Controversy surrounded a developer’s petition to rezone two parcels along Grovetown’s bustling Lewiston Road corridor during the Columbia County Planning Commission’s meeting Thursday night.
Matt DeMeyers of Matthews Development, alongside landowners Susan Hayslip and Kyoto Inc., had requested to rezone 426 Lewiston Road and 5136 Autumn Trail, two tracts totaling 3.24 acres, from General Commercial (C-2) and Single-family Residential (R-1) to Community Commercial (C-C).
There DeMeyers intends to build a new restaurant, depicted in the concept plan as an Olive Garden, and a drive-thru bank with accompanying parking, sharing one access driveway along both their road frontages.
Planner Dylan Douglas explained that 426 Lewiston Road had been rezoned from R-1 to C-2 in 2016, but the Lewiston Road Widening absorbed some of its space, rendering it virtually undevelopable without variances. One such variance request was voted down in 2020.
The plan to combine it with another residential parcel behind it, 5136 Autumn Trail, is proposed to remedy this issue.
Douglas also noted that, should the rezoning be approved and the site developed, it would establish a continuing rear lot line across the commercial properties, from Pinnacle Bank and Popeye’s to AutoZone and Longhorn Steakhouse, “kind of creating a pretty uniform separation between the residential development behind them, as well as the commercial development closer to Lewiston Road.”
Planning staff recommended approval of the request, the single driveway access one of its several conditions.
However, a crowd of residents of the Autumn Trail Sugarcreek subdivision, west of the subject properties, did not approve.
Homeowner Doug Thornton questioned the necessity of developing at the site, saying, “There’s a significant impact with noise pollution, light pollution, water pollution, environmental impact with water runoff and just the fact that there’s other places available to build these properties.”
His wife, Julie Thornton, was among several who cited concerns that proposed driveway access would provide insufficient space for growing traffic, and cause many drivers to turn onto Autumn Trail to make their way back on to Lewiston.
“So who is going to upkeep my driveway when all of these people are using my driveway turn around?” she said.
Sugarcreek resident Tom Petrak also underscored potential traffic congestion, asking the Planning Commission and staff if a traffic study had been conducted at the site. Planning director Will Butler told Petrak that the traffic engineers can provide the data informing its conclusion that the site will have the capacity for the expected traffic.
“My concern is that the exit and entrance for the Olive Garden… off of Autumn Trail, that will impact the residents in autumn trail,” said Petrak. “In none of the discussion did I hear anything about anybody ever looking into the impact… not only on our street, but on Lewiston Road, specifically during rush hour.”
Grovetown resident Cassandra Wyatt urged the planning commissioners to see “the big picture,” citing a host of concerns ranging from water erosion and runoff to pollution to the growing traffic congestion along the corridor to impact emergency services or even, considering the proximity to Fort Eisenhower, national security.
“I don’t think that it should be developed at all. I think that should be a safe space, because you have a lot of traffic now backed up and it’s stalling I-20,” said Wyatt. “I’m all for free enterprise. I understand that people have to make money. They have to make a living, but there needs to be some greater good here to do the right thing for the for the amount of the people that we have, but also for the community in the long run.”
All the planning commissioners, save for James Van Meter, who was absent, voted to recommend approval of the rezoning with staff’s conditions. Amid vocal disapproval of the decision, Commission Chair Mark Moody reiterated that the Planning Commission is a recommending body, and that the Board of Commissioners have the final say on the rezoning
The Board of Commissioners is slated to consider the rezoning request in its meeting on Tuesday, March 18.
Skyler Andrews is a reporter covering business for The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com.
