Stop development? Greenville stops short of moratorium but sets limits on fast growth

Greenville City Council turned down an ordinance Monday that would have put a six-month moratorium on development in certain parts of the city.

It was a split decision for the usually unanimous council, 4-3.

Instead, they approved a resolution that would add restrictions to the current land use ordinance, which will be considered in May by the Planning Commission and then go back to council for a vote.

The areas in question do not include the central business district or the area around the new park being built along the Reedy River. Of primary concern are the main thoroughfares leading into the city such as Laurens Road, where many long-established neighborhoods are being affected by commercial development.

In March, two council members expressed concern about commercial and multifamily developments affecting single family homes.

The new rules for certain developments would require outdoor dining to face away from nearby homes. Other factors for proposed new commercial developments will be light pollution, trash receptacle location, building height, setback requirements and buffers.

The council asked the staff to report in 30 days on recommendations for addressing traffic, noise, stormwater control, parking and to define the uses in particular zoning districts.

The proposed development moratorium brought swift criticism from developers and realtors when it was considered on March 22. Two speakers returned Monday night to ask the council to vote down the moratorium.

City officials spent the past month talking to developers, neighborhood leaders and members of the group that worked on a 20-year plan.

The moratorium would have affected about a third of the land available for development in the city, most of it in historically Black neighborhoods where its representatives sought protection.

“We have the largest number of gentrified units,” council member Lillian Brock Flemming said at the March meeting. She voted again for the moratorium, as did councilors Ken Gibson and Dorothy Dowe.