Yerby Road Development

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Yerby Road Development in Relationship to the Comprehensive Plan

The Future Land Use Map designates the Yerby Road area as Low Density Rural and Traditional Neighborhood. The vision for this settlement includes low density neighborhoods along with quasi-rural subdivisions that offer a variety of housing types within primarily single-family homes and limited multifamily and townhouse communities. Even though settlements in these areas are low density, they should provide parks, trails, community facilities and amenities that support the population. Streets, roadways, and sidewalks should be connected and include provisions for walking and biking.

This parcel also falls into the Natural Riparian Corridor settlement vision which includes swamps, rivers, streams, and wetlands. This is a highly restricted area given it encompasses swamps, streams, flood plains and natural buffers needed to preserve these fragile ecosystems. Settlements in these areas are conservation-based, considered on a case by case basis only, and must utilize low impact techniques to preserve and protect sensitive riparian buffers and natural environments

Context for the Redevelopment

The Planning Commission reviewed this request two years ago under Rezoning Request #834. At that time, the 131-acre Hutson tract was not part of the request and the development agreement had not been prepared. Although the Planning Commission recommended approval of that rezoning request, due to the passage of time, increase in parcels/acreage, and the preparation of a development agreement, this item is being brought back to Planning Commission for review and consideration under a new rezoning request.

These parcels are currently undeveloped, with frontage along Yerby Road to the north and Great Oaks Drive/Barons Road and Sinclair Road to the south. The applicant is ultimately rezoning the lot to allow for smaller single-family detached lot sizes within a master planned subdivision. The minimum lot size for single-family detached uses in the current MUC District is ½ acre, while the requested R-2 District has a minimum lot size of 7,500 square feet with a minimum lot width of 50’. The minimum lot size and width can be reduced even further utilizing the cluster ordinance which is the developer’s intent.

Staff will note that although the R-2 zoning standards seem to indicate a rezoning to a more dense/intense district, the MUC district allows townhomes, mobile home parks, and apartments along with commercial and light-industrial uses by-right. Should the developer provide infrastructure to support those by-right developments, no additional approvals would be needed beyond the submittal of site development plans or plats.

Rezoning to R-2 removes all uses but single-family homes at a set density. The County has engaged in discussions with the project representatives over the past several years regarding the potential to develop these tracts and the improvements that would be required. From these discussions and studies that have been done to date, it has been determined that development of these parcels would require significant improvements to the water, sewer, and transportation infrastructure – which the developer would be responsible for. The studies that have been conducted document the needed improvements and estimated costs and provided the basis for the creation of an assessment district to generate the funds for certain improvements.

Included in the improvements is the roundabout at the intersection of Orangeburg Road and Mallard/Butternut Road. The developer has also set aside acreage to be dedicated to the County for community facilities with the intent it be used for a school site. Due to the completion of these studies, no additional impact analysis is required for this rezoning.

County staff has been reviewing a Development Agreement which outlines the management of the assessment district and required infrastructure improvements, as well as the donation of the community facilities site, and overall plan for development. Staff believes that the rezoning request and development agreement lay out an acceptable plan for the management of the development of the property, construction of the necessary improvements, and allows viable development of the property without the more intense uses currently allowed in the Mixed-Use Community zoning district.

Yerby Road Development Process and Updates

County Council gave First Reading and Referral to the Planning Commission for a recommendation regarding an Ordinance approving Rezoning Request #906 for Mark Matthewson on behalf of BRD Land Development, to rezone 605.46 acres located at Yerby Road, near Summerville, TMS #120-00-00-017, 127-00-00-140, -099, 128-00-00-086, -088 from Mixed Use Community District, MUC to the Single-Family Residential District, R-2 at their meeting on November 11, 2023.

The Planning Commission will review the ordinance at their regularly scheduled meeting at 4:00PM on Thursday, November 9, 2023, at the Summerville County Council Chambers. *Please note that the Planning Commission will not be discussing the Development Agreement as it is not within their purview for review and recommendation.