December 29, 2015
Virginia

Tazewell officials to slate public hearing about zoning ordinance

By BLAKE STOWERS | Bluefield Daily Telegraph | Tuesday, December 29, 2015 | www.bdtonline.com

TAZEWELL, Va. – A date will be set on January 5, by the Tazewell County Board of Supervisors for a public hearing about a proposed zoning ordinance.

The zoning plan, as currently proposed, would prohibit certain “undesirable developments” including wind turbines and medical waste facilities. The proposal would not prohibit or impact residential, rural residential, and multi-use developments including agriculture, industrial and forestry.

In December, the Tazewell Planning Commission voted 4-3 to move the draft ordinance to the Tazewell County Board of Supervisors.

“The ordinance is designed to control the growth and development of the eastern district,” Eastern District Board of Supervisor Charlie Stacy said.

The Eastern District includes all of Bluefield, Va., and the Springville community. “The zoning ordinance is critical,” Stacy said. “It’s been debated a long long time. ”

In 2009, Dominion Virginia Energy acquired more than 2,600 acres of land on East River Mountain for the purpose of developing a proposed large-scale wind turbine farm. The county supervisors later adopted the tall structure ordinance that intended to protect certain ridgelines, including East River Mountain.

Stacy expects the public hearing to take place in February.

“We still remain business friendly,” Stacy said. “We’re just trying to have a little control about where potential businesses go in the county.”

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2015/12/29/tazewell-officials-to-slate-public-hearing-about-zoning-ordinance/