The Cobb County Board of Commissioners (BOC) offered no objection to the annexation by Smyrna of 18.7-acres of land on Buckner Road adjacent to the Whitefield Academy, or of Smyrna’s plan to rezone the property from HI (Heavy Industrial) to LI (Light Industrial).  The land was acquired in 2015 by Whitefield Academy, and the proposed zoning will allow utilization for educational/private school purposes. The two properties are on both sides of Nickajack Creek on the north side of Buckner Road.

The Cobb commissioners approved a letter from BOC chairman Michael Boyce to Smyrna Mayor Max Bacon stating that Smyrna’s annexation and rezoning plans were a non-objectionable request.  This agreement is required for successful annexation by the Intergovernmental Agreement outlined in Georgia’s HB489.  In other words, the county has an agreement with Smyrna that if Smyrna annexes land, the zoning proposed by Smyrna has to be compatible with the long-term planning the county has in place for the area.  If an agreement can’t be reached, a binding dispute-resolution process specified in Georgia’s HB2 is activated.

In this instance, the county had no objection, and the annexation and rezoning by Smyrna can move forward.

Below are the maps of the two properties annexed into Smyrna:

1677 Buckner Road

1691 Buckner Road

The current zoning of the property is described as follows in Cobb County’s zoning ordinance:

HI (heavy industrial). The HI district is established to provide locations for heavy industrial uses such as intensive automobile repair and service, heavy manufacturing, chemical manufacturing and storage, petroleum or petrochemical storage, warehousing and storage, which are on properties delineated within an industrial category as defined and shown on the Cobb County Comprehensive Plan: A Policy Guide, adopted November 27, 1990. When located on the perimeter of an industrial node, the HI district should provide for uses that are lower in intensity and scale such as to ensure compatibility with surrounding properties.

The proposed zoning is described as follows:

LI (light industrial). The LI district is established to provide locations for light industrial uses such as low intensity automobile repair and service, animal care facilities, commercial greenhouses, livestock, poultry, business distribution centers, warehouse and storage, and transportation terminals, which are on properties delineated within or on the perimeter of an industrial-compatible or industrial category as defined and shown on the Cobb County Comprehensive Plan: A Policy Guide, adopted November 27, 1990. When located on the perimeter of an industrial node, the LI district should provide for uses that are low in intensity and scale such as to ensure compatibility with surrounding properties.