The public has a new opportunity to speak to Macon-Bibb County’s Planning & Zoning Commission without arranging it in advance.
During Monday’s administrative meeting, P&Z decided to provide a generic monthly public comment period during its first meeting of the month, which begins at 1:30 p.m. on the second Monday, unless there is a schedule change.
Former Macon-Bibb County commissioner Elaine Lucas addressed the board this week about the proliferation of personal care homes in east Macon and appealed for some public notification of pending timber cuts, which is outside of P&Z’s jurisdiction, P&Z Chair Jeane Easom told her.
Last month, Lucas was denied the opportunity to speak because she did not apply in advance to address the commission on items not on the agenda.
As president of the Bibb County Voters League, Lucas has been urging local boards to provide an opportunity for the public to speak at meetings.
P&Z allows comment on agenda items at each meeting, but the matter Lucas signed up to speak about in January — H&H’s request to serve alcohol — was withdrawn.
Beginning March 10, the public will be allowed 3 minutes to speak to the commission about issues not on that day’s agenda.
Problems arise from no permit
When building contractor Luis Garcia replaced an old two-story playhouse and storage shed with a much larger guest house in 2023, he didn’t apply for the required permits.
As a result, Macon-Bibb County Planning & Zoning could make him move the building, trim the size or demolish it if it’s too close to the property line at 155 Castlegate Road.
Accessory buildings must be at least 5 feet from the edge of the property and the new building is closer than that to the fence.
Not knowing if the fence was along the line, Garcia and his lawyer sought an after-the-fact variance at Monday’s meeting.
Once P&Z Chair Jeane Easom learned Garcia worked as a building contractor, she had little sympathy for him.
“You should have known you had to get a permit to build it,” Easom told Garcia. “You didn’t get an electrical permit, didn’t get a building permit and didn’t get a plumbing permit. Now he’s not in compliance with regulations. In essence, you should have known better.”
Garcia, who moved down from Atlanta, demolished the old 8-foot by 8-foot playhouse and replaced it with a 24-foot by 16-foot building with an upstairs bedroom and bathroom.
Last fall, someone filed a complaint with P&Z after noticing people were living in the building.
To determine the best course of action to come into compliance, Garcia must have the property surveyed and return to P&Z for a ruling.
P&Z also sent an application for 235 Pio Nono Ave. back to the Design Review Board, which initially denied the homeowner’s request to enclose the screened porch with smooth fiber cement siding such as Hardie Board.
The design board determined those infill walls would significantly change the look of the house, which is against regulations for historic districts like Vineville. They recommended that applicant Evgeniya Kiryanova use glass windows, not wood in place of the screens.
Because she indicated she wanted to proceed with her original plans, P&Z deferred the matter back to the design board to figure out an acceptable solution.
At the Feb. 17 meeting, P&Z approved revisions to the landscape plan for 1408 Forsyth St., the site of the old Handy Andy store that was demolished in 2022 at the corner of Monroe Street.
The owners of the new convenience store on the adjacent parcel want to create a walkway from Monroe Street and requested moving two of the planned trees that would be in the way.
They originally sought to have a driveway for car access to the store through that corner lot, but P&Z denied it in 2023 due to safety concerns.
P&Z also is wrangling with the owners of Circle K at 1194 Forsyth St. after they cut down trees without the proper approval last summer.
They submitted a new landscape plan last fall, but the replacement trees were not tall enough to serve as a buffer to the adjacent home. P&Z told them to submit a new plan.
During the Feb. 3 meeting of the Design Review Board, a company representative said they were not going to meet the deadline for submitting a new landscape plan because they now plan a major renovation of the entire property.
The property remains in non-compliance and the owners will receive a citation and must submit a new application for the revised plan.
Other P&Z actions this month
- 3555 Mercer University Drive — Jerneicey Brown has permission to run an entertainment venue with amplified music in Suite 102-3 of the shopping center across from Macon Mall. As a condition of the approval, Brown will require renters of the space to provide a POST-certified security officer if alcohol will be served. The 2,800-square-foot venue will be available to rent between the hours of 8 a.m. and 1 a.m.
- 160 Hines Terrace — P&Z approved a new wheelchair lift on the side of the front porch of this home in the Vineville Historic District.
- 2521 Vineville Ave. — P&Z approved Ermine Padgett’s plan to replace three wood columns and repair rotted window frames and broken glass. Padgett will match the existing materials, which is preferred in the Vineville Historic District.
- 185 Oak Haven Ave. — Property owner Marvin Peavy installed vinyl replacement windows without getting proper approval. Vinyl is not an acceptable material in the Vineville Historic District. P&Z denied his application for a certificate of appropriateness after the fact.
— Civic Journalism Senior Fellow Liz Fabian covers Macon-Bibb County government entities for The Macon Newsroom and can be reached at fabian_lj@mercer.edu or 478-301-2976.
