Planning Commission - Regular Meeting

I'd like to call to order the May 21st, 2026 Planning Commission meeting. Please stand for the invocation given by Russell Wilder and the Pledge of Allegiance by Jamie Lester.

You got a word by with us? Dear Lord, we want to thank you for this beautiful day. We want to thank you for all the things you bestow upon this community. We ask you to look over our law enforcement, our first responders, our fire and rescue folks as they look out for us day and night, every day of the week. We want to ask that you lead us, guide us, and look over all the leaders of our county, of our state, and of this country to do the right things and to lead in a way that's proper for all of us. We ask all these things in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen.

Okay, we do have a quorum this evening, full quorum. Gentlemen, you had a chance to review the minutes from the previous meeting. I need approval of that agenda.

Mr. Chairman, a recommendation for approval of the May 7th meeting minutes?

Second. I have a motion and a second. All those in favor, raise your right hand. Motion carries. And gentlemen, I need approval of the agenda this evening.

Mr. Chairman, recommend approval of tonight's agenda.

We have an addition.

The agenda under new business. Okay, new business.

Okay, I need approval of this evening's agenda with the addition of the final plat of Patriot Square.

Mr. Chairman, approval of tonight's agenda with the addition of the final plat of Patriot Square. Second.

I have a motion and a second. All those in favor, raise your right hand. Motion carries. Before we begin, I'd like to take a moment to clarify that the Planning Commission is a recommending body of the Columbia County Board of Commissioners. The decisions made on rezoning and variance requests tonight will be forwarded to the commissioners for final action on June 2, 2026. If you wish to address the Board of Commissioners at their meeting, please see Ms. Mixon to obtain a Request to Speak form. Any request with a public hearing will have a minimum of 10 minutes permitted per side for the presentation of opinions, data, and evidence by proponents or opponents of a request. The applicant will be allowed to speak first, and any member of the public may speak after. Either side may cede their time during the hearing if they so desire. Getting into the debate agenda, we'll start with the final plat of Patriot Square. Will?

This is a request for a final plat for Patriot Square, located at 2207 William Fee Parkway, 20.51 acres, currently zoned CC, community commercial. It's for nine lots. This is the location of the property, and also the zoning is currently zoned CC. To the north and east, you have Patriot Park. Across the street, you have some more CC, RA across from there as well. The next one is to the south. Again, it's intersection of William Fee and Columbia. It shows the final plaque in creation of nine parcels, so they meet all the requirements of lot and structure requirements. Staff recommends approval of this request, and it shows the overall development plan. Kind of what you're looking at here is you have the access roads going into it, the large parcel at the back, the out parcels along William Few and Columbia. This is following a little bit of a different path. We're approving the plat before the utilities are totally installed. They need to sell a lot to make their project work, so we're going to do that for them at this point. Again, staff recommends approval of the final plat.

Okay, this is the final plat of Patriot Square. There's no public participation in this. Gentlemen, can I get a motion? Well, first, do we have any comments or questions?

No.

Okay. Can I get approval?

Mr. Chairman, I recommend approval of the final plat for Patriot Square at 2207 William P. Parkway. Second.

I have a motion and a second of approval. Raise your right hand if you approve. Motion carries. Getting into the public hearing side, H1A1, RZ260506, and this is Danielle.

Yes, sir. This is a request for a conditional use for massage at 120 North Bel Air Road. This shows the location of the property on the west side of North Bel Air, just north of Columbia Road, and it is currently zoned C2 General Commercial, as are the adjacent properties to the north and south, and there is residential property behind the site to the west. It shows the area of the site. It is an existing commercial, a couple existing commercial businesses. You can see here the existing salon and day spa signage on the building. The proposal is to add a massage therapist within this existing salon. This location previously did have a massage therapist prior to the conditional use requirements. However, there's not been one there for over 12 months, so they've lost that nonconforming status. So they need the conditional use approval to allow a massage therapist to move back in. This is within the community commercial kind of activity area on the future development map. This type of commercial use is very appropriate in this area, and it's locating within the existing business, and staff is recommending approval.

Thank you, Danielle. With the owners of Jackson Senior Junior LLC, Billy Jackson Junior, or applicant of Hair Concepts, if you would like to come forward and add anything to the narrative, state your name and address for the record, please.

Billy Jackson, 2863, no, 2823, don't you worry about that. Okay. We just, thank y'all for being here, showing up to help us job in the county. Anyway, we had a, when we opened this up, we had a massage therapist there. And over time, especially when COVID hit, we lost about everybody that we had. So then when they came back, and the county had went to the thing, and we had issues with massage problems or whatever. We had it. And then we failed to reissue up. Then we had a massage therapist come in and start working. And when she went to get her license, we realized that we weren't approved anymore. So that's what we signed up for. So we just ask for your help on that.

Okay. Thank you. We have any questions? No. Okay. Thank you. Anyone else here would like to speak in favor or against? Gentlemen, can I get a motion for approval or disapproval?

Mr. Chairman, I make a motion to recommend approval of file RZ26-05-06, Conditional Use for Therapeutic Massage at 120 North Bel Air Road. I'll second.

I have a motion and a second for approval. All those in favor, raise your right hand. Motion carries. Next item up is H1A2, RZ260507, a rezoning. And this is Will.

There's a request for rezoning at 406 North Bel Air and 61 Ponder Place, about 2.64 acres. Curling's MP1 professional rezoned a CC for proposed commercial development. Here's a location of the property that's out in front of the Ponder Place Professional Park on North Bel Air Road. You can currently zone P1. You can see all of Ponder Place Professional as zone professional. Cross Street has some more P1 and a PUD for Windy Hill. To the west there you have R2, and then Town Park is kind of to the north on this map here. Here's the overview of the site. In the existing site, this is the one at Ponder Place, and this is the one on Bel Air Road. which is a plot of two properties. And they're all concept plans. What we're looking at is about an 8,000 square foot building with a bank and then retail or it could be a restaurant and then the rest of it. I kind of bought it in that manner. This is a non-binding concept plan. They want to make that very clear. This is one that... It may be developed in a little different manner. This is an Evanstown Center overlay, so it does have the five foot minimum and 125 max. This actually meets those requirements with the corner lot, which is a little difficult to do. One thing with this as well, the other track, track B that's shown here, is up for rezoning as well. There's no concept plan on it. The other thing, too, with this, when it was rezoned in, I believe it was 2013 or 14, was a condition put on this regarding, or a lot of conditions put on this regarding quite a few things. There was a revision to those conditions in 2024, removed lots of the conditions themselves. There is one for signage that is going to carry over. There's also a variance that removed the max setback off the center line. driveway there, but they're not removed off Ponder Place and North Bel Air Road. So we'll have to meet those max setback requirements as it is developed. In terms of the architecture, again, it is an Evanstown Center. They have noted that they're going to kind of base this off of their other development over at Greenpoint, which has an idea of what it may look like. Again, we have said, hey, probably need to come in for some more discussions on that as we develop the property. As far as future development, this is in a little bit of an interesting kind of area. You have the traditional neighborhood that it is within. It's also in a commercial corridor. One thing with a traditional neighborhood, again, it sounds like it's all residential. It actually does allow for some basically community uses and neighborhood uses. So it's ones you could probably argue C1 and P1 pretty easily. CC might be the highest you could really get in a traditional neighborhood. It is on a commercial corridor, though, as well. That does call for more restaurants, more higher commercial uses, we'll say. So that's kind of where CC kind of fits into that. So staff has really no concerns from a future development standpoint. We are recommending carrying over the condition regarding all ground-mounted signs that will be monument-based and set up records approval with that condition. I do accept that recommendation.

Thank you, Will. Will the owners, James E. Rhodes and Pregnant Choices Incorporated or Applicant Pumpkin Center Properties LLC would like to come forward and add anything? Just state your name and address for the record, please.

Bo Slaughter. I'm at 1428 White Rock Road, Lincolnton. I'm here representing the applicant, Pumpkin Center, and here for any questions you may have about the buildings or proposed use. As Will said, it's preliminary right now. This is what they would like to do.

Okay. Y'all have any questions, comments?

I guess I got one small one. It ain't no big deal. That road that's there to the left, is that going to split both of those properties eventually?

Yes, sir. It winds back, and there's an ingress-egress reserved over that drive. Thank you. Yes, sir.

Any more? You've got to show a bank as one. Have you got already somebody interested in doing that?

Yes, he's actually been spoken with, and now they may not do a drive-through. They may go with a smaller. They're working on it. Okay.

Okay, any more questions? Thank you. Thank you. Anyone else who would like to speak in favor or against? Gentlemen, can I get a recommendation of approval or disapproval of this?

Mr. Chairman, I make a motion to recommend approval with condition of file RZ26-05-07 rezoning from P1 to CC at 406 North Bel Air Road and 601 Ponder Place Drive. Second.

I have a motion on the floor and a second of approval. All those in favor, raise your right hand. Motion carries 4-0. I'm sorry, 5-0. We have no legal matters. Not tonight. I don't see Attorney Driver here. Any staff or commissioner comments to make? Any more public comments or participation? You can have the podium if you would like. I see none. Gentlemen, can I get the final motion here?

Yes, sir. Motion to adjourn. Second.

I have a motion and a second for adjournment. All those in favor, raise your right hand. We are adjourned.