Applicant withdraws County Line Road chicken house request
Lack of access, neighbor complaints lead to reconsideration of ag application
By Carlton Fletcher
ALBANY — A group of East Albany neighbors who united to fight the location of eight chicken houses on property near their homes claimed victory Tuesday when their neighbor, Dennis Isaacs, withdrew his application for special approval to locate the chicken houses at 3504 Thomas Road.
Planning Manager Mary Teter read a letter she’d received from Isaacs at the meeting.
“This letter is to serve notice that I (Dennis Isaacs) would like to withdraw my application for special approval. Due to not being allowed truck access to my property from Thomas Road and being unable to secure access to my property from County Line Road, along with complaints from local residents, I do not wish to further pursue constructing chicken houses at this location,” Teter read from Isaacs’ letter.
Five county residents who live nearby — Tammy and Casey Black, Lee and Lula Williams, and Bryan Wingate — had shown up for the meeting with “No Chicken Houses in Our Neighborhood” signs. They happily exited the Government Annex building after Isaacs’ letter was read into the record.
“I think the owner (Isaacs), since he was having trouble getting an easement that would allow him access to the property, may have decided that it would be too costly a process to continue forward,” Planning Director Paul Forgey said before the meeting.
Also at Tuesday’s meeting, the board approved a rezoning request that will allow property owners Todd Davis and Ty Bettis to use the buildings at 1908 N. Slappey Blvd. (the former United Furniture Outlet site) as off-site storage while the pair seek to lease the property to a tenant.
“We’re in the process of beautifying the property to increase its marketability,” Davis told the commission. “We want to use it for off-site storage until we’re able to lease it.”
Told by Commission Chairman William Geer that the property “looks better than I’ve seen it in years,” Davis said, “Wait until you see it Monday. We’re painting the exterior over the weekend, and that’s going to make a big difference.”
The board voted 6-0 to allow the zoning change from C-2 (general mixed-use business district) to C-3 (commercial district). The rezoning allows for the off-site storage.
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