County eyes changes to special events ordinance

Wednesday, October 27, 2010
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By SARAH FAY CAMPBELL sarah@newnan.com Coweta's implementation of a special events ordinance is an extensive process requiring changes not only to the zoning and development ordinance, but also to business license and alcohol ordinances. The alcohol and business license amendments aren't ready yet, said County Attorney Jerry Ann Conner at Tuesday's meeting of the Coweta County Board of Commissioners.

A public hearing was held Tuesday on the zoning amendments, which create a process for the granting of a special use permit for uses such as for bed and breakfast inns, tea rooms, banquet halls, concerts, festivals, museums, rallies, weddings, and the like. Some events, such as private family gatherings or weddings on residential property, religious events, and political rallies, are exempt, said Planning Director Robert Tolleson. No action was taken on the ordinance itself. "There are going to be some amendments coming before this board," Conner said. Conner said she hopes to have the amendments to the alcohol and business license ordinances ready for consideration at the Nov. 2 commission meeting. Unlike zoning changes, no public hearing is required for ordinance amendments. Under current regulations, there are no allowances for bed and breakfast inns, tea rooms, or the like -- except for historic properties, which are listed on state or national historic registries. Dunaway Gardens is one such entity. "It is very limited," Tolleson said of the current provision. "Adoption of this ordinance will open it up to non-historic sites. Currently, for non-historic sites there is not an ordinance" that allows such facilities. Randall Perry of Tommy Lee Cook Road told the commissioners he would like to have a tea room or a bed and breakfast at his home and host weddings, to "share it with the community." Though his home is over 100 years old, because of various modifications and renovations done over the years, "it doesn't qualify for the historical registry," Perry said. The process for a special use permit would be similar to that for a rezoning. The actual zoning wouldn't change. Instead, the special use permit will function as an overlay on the existing zoning. "You will just be granting a special use on that property, regulated by the ordinance and any conditions the board chooses to impose on each particular case," Tolleson said. Factors to be considered would include the impact on surrounding properties, traffic, access and parking, waste disposal, security, lighting, times of operation, noise level, and setbacks and buffering, Tolleson said. The ordinance "gives you enough flexibility where it is all going to be based on what the requested use is," Conner said, and will allow staff and the commissioners to impose "conditions they feel are needed to protect surrounding properties."

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