BLOOMINGDALE, Ga. (AP) — One Savannah suburb is calling a halt to new apartment complexes or warehouses for eight months.
The Bloomingdale City Council on Thursday approved an eight-month moratorium on accepting new industrial and multifamily rezoning applications, the Savannah Morning News reported.
Existing applications won’t be affected. City Administrator Charles Akridge said about 30 warehouses have been approved and are waiting to be built. Two multifamily applications for apartment complexes are being considered.
Bloomingdale mayor Dennis Baxter said the hold will allow the city to properly assess its infrastructure capacity and zoning needs.
The city of about 2,800 residents is experiencing commercial growth, but has limited water and sewer capacity. Administrators fear Bloomingdale and other Savannah-area cities will be able to pump less water from wells after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reassess pumping rates in 2025.
Political Cartoons
“We have a limited amount of water and sewer north of I-16,” said Baxter.
He said the city needs to make sure needed water and sewer is available before more development.
A lobbyist for the Savannah Area Realtors warned the halt will harm economic growth.
“Because of the economic impact of some of these multifamily developments and these industrial developments, there’s a lot of money at play,” said Cody Jones.
Jones said because this was a zoning issue, more public notice should have been given before the meeting. City council members said they would examine notice requirements.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.