County Attorney Haygood Told Commissioners That Prezoning Raises Significant Issues They Need To Address

Oconee County Attorney Daniel Haygood told the Board of Commissioners last night that he has a list of at least 22 issues that he feels the commissioners need to address before the county can move forward with prezoning of property for development.

Haygood said the county should consider the consequences of abandoning the current approach of reviewing individual zoning requests and reflect on the method that will be used to select properties for prezoning.

He said the county needs to develop a process that would eliminate or reduce the “appearance of political favor or conflict.”

He said the county also should determine whether the current approach has caused any businesses to locate elsewhere. And it should look at other issues that may inhibit commercial and industrial development in the county.

The commissioners took no action following Haygood’s presentation, but they agreed to put the issue back on the agenda for discussion at the meeting next Tuesday night.

For more on the concerns Haygood listed, go to Oconee County Observations.