A large subdivision in Nebraska is generating controversy over a zoning change that allows the developer to avoid paying for road improvements and maintenance. Residents fear this will open the door for other developers to find the same loophole.
A development in Washington County, Nebraska, is causing a major upset to county residents. The 50-lot subdivision has been approved after the developer brokered a last-minute deal in which eight 10-acre lots would surround 42 smaller lots. The deal was completed past a deadline and has been challenged as illegal. This rezoning of the land removes any requirement for the developer to pay for road improvements to the nearby county road.
"County resident Burke Petersen spoke against the development, saying there was no legal basis to having two different zoning classifications within a single subdivision. The developer is asking for the two zoning classifications as a way to appease concerns that future landowners of the larger, 10-acre lots will further subdivide their lots, project engineer Mark Westergard said. County Planning Administrator Doug Cook said these types of multiple zoning classifications are done routinely in the county."
"Petersen also said if the planning commission accepted this plat, all developers in the county will want to surround two-acre lots with 10-acre lots as a way to get out of paying to improve county roads up to the entrance of the development."
Read the full story: Planning commission OKs plat despite objections of neighbors
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