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To the editor:

It’s a shame the “Ballad of Dollar General” hits so close to home.

But to be fair, the hands of the commissioners have been tied by the actions of the previous powers that be, or at least their minions. The zoning, at times, can be “by right,” meaning the commissioners cannot deny a particular type of construction. This seems to be the case in the US-158 corridor regarding the Sain Road intersection aberration.

So where is the control? The planning department, of course (a euphemism since it is obvious that there is a distinct lack of such). Is there a Technical Review Committee (TRC) that assures the existing standards are applied (such as view sheds with berms, etc.). Apparently not.

Ever been to Hilton Head? Driving in on the major US route you don’t even see the commercial buildings due to berms and vegetative screening. That’s the gold standard.

As pointed out, edifices at the front and side off-sets seem to be the norm now. It’s all about maximizing footprint to the detriment of aesthetics (and saving some deep pocket developers money – the fill required at the Sain Road location would have required more fill – and while I’m at it, if we had a stormwater ordinance, runoff control).

So, maybe the parcels aren’t quite as big as they need to be if proper site planning is imposed and thus should not have been allowed. But forget all that, just cram’em in there.

The fix is multifaceted. Planning needs to be more stringent, and the 2019 Comprehensive Plan needs a hard re-evaluation, including acknowledgement of the citizens’ preferences which were documented in the Piedmont Triade Council work up. For example, the patent error at Figure 23 concerning “Industrial Opportunity Zones” should be vacated – that’s what allowed the Tri-West monstrosity to be inserted into a Rural Subdivision Corridor (the NC AC 160D zoning violation notwithstanding).

And, as part of the oversite, establish a county engineer position to participate in the approval process (i.e., a registered licensed professional – civil engineer – fluent in the related issues such as stormwater, transportation, site development, planning, etc.).

And finally, to make all the above even possible, use the ballot box to change the current 3-2 status quo decision paradigm.

William Vaughan,     Mocksville