The Athens-Clarke County Government is reaching out to the community for feedback on the county’s Future Land Use Map. This is the third series of public hearings since the fall of 2023.
Mark Beechuk, assistant planning director for Athens-Clarke County, explains the process.
“The Future Land Use is a broad-based, kid of 30,000 foot view of how land use works,” Beechuk said. “So, neighborhood nodes and areas all sort of fit together. It includes a few different zoning categories, but [it’s] very important that we understand that future land use is not zoning. Future Land Use is broad, zoning is more specific, some of the black and white, the rules and regulations of use and how properties are developed.
Ten public drop-in meetings will take place at various locations around the community through April 30th. Staff members will discuss the map, review proposals, answer questions, and assist those in attendance with filling out the survey.
“We’re trying to make sure if we’re going to accommodate what the market tells us is about 30,000 people might be in Athens in the next 20 years, based off past population projections, we want to be able to accommodate them into the community. We also want the community to not feel that this is an overwhelming task.”
This first meeting is Friday evening from 5:30 to 7 pm at Athentic Brewing. Residents can find more information and fill out the survey online at www.accgov.com/compplan.
