A proposed subdivision of townhomes at the northeast intersection of Windsor Spring and Boykin Roads represents one of the latest in burgeoning residential development plans popping up in south Augusta.
“South Augusta is an area largely characterized by a suburban pattern of development,” said the Augusta Planning and Development department’s staff report for a rezoning request at 2427 Boykin Rd. “Residential development is characterized by low-density subdivisions with mostly single-family detached units on uniform lots approximately ¼-acre in size.”
The rezoning request was submitted on June 6 by developer Jeff Logue, who plans to build 53 attached townhomes on an eight-acre parcel, owned by Steve Thibodeau, in an area currently zoned for farming and mobile homes.
The neighborhood, tentatively called the “Waddell Pate Subdivision,” would have residential lots averaging 2,566 square feet, as well as more than 2,000 feet of walking trails and sidewalks, a dog park, a gathering area and a pavilion.
MORE: Disc golfers clean up Lake Olmstead Park
The planning staff report for the petition, prepared by development services administrator Terri Turner, discusses the project’s consistency with Augusta’s Comprehensive Plan. Last updated in 2018, the Comprehensive Plan document lays out a vision for Augusta planning and development through 2035, including housing, land use, transportation and economic development.
Turner notes in the report that subdivision development started in part of south Augusta “as early as the 1940s and continues to the present day.” She then states that apartment complexes are scattered throughout the area, usually located close to shopping centers, employment centers and major roads.
“More recently, townhomes have been looked to as a viable housing option,” said Turner in the document, referencing as an example another project located at the intersection of Windsor Spring and Diamond Lakes Way. This development, called Windsor Spring Townhomes, is to include 39 townhomes, four lots per acre, at a property that used be part of the Manchester subdivision.
Windsor Spring Townhomes was the subject of a special exception request submitted by Evans-based COEL Development Co., which was approved by the Augusta Commission in January of 2021.
Turner indicates in the staff report that Augusta’s Comprehensive Plan has, and continues to, envisions for south Augusta a “mix of housing types,” at low-to-medium densities while still maintaining a “suburban-style, single-family residential character.”
MORE: Family trusts created by late burn center medical director at center of lawsuits
The planning department initially recommended that the developers of the proposed Waddell Pate neighborhood plan for 43 lots rather than 53. Bo Slaughter of engineering firm James G. Swift and Associates, speaking to the Planning Commission on behalf of Logue, noted the difficulty of maintaining the lots while also including amenities and open space.
The staff agreed that the developers could build 53 lots, and include all the amenities (per the staff’s list of conditions under which the rezoning could be approved) provided that the lots were at a minimum of 25 feet wide, a condition to which Slaughter agreed.
“Targeted neighborhoods are revitalized through code enforcement, removal of blight, infrastructure improvements and public-private investment in new and rehabilitated housing,” said Turner in the document.
The Planning Commission voted to approve rezoning the property at Boykin Road from A-Agricultural and R-MH manufactured home residential to R-1E single-family residential during its Aug. 1 meeting.
Skyler Q. Andrews is a staff reporter covering business for The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com.
