Supervisors stall on PUD decision

A Farley Road community opposition group to the rezoning of 94 acres for a highdensity Planned Unit Development must wait another few weeks to hear a board of supervisors decision.

The owners want to build a high-density subdivision near the Southeast Collierville Farms subdivision on Farley Road.

A well-organized group led by Mike Whitson and others say they know they cannot stop development opposite their subdivision, but they want a voice in what is built there.

They cite problems with flooding already taking place from land opposite their subdivision and a change in the character of the neighborhood, if the property is used for a PUD.

Southeast Collierville Farms consists of upscale homes on three-acre lots which offer country farm living in the rapidly expanding development in the area.

The Marshall County Zoning Commission voted not to allow the rezoning for the PUD.

PUD developers appealed the planning commission’s decision to pan the rezoning request with owner and engineer and partner John McCardy speaking on behalf of the PUD.

Whitson said there are 93 homes in his subdivision and over 70 percent of the homeowners are against the rezoning of the property within a half mile of Southeast Collierville Farms.

Homeowners do not want high-density zero-lots built across Barringer Road as their neighbors.

“We didn’t see the need for rezoning,” Whitson said. “The county is not growing that fast. Marshall County needs affordable housing, but the need has already been met.

Someone wants to change zoning to make a fast buck.”

He said high-density townhouses would totally change the character of the neighborhood.

There were 244 new housing starts last year in the county, he said.

“We’ve dealt with Mr. John Porter (one of three developers of the PUD) who developed Farley Ridge,” he said.

Whitson cited a number of actions against Porter from the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality for scraping off the vegetation and topsoil, allowing mud and silt to wash across his development into the Southeast Collierville Farms subdivision across the road. They say Porter pays his fines and continues the same pattern of development that creates erosion and silting.

“Why would we want to rezone this and enable him to do more damage to the community?” Whitson asked.

McCardy, speaking for the rezoning for the PUD, said there is a great deal of material change in the neighborhood already and there is still a great need for housing.

The community group said there was insufficient infrastructure (stores) in the area to support large populations in the area.

“A lot of housing is needed, especially with all the industrial development,” McCardy said. “It takes rooftops before building stores.”

He said he has done the development for Twin Lakes Subdivision.

Streets will be maintained by the homeowners association.

“What is John Porter’s involvement? asked District 1 supervisor Charles Terry.

“He’s one of three developers of this property,” McCardy said.

“How do you plan to deal with flooding?” Terry asked.

McCardy said developers would do a flood study to the creek and build detention ponds after doing a topological study.

“Gated or closed (community)?” asked district 4 supervisor George Zinn III.

McCardy said they would haul in soil to build the homes 18 inches above the flood plane and manage stormwater with proper size culverts.

District 3 supervisor Keith Taylor said the county has spent several weeks removing silt from the roads in the area and the ditches fill back up with silt.

“All of that should have been fixed years ago,” he said.

McCardy said the main problem has been undersized pipe under the roads.

“We will not build houses where it floods,” he said.

District 5 supervisor Ronnie Joe Bennett asked McCardy where the water was going if the elevation is raised 18 inches.

“Detention ponds,” McCardy said.

“All detention ponds I have seen are not worth 15 cents,” Bennett said. “If it fills up, the county has to go in and dig it out.”

“I have some similar concerns,” Zinn said. “A lot of dredging would have to be done in streams and creeks.”

“We will model everything all the way to the Coldwater River,” McCardy said.

Bennett said Moore Plantation subdivision silted in and the county had to clean out the ditches in that subdivision to stop flooding of homes and yards.

Taylor questioned how much dirt it would take to raise the elevation on those 94 acres 18 inches.

Board attorney Amanda Whaley Smith asked McCardy to speak to the argument of the conflict with the change of the character of the neighborhood.

“The cheapest home will be $350,000,” he said.

The Twin Lakes Community will be built by D.R. Horton a nationally recognized construction company.

“The argument for the infrastructure?” Smith asked.

“The infrastructure follows the rooftops,” he said. “Our goal is infrastructure will follow these houses. We have water and sewer in the area.”

Terry asked what would be done to guarantee the developers would take care of the community in the aftermath.

McCardy said he has done a number of these developments and he gives his word the flow of water (stormwater runoff) will not be an issue.

“This is nothing new to us,” Bennett said. “They forget about you. When they get their money they are gone. You can give anybody your word. I don’t know you. If anything is done it is going to be done legally. It’s not going to be your word.”

“If you want bonds, we’re good with it,” McCardy said.

Terry asked if bonds could be put in place to cover more years.

“This board has a wide latitude to set additional requirements,” Smith said. “There’s lots of other requirements they will have to meet. I would just ask who has submitted a plan to the planning commission. I would ask all documents be marked as exhibits to this public hearing.”

Supervisors passed a motion to table the issue while more thought can be put into the matter.

“I’m not against growth,” Taylor said. “Flooding on Farley Road should have been addressed before development.”