City Council Vote on Groveway Zoning Ordinance

Roswell Citizens,

It was an interesting night at the Roswell City Council meeting on Monday. A lengthy discussion was conducted on the Groveway zoning ordinance, a form-based zoning concept designed to spur development in this area of Roswell where new projects are definitely needed. Sides had been drawn before the meeting, with the proponents of the zoning ordinance on one side. On the other side were people like me who just learned about the project and wanted to learn more before an important vote was taken. Other people in opposition had known about the project since its inception and were opposed for various reasons. 

Why the opposition?

1.  Very little citizen involvement. Despite five years in the works, the city’s Groveway timeline indicates 120 people were involved in the project. This represents 0.14 percent of the city’s population. Were more involved than documented? Probably, but still a tiny fraction of our population. Many, such as me, just found out when the City recently added a Groveway link on its homepage. Why the lack of involvement? Perhaps apathy, but perhaps communication. I have lived less than one mile from city hall for eight years, and operated a business in Groveway for two years and just found out about the project two weeks ago.
2. Form-based zoning. While progressive, this zoning methodology must be done properly. The zoning document produced by the city contained grammar errors, conflicting statements, errors and omissions. Since land use and building density are not prescribed or contemplated, no real numbers were provided to determine the number of new residents, thus:
3. Infrastructure needs. No part of the produced documentation by the city or its consultants addressed the thousands of new residents of this area and their impact on the water supply, sewer needs, schools, or roads. Who will pay for the new infrastructure? By what means?
4. Greenville Study Group – a large group of city staff and volunteers went to Greenville, SC recently to learn of the remarkable turnaround of their downtown area. A key learning – that Greenville used very specific project-based zoning to accomplish their revitalization and not form-based zoning. 

What happened in the city council meeting?

Public discourse was allowed and there were many speakers. Each person could speak once, with no follow up. A few speakers resorted to personal attacks, while most were cordial and simply spoke their minds. It appeared that all had the best interests of Roswell at heart. Most of the city council sat speechless during the discussion. Councilman Kent Igleheart alone was active in interaction with the public and the Mayor Jere Wood. After over two hours of public comment is was time for the city council to discuss the proposal and vote. It appeared to me that Councilman Igleheart was the only council member who had read the zoning proposal in great detail. He went through a long list of grammar mistakes, confusing sentences, conflicting statements, other errors and omissions. It was shocking that a process in place for five years had produced a document so full of errors. 

Upon learning of the many problems with the zoning document, as the lone councilman pointed out, did the leader of the city, Mayor Wood, push to postpone the vote in order to get the document correct and properly vetted? No, instead he pushed Councilman Igleheart to make motions to correct the document on the fly, even though the councilman is neither an architect nor an attorney. This comedic process went on for nearly an hour, with Mayor Wood bouncing the edited ideas between his various councilpersons, the City Attorney David Davidson, and the City Planner Brad Townsend. I can’t imagine in business that discussion on a document that flawed would have continued past that moment. I was embarrassed for Roswell.

The outcome – as obvious from the start, the vote was 5-1 for the zoning ordinance, with Councilman Igleheart the lone vote against. Will Roswell get what it wants in Groveway? Only if the developers choose do what is right instead of what the zoning ordinance says they must do or what makes them the most money. Since the zoning ordinance gives them so much leeway, what do you think they will do? As a councilman stated just before the vote, this vote was a “leap of faith.” 

Indeed, but is this how governance is supposed to work?