HISTORY OF LAND USE IN CHATT HILLS
Chattahoochee Hill Country Overlay District: The community's first Smart Growth Plan
From: Keep it Rural Thesis: The politics for planning for smart growth in South Fulton County, Georgia (Eric John Christianson 2014)
From: Keep it Rural Thesis: The politics for planning for smart growth in South Fulton County, Georgia (Eric John Christianson 2014)
In early 2001, Stephan Nygren, a resident of unincorporated South Fulton County, Georgia approached the county’s planning body, the Department of Environment & Community Development (E&CD), with an idea: he wanted to organize a community-led process to protect some of the last undeveloped green space in the county. Only a few miles from Atlanta, South Fulton County’s woodlands, rolling pastures, and small communities stood in stark contrast to the rest of the metropolitan area. Although he was just beginning to reach out to other residents, Nygren had already quietly built support from some of the largest landowners in the area. South Fulton County had, up to that point, remained largely undeveloped despite its proximity to the city of Atlanta, the center of the ninth largest metropolitan area in the United States and by far the most sprawling. Now the same kind of low-density residential development that had earned the metropolitan the nickname “the poster child of sprawl” was moving south quickly in their direction.
Nygren had convinced these landowners that through smart planning and by taking advantage of new state programs, they could amend the current land use plan to save much of this land from development while retaining or even increasing their return on investment.
No one could have predicted then what the Chattahoochee Hill Country Alliance (CHCA), Nygren’s newly formed group of residents and developers, would accomplish just over a year later. Shepherded by CHCA, a new and surprisingly progressive land use plan would be passed with hardly any vocal opposition. The county commissioners supported it unanimously and a large crowd gathered in support of the passage of plan and its associated legal reforms. In
addition to local support, the plan won nation-wide recognition for its vision, “a case study for stopping sprawl,” and the inclusivity of the planning process. More than 600 of the 2,400 residents of the area took part directly in the meetings that helped shape the plan, and not a single resident showed up to oppose the plan at commission meetings.
[Notes]
Eric John Christianson's thesis offers an excellent academic account of how the foundation of Chatt Hill's Land Use Plan evolved.
Stephen (Steve) Nygren's "Remembering the Effort" series offers his personal account of the community effort he led, of the formation of the Chattahoochee Hill Country Alliance (CHCA) and its Community Plan, and of the resulting Chattahoochee Hill Country Overlay District which was adopted by Fulton County and would later become the foundation for the city of Chattahoochee Hills Land Use Plan.
Nygren had convinced these landowners that through smart planning and by taking advantage of new state programs, they could amend the current land use plan to save much of this land from development while retaining or even increasing their return on investment.
No one could have predicted then what the Chattahoochee Hill Country Alliance (CHCA), Nygren’s newly formed group of residents and developers, would accomplish just over a year later. Shepherded by CHCA, a new and surprisingly progressive land use plan would be passed with hardly any vocal opposition. The county commissioners supported it unanimously and a large crowd gathered in support of the passage of plan and its associated legal reforms. In
addition to local support, the plan won nation-wide recognition for its vision, “a case study for stopping sprawl,” and the inclusivity of the planning process. More than 600 of the 2,400 residents of the area took part directly in the meetings that helped shape the plan, and not a single resident showed up to oppose the plan at commission meetings.
[Notes]
Eric John Christianson's thesis offers an excellent academic account of how the foundation of Chatt Hill's Land Use Plan evolved.
Stephen (Steve) Nygren's "Remembering the Effort" series offers his personal account of the community effort he led, of the formation of the Chattahoochee Hill Country Alliance (CHCA) and its Community Plan, and of the resulting Chattahoochee Hill Country Overlay District which was adopted by Fulton County and would later become the foundation for the city of Chattahoochee Hills Land Use Plan.
Chattahoochee Hill Country Alliance (CHCA) - Community Plan
Nygren was inspired by images of the rural English country side where the majority of the population lives in dense hamlets, villages and towns thus keeping the country, country. This clustering, and the regulation that buildings cannot follow the road out of town, are the result of good land law regulation following World War II to prevent sprawl in England – the island was only so big and they foresaw the threat that the automobile would bring.
Nygren was inspired by images of the rural English country side where the majority of the population lives in dense hamlets, villages and towns thus keeping the country, country. This clustering, and the regulation that buildings cannot follow the road out of town, are the result of good land law regulation following World War II to prevent sprawl in England – the island was only so big and they foresaw the threat that the automobile would bring.
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Working with other landowners (and the CHCA), Nygren presented the Chattahoochee Hill Country Community Plan to the community.
The Plan's goals were to:
The Plan proposed to accomplish these goals through a Conservation Development overlay district for the area that included:
The Plan's goals were to:
- Preserve the rural character and quality of the area
- Provide choices for how land is developed and conserved in the future
The Plan proposed to accomplish these goals through a Conservation Development overlay district for the area that included:
- 3 villages surrounded by agriculturally zoned land with smaller hamlets scattered throughout community
- A series of buffers to protect environmentally and culturally sensitive areas
- A variety of options for preserving and/or developing Agriculturally zoned land
Chattahoochee Hill Country Overlay District (Zoning)
The Fulton County Commission adopted the Chattahoochee Hill Country Overlay District and Land Use Map on August 7, 2002.
The Fulton County Commission adopted the Chattahoochee Hill Country Overlay District and Land Use Map on August 7, 2002.
The zoning included the following sections, a few of which are described below:
A summary of section 12.J.5 is provided below. (See the Chattahoochee Hill Country Overlay District for more details.)
- (12J.1) Purpose and Intent
The purpose and intent of the Chattahoochee Hill Country Overlay District is to protect the natural areas of the Chattahoochee Hill Country and ensure responsibly planned economic and social growth. Within the Chattahoochee Hill Country, the Mixed Use District (MIX-CHC) and the Community Unit Plan District (CUP-CHC) allow for developments with a mix of uses for residents to live, work and relax. To further protect the rural land and natural resources of the Chattahoochee Hill Country, standards have been established to provide for green space and open space throughout the District. Agriculturally zoned properties and rural services will remain prevalent throughout the Chattahoochee Hill Country. The Chattahoochee Hill Country District will ensure that mixed-use future growth occurs and that many types of housing for all incomes and ages will be provided. The developments will provide connectivity for pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists. - (12J.2) Chattahoochee Hill Country overlay district regulations.
- (12J.3) A CHC Design Review Board consisting of a seven-member board of residents, land owners, business owners, and professional architects and/or land planners, who either maintain primary residences and/or businesses or own land in the Chattahoochee Hill Country. The Board shall review all plans for development in the Chattahoochee Hills.
- (12J.4) Permitted Uses Table for in MIX-CHC and CUP-CHC Districts
- (12J.5) Development Standards for MIX-CHC and CUP-CHC Districts
- (12J.6) Additional development standards MIX-CHC and CUP-CHC Districts
- (12J.7) Area Wide Development Standard
- (12J.8) Appeals
- (12J.9) Severability
A summary of section 12.J.5 is provided below. (See the Chattahoochee Hill Country Overlay District for more details.)
STANDARDS |
A. MIX-CHC (VILLAGE) |
B. CUP-CHC (Hamlet) |
1. Master Plan |
The Master Plan shall include all of the following: open space, non-residential, residential, and civic and/or institutional uses. |
The Master Plan shall include all of the following: open space, non-residential, residential, and may include civic and/or institutional uses. |
2. Minimum percentages based upon total area of development:
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(a) Open Space: 10% (b) Non-residential development: 20% (c) Residential development: 60% (d) Civic and/or institutional: 20% |
(a) Open Space: 60% (b) Non-residential development: 10% (c) Residential development: 30% |
3. Minimum land area (must be contiguous except where separated by a road) |
500 acres plus additional land required for 300-ft rural protection buffer |
200 acres |
4. Maximum land area (must be contiguous except where separated by a road) |
640 acres plus additional land required for 300-ft rural protection setback |
Not specified |
5. Maximum gross square footage of any non-residential density |
30,000 square feet |
25,000 square feet |
6. Maximum overall residential density |
14 units per acre with 10 percent of all residential units to be workforce housing |
1 per acre |
7. Maximum height |
45 feet for nonresidential buildings except: (1) civic and/or institutional buildings, (2) buildings which include a residential component, (3) multi-family residential buildings 50 feet for civic and/or institutional buildings 75 feet for buildings with steeples, cupolas, and similar structures 40 feet for single family attached and detached residential structures |
45 feet for nonresidential buildings except (1) civic and/or institutional buildings, (2) buildings which include a residential component, and (3) multi-family residential buildings 50 feet for civic and/or institutional buildings 75 feet for buildings with steeples, cupolas, and similar structures 40 feet for single family attached and detached residential structures |
For more information see [Resources]