questioned the proposal during the Sept. 12 study session. Both said it was unusual to build an apartment building for rentals beside townhomes, which will be sold to buyers. Presnell also questioned approving more apartment construction.
“I just wanted to understand the thought process of why five apartments? These look nice, but I’m just trying to kind of understand your thought process is this something that came up down the road. Just kind of walk us through it,” Williams asked.
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Bruker said he considers the carwash, which is not operational, to be an eyesore.
“And I wanted to control what went on it. I didn’t want anything that would deter sales from the townhouses. I decided to build five apartments on it which I tend to keep. I’m 72. I wanted some income for retirement. So, my plans are to keep the five apartments and sell the townhouse,” he said.
With questions answered, council voted unanimously to approve the rezoning on the first reading. The second reading will be at the Oct. 3 meeting.
Also on the agenda was a resolution to hire someone to remove 54 bald cypress trees within the Hammond’s Ferry subdivision.
“We do not have that capability in house to do so. Ultimately, that would come at a cost of $20,000 or so that we would have out of the general fund for this year,” said city administrator Jim Clifford. “What we’re seeing with the bald cypress trees is they have these knobby parts of the root that come up significantly, because as they water, they end up coming up at a pretty significant clip.”
Residents are concerned the roots will intrude into their yards and eventually into their homes’ foundations causing potentially significant damage.
Councilman Bob Brooks asked who had planted the trees, the subdivision’s developer or the city. Clifford explained they had been planted by the developer, but the city accepted responsibility for the trees.
“I don’t think the city should be doing this,” Brooks responded. “I think we are setting a precedent around trees that are planted around sidewalks, either by the city or by property owners. I just think we need to table this until we get more information.”
Council voted unanimously to table the matter. Clifford was instructed to confer with the Municipal Association of South Carolina for guidance on how best to handle the situation.
In other action, council approved a resolution authorizing a contract to building a new Regional Materials Recovery Processing (MURF) building. The original facility was destroyed in a Nov. 25, 2021, fire.
Dana Lynn McIntyre is a general assignment reporter for The Augusta Press. Reach her at dana@theaugustapress.com
