TSW, the consulting firm that authored the draft rezoning ordinance that created criticism, will make another attempt at creating a document that will meet the expectations of Glynn County commissioners.
The announcement comes after a committee created to review and edit the 180-page ordinance rewrite expressed frustration over the many recommendations that they rejected.
Committee members said the document failed to update the rules and make it more user friendly to consumers.
When committee members asked for a redline version so they could compare existing ordinances to the proposed ones, TSW officials said that would be problematic, if not impossible.
County Manager Bill Fallon said the county has created a schedule to determine how to move forward with a re-examination of the proposed ordinance.
“We have identified our next steps and are working toward a new draft version that addresses the needs of our community,” Fallon said in a statement.
The next steps include a review of the existing draft to identify changes based on feedback from the zoning review group and from public comments.
The zoning review group was made up of three Mainland Planning Commission members, three Islands Planning Commission members, two civilians and County Commissioner Walter Rafolski.
The goal is to have a new draft for Fallon to review by mid October.
“Once we have a new draft, the board of commissioners will determine the next steps moving forward,” Fallon said.
Despite the committee’s failure to edit the proposed ordinance, leaving that job to county staff and TSW, Fallon thanked members for their work and input.
“We appreciate the time and effort all of you have put forward in this review process,” Fallon said. “We also appreciate your patience while we work with TSW on an updated draft for consideration.”
County Commission Chairman Wayne Neal said Fallon, County Attorney Aaron Mumford and Commissioner David O’Quinn will work with the consultant to create a document the zoning committee can review.
“We were not happy with the direction it was going,” he said. “It has to be more addressable. What we’re trying to do is get a side by side comparison.”
Once the new version is completed, the zoning review committee will make another attempt to edit the ordinance and make a recommendation to commissioners.
“We will look at it again to the usability of it and make tweaks and adjustments,” Neal said. “There’s still a lot of work to do for this final draft.”
