Commissioners to appoint new land use committee

The Alleghany County Board of Commissioners agreed on Monday morning to form a committee to further study land use regulations.

The commissioners each were to submit a list of three names to serve on the committee before their next regularly scheduled meeting, which is set for June 6 at 6:30 p.m.

County Recreation Director and Planner Amy Pardue was asked to compile the names and let the commissioners know if there were duplicates or other problems.

All the commissioners also agreed to use the former land use guidance plan as a basis for their current talks.

Commissioner Eldon Edwards said the plan was killed by a vote of the board without ever officially being reviewed. Edwards and J. Warren Taylor both worked on the plan prior to its first presentation in 1994. Commissioner Sandy Carter Herndon praised the work of the earlier committee. “A lot of thought went into what was done back then,” she said. She noted the plan would need to be updated for ‘today’s world, but stated, “It would be a shame not to utilize this and try to reinvent the wheel and start all over again.”

Edwards agreed, noting that there was valuable information in the original document.

The land use plan, as written earlier, would require the majority of a property owner’s neighbors to approve of any change of property use before the change could be voted on by the county.

Edwards noted that recent discussion on a lawnmower track in the mountain view community could have been avoided if the plan was in place. “If the plan had been in effect at that time, then the neighbors could have had a say,” Edwards said.

“I would very much like to see us pursue it and use this as our working document,” Herndon said.

Taylor said, “I think the county planner needs to be the coordinator of the work....” He further noted that the county would need close to 12 committee members to ensure a broad representation of the county. Commissioner Ken Richardson said he also was in favor of using what had already been done. “Having done some this already should make this easier for all of us,” he said.

Commissioner Graylen Blevins said the plan contained “valuable information on what not to do if it got shot down 10 years ago.” He noted that he appreciated the ability to appoint representatives on the committee.

The commissioners agreed to look at the list to ensure it was representative of the county. “Agriculture, legal, business and all of those different areas need to be represented,” said Taylor. Richardson noted, “For this to have credibility, (committee members) need to have some assurance that we will look at this.”

Blevins asked that any meetings on the topic be held in the evenings, so most citizens would be able to attend.

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