The Richmond County Planning and Zoning Board of Adjustment will meet for the first time this year on Tuesday to discuss the approval of permits.
Two conditional use permits have been applied for by citizens wishing to open businesses. Director of Planning and GIS James Armstrong said he does not foresee objections to either one.
The board will meet in the Commissioners Chambers on the second floor of the Richmond County administrative office building at 125 S. Hancock St., Rockingham. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m.
Vickie Utley Chambers has applied for a conditional use permit to open and operate a salvage yard to be located at 1440 Gaston McLean Road.
According to Armstrong, Chambers has a large collection of scrap metal in her yard.
“Her business is booming by the amount of material she has in her yard,” said Armstrong. “I told her she would need a permit to continue. She wants to do the right thing. It’s going to outgrow her property, which is in a residential area. She’s very successful at what she’s doing.”
Chambers said she began collecting aluminum cans until the collection grew so big she realized she could take on more metal. She said she then drove around the city limits and collected old washers, fridges and stoves that people set out on their curb. She also collected cardboard. Chambers said the metal and cardboard sells at different speeds — with cardboard lingering longer than metal — and the collection was beginning to bug her neighbors. Now she is looking forward to the chance to open her own scrap metal yard. According to Chambers, although some times are hard, other times the business allows her to fully support herself and her daughter who is in high school.
The second conditional use permit the board will discuss was applied for by Jeff Moss, who wants to open and operate a go-kart track to be located at 1481 Mercer St., approximately three-fourths of a mile from U.S. Highway 1 in Marston.
“He’s got a lot of land by the Gamelands,” said Armstrong about Moss’ proposal. “From what we see, he’s thought it out well. There’s a fenced in area, places where people can gather and where they can park. It’s out of the way.”
Armstrong said a go-kart track “will cause a little more traffic on Mercer, which is a state road, so we’ll wait and see how it pans out.” He also said the track may cause noise, but noise is not uncommon in the area by the Rockingham Speedway and Dragway.
“It will still be left up to the board,” said Armstrong.
— Staff Writer Dawn M. Kurry can be reached at 910-997-3111, ext. 15, or by email at dkurry@civitasmedia.com.
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