The Mableton Planning Commission, in preparation for taking charge of land use and zoning recommendations within its city limits, met on Thursday, February 27, for an education and orientation session with Christopher Wheeler, Mableton’s Planning and Zoning Manager.

Kennesaw’s Planning and Zoning Administrator, Darryl Simmons, also gave the commission input and advice.

Wheeler gave a presentation outlining the role of the planning commission. Visit this link to download a PDF version of the presentation deck slides from the meeting.

The presentation began with the following outline of the commission’s role and responsibilities:

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The purpose, duties and responsibilities of the Planning Commission shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

• To work within the framework of City resolution.
• To conduct public hearings, request and receive reports from staff and to review and make recommendations to the City Council, concerning matters brough before it; including, but not limited to, amendments to the comprehensive plan, zoning ordinance, official zoning map, or issuance of special use permits;
• To initiate amendments to the official zoning map, comprehensive plan, or text of the zoning ordinance;
• To advise the City regarding environmental policy, comprehensive planning, community development, housing, transportation land use issues, and capital improvements;
• To work with the City departments, boards and authorities to the purpose of the Planning Commission and the City Council in carrying out their various functions by making recommendations to achieve the desired benefits on behalf of present and future City residents, businesses, and property owners.

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After giving an overview of the Planning Commission’s role, Wheeler described the key documents that guide the commission’s deliberations.

“As planning commissioners you would hear these terms and these documents over and over again,” he said.

“First is the Comprehensive Plan,” he said.

Wheeler described the comprehensive plan as the document “that guides the growth, development, and overall direction of a community, region, or city.”

He also decribed the zoning ordinance, “a set of laws or regulations established by a local government (city or county) that controls how land within its jurisdiction can be used.”

“The zoning ordinance is what I call the tools of the planners,” Wheeler said. “The Comprehensive Plan is our cookbook, while the zoning ordinance is our tool so the main Comprehensive Plan dreams come true.”

Then he described subdivision regulations, which are the rules for dividing land into smaller lots or parcels. According to Wheeler’s presentation, “These regulations are designed to ensure that land development occurs in an orderly, safe, and efficient manner while meeting the community’s needs and maintaining the public interest.”

“Essentially, (the subdivision regulations document) is pretty much specific standards of when we divide up land for housing developments, commercial developments, town homes, industrial lands … those are my development standards that I review to make sure that it’s in compliance with the particular regulations (from) how big a piece of parcel is to how small a town home can be,” Wheeler said. “So a lot can be 20,000 square feet, depending on the zoning regulations (or) it could be 5,000 square feet for this development standard.”

“Also the subdivision regulations go into street size as well: how wide a street can be, how far the sidewalks have to be placed off the street …,” he said.

The last documents Wheeler addressed were the specifications for special districts and overlay zones. He described this type of district or overlay zone, not as a negation of existing zoning code, but as a more specific set of guidelines for what can and cannot be put within the district.

One example he gave was Community Improvement Districts like the Cumberland CID, where commercial interests self-tax to make changes intended to improve the area.

Another example was overlay zones, where certain businesses might be prohibited even though they are allowed under the base zoning code.

Wheeler covered the process of a case moving through the zoning process, from pre-meeting procedures, to the meeting itself, ending (at least for that particular meeting) with a vote on one of the options open to the Planning Commission (Approval, Denial, Continuance, Hold, Withdrawal Without Prejudice, Withdrawal with Prejudice or No Recommendation). He also outlined the procedure for conducting public hearings, including legal notifications and posting of signs.

He gave a rundown of the requirements of the Open Meeting and Open Records Acts, explaining that each part of the deliberation process and each document generated by that process must be open to public scrutiny.

As an example, he mentioned a scenario where, during the meeting, one commissioner passes a note to another member. That note, passed during an official meeting, becomes an official document, subject to turning over under an open records request.

“You can’t just talk to that one person. You have to talk into the mike. It has to be an open discussion .. no scribbling, no passing notes,” Wheeler said. He said it is okay for a commissioner to take personal notes, but not a note to communicate with another commissioner during the meeting.

Wheeler also mentioned that commissioners would need to understand the ethical guidelines for their position, and be aware of the requirements of the Fair Housing Act.

Wheeler later wrote the Courier in an email that the Mableton Planning Commission is expected to hear its first zoning case on May 1.

The following people are on the Planning Commission:

Planning Commission Member	Appointing Council Member	Term Ends
Robin Meyer	Mayor Michael Owens (City-wide)	2027
Donte Philpot	Ron Davis (District 1)	2027
Undriss Miller	Dami Oladapo (District 2)	2025
Jeanette Hardee	Keisha Jeffcoat (District 3)	2027
Carl Valenzano	Patricia Auch (District 4)	2025
Cheryl Davis	T.J. Ferguson (District 5)	2027
Vinis Walker	Debora Herndon (District 6)	2025