The Baldwin City Council voted Monday night to annex 132.65 acres of unincorporated land on the south end of Habersham County into the city. The unanimous 4-0 vote followed a lengthy public hearing and discussion with residents concerned about potential developments.
The parcel in question sits in the Thompson Road, Alto Mud Creek Road area near GA 365. The land is owned by Acres & Acres, LLC.
Lula Capital LLC., the developer involved in the residential development that sparked controversy last year in Baldwin, has expressed interest in the property although, at this time, the developer has no plans for the land.
Packed house
The council meeting had the largest gathering of citizens it had seen in more than a year, with every seat in the municipal courtroom full by the time the public hearing began. The meeting took around two hours; the council heard every citizen’s comments, took questions, and offered explanations throughout the meeting.
“From the looks on their [the citizens’] faces and the energy that I was feeling in the room, I feel like one thing is for sure, we did a heck of a better job than we did the last time,” Baldwin Councilwoman Alice Venter said, referencing the annexation involved in last year’s residential development controversy. “I really hope that they felt […] like we were willing to listen to them and we were willing to take into consideration their concerns.”
Many of the citizens who spoke shared the sentiment that apartments and the development that may come along with them would take away from the rural atmosphere of Habersham County.
“Habersham County is known as a rural area, and we citizens would like to keep it that way,” resident Terri Rogers said. “If we start zoning this out into a multifamily unit, it’s going to cause an increase in 365 [trafic], which is already a very dangerous highway.”
Rogers wasn’t the only one to express concern about the impact residential developments would have on traffic in the area, noting the tragic wreck that occurred at the intersection just south of the one in question that claimed the lives of an Alto woman and her 5-year-old nephew.
“I don’t know if you guys are keeping a tally on how many wrecks and deaths are happening on 365 between Duncan Bridge and Highway 52, but it seems like each month, there are more and more wrecks,” said Baldwin citizen Tom Weyrich. “The greater number of apartment buildings and commercial entities that come in, the more traffic we have, the more this is going to become normal.”
Baldwin council members assured citizens their concerns were heard and explained steps they would take and shared insight that affected their concerns.
“At all times I value citizen comments, but it’s also incumbent upon the council to educate the citizens so they have all the info,” Councilwoman Stephanie Almagno said. “There are never easy answers to complex questions, and tonight was a really complex question. It was emotional because this is people’s largest investment. This is an investment in their community, their future [and] their family.”
The council explained the annexation process, zoning, minimum development standards, traffic studies, growth in the county and growth expected to come due to Hall County’s inland port to citizens, as well as addressed individual concerns.
“They [the citizens] needed the information that we had, and that’s why we took so much time tonight,” Almagno said. “Somebody came up to me and said, ‘I didn’t know all of that was going on,’ and the gentleman appreciated us taking the time to help them through it.”
Councilmember Alice Venter made the motion to approve the annexation and Theron Ayers seconded it; the second reading and final vote for the annexation will take place Monday, Nov. 15 at 6:30 p.m. in the Balwin Municipal Courtroom.
The Council maintains the annexation will give the city more control over any developments that come to that parcel in the coming years. While there currently are no plans for the land, the area is zoned for multi-family residential and light industrial use.
