By Andrew Wilkins

The Walker County Planning Commission is considering an ordinance that would change how public hearings for zoning and planning issues are conducted. A county resident is concerned that the changes would hurt the public’s opportunity to give input on how their community is developed.

The public process in place now lets everyone who wants to testify on issues like re-zoning requests speak, said Melissa Hulsey, a Walker County resident who tracks local government.

“If you had 50 people that wanted to speak, you know, everybody would be given an opportunity to say what they wanted to say,” she said in a phone call. 

The proposed ordinance would limit testimony to 12 minutes for supporters of a proposal and 12 minutes for the opposition.

A screenshot from the draft of the proposed ordinance that would change public hearing procedures for zoning and other planning-related matters.

See the full text of the proposed ordinance on Page 12 of the Walker County Planning Commission meeting agenda at this link. A recommendation on the ordinance is expected to be voted on by the commission at the Thursday, June 26 meeting, the commission’s chair said, but the county commission has the final authority on passing ordinances.

Hulsey said some planning commission hearings about controversial zoning decisions have lasted up to three hours, because so many community members wanted to have their opinion heard.

Another concern about the ordinance, Hulsey said, is that the commission’s presiding officer would get to choose who comments from attendees who raise their hands— a process that she said gives the presiding officer a lot of power and could be unfair.

The process could easily be “staged,” she said, by having the presiding officer choose someone who is uninformed on the issue or who isn’t an actual opponent of what’s being proposed.

Randy Pittman, chair of the planning commission, was contacted through Facebook but said he didn’t have time to be interviewed. He did say the ordinance is expected to be voted on at the Thursday, June 26 planning commission meeting.

Walker County’s planning commission has nine members, and three seats are vacant, according to the commission’s website. Its website also said planning commission members are not allowed to have ex parte (outside the meetings) discussions about issues to be voted on by the commission.

Angie Teems, chair of the county commission, said in an email that she didn’t have a comment on the issue.

Walker County Planning Commission meetings are held at the County Civic Center in Rock Spring.

Among other changes, the proposed ordinance would also move authority to approve special use permits (Page 107) from the planning commission to the county commission. If the ordinance passes, the planning commission would only give recommendations on special use permits.

Most meetings are held on the third Thursday of the month, but this month’s meeting is Thursday, June 26 because of the Juneteenth holiday. The meetings begin at 6 p.m.

Monthly Walker County Planning Commission meetings are held at the Walker County Civic Center (10052 US-27, Rock Spring).

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Contact Andrew Wilkins at andrewtaylorwilkins@gmail.com or 971-337-5285. To subscribe to Village NW Georgia, tap the Subscribe button at the bottom right corner of the page, or send him an email.