STAFF REPORT
CASE NUMBER: PZ 21 - 037
APPLICANT: Brian Jones
PETITION: Variance Request: Dogwood Drive. To vary Section 8-23 of the UDC - Stream Buffer
LOCATION: Dogwood Drive within land lot 799 of the 19th District, 2nd Section, and Cobb County, Georgia.
ZONING: R-20 ACRES: 1 PIN: 19079900010.
STAFF RECCOMMENDATION: DENIAL
BACKGROUND: The subject site has a stream running through it on the eastern side. Section 8-23 of the UDC provides that all land development activity shall meet the following requirements:
(a) Buffer. An undisturbed natural vegetative buffer shall be maintained for 50 feet, measured horizontally, on both banks of all streams, as measured from the top of the stream bank.
(b) Impervious surface setback. An additional setback shall be maintained for 25 feet, measured horizontally, beyond the undisturbed natural vegetative buffer, in which all impervious cover shall be prohibited. Grading, filling, and earthmoving shall be minimized within the setback.
(c) Septic tanks and drain fields. No septic tanks or septic tank drain fields shall be permitted within the buffer or the setback required by this section.
Georgia did not have a law regarding stream buffers until 1975. Local stream buffers and impervious setback were not required until 2004. Powder Springs adopted the Atlanta Regional Commission's Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District (ARC/MNGWPD) Stream Buffer Protection Ordinance in 2004. The existing homes in the area predate these code provisions.
Mr. Jones proposes subdividing the lot and developing 2 single family residences on the site: Tract one to the north and Tract two to the south. This application concerns the challenges faced on the proposed tract two. Mr. Jones explained his vision as being a home with a preserved natural area in the back yard with a stream running through it. To ac...
Click here for full text