By Ashu Ebot-Tabi

Acworth’s Planning and Zoning Commission held its monthly meeting Tuesday at City Hall.

The commission reviewed and voted on two applications for potential rezoning and annexation efforts by city residents, in addition to considering text amendments for a city ordinance.

All the work done by the Zoning Commission aims to follow the city’s comprehensive plan, a standard document among Georgia’s local governments.

“The Comprehensive Plan is the guiding policy document for growth and development in the City of Acworth”, Acworth development director Alex Almodovar said. “In the State of Georgia, all local governments are required to adopt comprehensive plans, in compliance with the Georgia Planning Act.”

The meeting began with a video outlining the meeting’s agenda and structure for attendees. In particular, it provided instructions to applicants on how to present their applications to the commission and outlined how city staff would report on these applications.

The first item was a request by Elizabeth Manning of Manning Family Investments, LLP, to annex and rezone the Yester-Year flea market from Cobb County’s General Commercial (GC) designation to Acworth’s Community Retail Commercial (C-2); C-2 properties are generally more versatile and support more commercial uses. A staff report stated that these changes would benefit both Manning and the city, and a motion to recommend approval was passed unanimously by all six attending board members.

The second item was a request from Tim Swanson to rezone property located on Lake Acworth Drive from Single Family Residential (R-1) to C-2 for a proposed commercial development. A city staff report stated that the property was suited to commercial use, and a motion to recommend approval passed 5-1.

The final public input item dealt with proposed text amendments to the city’s zoning ordinance, mainly regarding the storage of recreational vehicles like boats. Such vehicles, located on property zoned for residential use, must currently be stored within an enclosed structure and on an improved surface. These requirements were a source of debate among the commission, with some questioning the number of restrictions.

“You can’t have it in your front yard [or] on your driveway, but you got to pay for a driveway”, Planning and Zoning Commissioner Kim Brown said. “You can’t park it on the side of your house unless you have a driveway or paving. I don’t get that”

The motion to recommend amendment of the text was met with a 3-3 tie vote. The meeting ended with announcements for upcoming city events, most notably a Juneteenth concert.

More details about the Zoning Commission can be found on the city’s website. Details about the properties discussed in the meeting can be found in the archive of Planning and Zoning Agenda maps.

Ashu Ebot-Tabi is a senior at Kennesaw State University, where he’s currently pursuing studies in Journalism and Emerging Media. With seven years of writing experience with the North Cobb Chant and Kennesaw State Sentinel, his coverage spans both local community events and significant cultural trends.