Remarks by Billie Jo Underwood
212 remarks on the record, newest first · Page 5 of 9
Go with the requested amount. All right.
Mr. Chairman, I'd like to make a comment about the CDBGDR grants. That was something that was a result from the hurricanes that happened almost six years ago, but you've got to understand that that is federal monies flowing through ADECA, flowing to us, and unfortunately on the the ones that are disaster relief that have the DR behind them, Congress gets in the way of giving us the rules. And so it has been one of those arduous processes, and I know that the average person would think that's ridiculous that it takes that long, but you can thank DC for that, not us.
Yes, I'm good with that as well. I wish we could do this. P&Z cases that fast.
Well, you ain't on the ballot, though. You can say it.
Could I interrupt you for a second? There is a lot of information that I would love to share with you, but I think it would require us having a one-on-one meeting with some of our staff members of how the county commission actually works with this and there's been no intentions to leave out people who live here because I'm one of those people but you know there's opportunity cost and where you live and so I'll be happy to give you my card and let's have a one-on-one conversation about this and then maybe look for a path forward.
You know, I didn't mean to say, you know, I believe there's a lot to learn. And one of my favorite sayings, and I know everybody gets tired of hearing me saying this is people don't know what they don't know and they don't know what they think they know. And I'm one of those sometimes, but I strive to find out. So yeah, I would really because we're very limited in what we do because the service providers are provided by for-profit companies and you yourself would not run one line way out. But when everybody transitioned from having a regular home telephone and they all went to cell phones,…
Well, that's up to the chairman. You've got this.
Thank you, sir. And if you will, the two guys right there, right behind you, Frank Lundy and the guy raising his hand, if you will give your contact information to them, those will be, and plus Brian is our CIS, those right there behind you are going to be the staff members that we're going to need to engage so that you can understand where we are with this. Okay? Thank you. Thank you.
Do you want to do the highway item before all these public hearings?
I would also like to say that I think that that intersection trumps the other request, and as much as I appreciate everything Mike Bond does for Blakely, and I think Blakely's a worthwhile cause, and I think that that's an opportunity, but I think that when I talked to Mike, I told him that I would rely on the data and the facts, and I think the data and the facts, because ATRIP is for a safety improvement project, and we rarely get one of those grants anyways, and I think that it needs to be the one that, Is, is for a, a, a more right. Where's you safety factor included in that? And I mean…
And one more quick thing is that, you know, there are future plans to four-lane that all the way down, but that's taking, like... Forever. Okay.
Mark, I don't know what that meant, Mark.
Mr. Chairman, I'll make a motion that we adopt our consent agenda, including the addenda items GA1, 2, and 3, and setting the revenue commissioner's salary at the requested amount.
I do have a question. That was my number one question was, What conversations has the city had with the applicant? So can you tell me, have you had direct conversations with the applicant from your leadership?
I understand that. I just wanted to know if there was a conversation about annexation because you are contiguous on two sides of this property, and when it's that close to a city, that is what it should happen, in my opinion. But I've talked to the applicant, and he said that he is willing to annex in But he's also reduced this down to an RSF1, which is, I don't know what you guys would bring him in as. I think that your minimum R1, how it comes in, would be 20,000 square feet, and this would be actually a larger footprint. So I'm happy if you guys want to bring it in, but I think that you've…
Then are you willing to do that right away?
You guys have been in the same room all morning and you've not even talked about this.
Well, this is just an actual request for change of use. I completely understand. And all those things would be addressed if that 400 and something acres were to be asked to be subdivided. But all we're doing is changing the use of 400 and something acres.
I'm going to make a comment as well. Concerning subdivisions, as far as we have passed new subdivision regulations in January of 2025, I don't really think we're seeing the benefit and the fruit of that yet. And there was one mention that was over there. It was approved prior to the 2025 subdivision regulation upgrades and those were considerable improvements that were made to the subdivision regulation so the old approvals that are in place now and some of those that you may some of you in the audience may even be living in some of those subdivisions I'm not going to ask you to show your…
Mr. Chairman, I make a motion we approve this request.
One more question. One more thing. I would just encourage that just because this got approved as a County, it takes a very, very long time for subdivision process and the city of Spanish fort can
Mr. Chairman, I just want to make a comment that there's been many, many times when we see a piece of property that is farmland and when you look at the natural drainage that flows across there. I'm, I'm a CPA by trade. I am not an engineer, but I listened to engineers and they explained to me how that that's how the good Lord made that prop property. And that's the drainage that's coming across that property. And but then comes along man and man is gonna have to take care of that if he's going to develop that property. And so that's what those subdivision regulations, are for, and that's why…
You know, this property was voted into zoning in 2023, just a little over three years ago. And... You are zoned RSF2 right now. You could apply for a PRD and you could achieve your 12,500 square foot lots if it was, I'm making sure my planning staff is, I'm not giving you bad information, but I concur with Jeb that there is absolutely nothing that could prevent you from doing 10,000 square foot lots. lots on a regular subdivision. So that's all.
The objection is between 10,000 and 15,000 square foot lots. As far as how you configure those and you lay them out and you go through the subdivision processes, that's a whole different step. You're already zoned for residential single family two, which was created during the platting, the map process when this came under zoning and everything around that has the same coloring just about, you know? And so the fact that there's a potential, if there's a potential hardship or something on your property, that would be addressed in a PRD. So I mean, you know, if this vote goes against you, you…
Not under, but that's the whole point of doing the PRD.