Changes to plans for a portion of the Sterling on the Lake subdivision got first reading approval from the Flowery Branch City Council Thursday, but not without several concerns from nearby residents.
The proposed changes are for plans for a more-than 23 acre tract of land on the north edge of the development that originally meant to be part of "Pod Z", a section that features lower density housing than other parts of the neighborhood. The developers, Looper Lake, LLC, now want to disconnect the tract from that pod and connect it to the "Knutson Tract", a higher density section that is currently being built that will have direct access to Capitola Farm Road.
The changes would see the number of lots in the tract increase from 12 to 55. Brian Rochester of Rochester and Associates, speaking on behalf of Looper Lake, said the additional lots would still not make the neighborhood exceed the 2,000 total lots that the subdivision was originally approved for.
Several residents of "Pod Z" spoke against the changes, with most of the concerns being about added traffic to Capitola Farm Road.
"(each home) at a minimum will have two cars each average. If it's a family like mine, because I have teenagers, I'll end up with 4 cars in my house," resident Allison Hackett said. "So what is the city of Flowery Branch going to do if this goes through and there are...110 more vehicles using Capitola to get to Spout Springs (Road)."
City Councilman Joe Anglin agreed that there would need to be changes to the current road structure to support not only the new Knutson Tract development, but an additional lot that is still in future plans that would also access Capitola Farm Road.
"We're shifting the density to a spot where there's going to be an additional about 40 homes, and it's going to be in a spot where you're going to be funneling a lot of traffic right now onto a road that's going to have a difficult time handling that without being jazzed up a little bit," Anglin said.
Anglin said another concern was how traffic would handle the new Spout Springs widening, which will feature a median that won't allow for left turns out of Capitola Farm Road. He said he's worried that will spill traffic onto either Lake Sterling Boulevard or Hog Mountain Road.
"I think (Hog Mountain Road) itself lends itself to have some problems because it's so windy," Anglin said. "If somebody new moves into that particular area, I think that they're going to be surprised."
Rochester said that the developers would be in favor of a left turn out of Capitola Farm Road, but he told the council that the city may need to get involved to help persuade Hall County to make a break in the median of Spout Springs Road. Hall County will regain control of the road once the widening is complete.
The first reading for the changes was approved unanimously, but it will face final approval at the second reading at the council's next meeting.
Radford Road rezoning gets final OK
The city council gave final approval at the meeting to a rezoning that will allow for a proposed subdivision between Radford Road and Gainesville Street on the south side of McEver Road. The subdivision is planned to feature 60 single-family detached homes.
Council approves movie ordinance and code changes for alcohol definitions
The city council also gave second reading approval a film and motion picture ordinance that will set guidelines for companies wishing to film in the city. According to city staff, the ordinance is similar to one recently passed by the Hall County Commission.
Also getting a final approval was a change to the city's code that creates more specific definitions for alcohol sales. The primary changes are setting definitions for growlers and package stores. One local store owner spoke at the meeting saying she was pleased with the changes and was happy with the direction the city was taking with their alcohol regulations.
