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North Buckhead Newsletter

March 2005

Several years ago a study of North Buckhead property records showed that our average R3 residential lot was approximately 26,000 square feet (SF).  That is 44% larger than R3's minimum requirement of 18,000 SF.  This larger size at least in part comes from an acknowledgment that our undulating topography doesn't lend itself to building on every bit of the land.
Most of us celebrate these larger lots and see it as a plus for our community.  Conversely, a developer might see the extra space as 44% of a potential new house.  This article discusses the most common ways by which current open space and bigger lots are being lawfully turned into a greater number of smaller lots.
The most widespread approach is that of the subdivision.  In development terms, this means taking one or more existing parcels and re-platting them to form a larger number of smaller lots.  Especially if the original lot (or lots) involved are larger than average, it doesn't take long for the "excess" land to add up and the total number of resultant 18,000 SF lots to increase substantially. 
A subdivision generally has to comply with the requirements of the underlying zoning, meaning that a subdivision generated from R3 lots would have to meet mini

mum lot size, minimum setbacks, etc. of R3 zoning. The City's Subdivision Ordinance speaks to these requirements, although it is difficult to obtain and difficult to understand.   
The City essentially considers a subdivision application as an administrative action and there is no citizen review board or City Council action required.  The Planning Department, in consultation with other City departments, determines if requirements are met.  NBCA's Land Use and Zoning Committee only has the opportunity of "commenting" on subdivision applications in our area; but the City has made it clear that our specific recommendation for or against is not desired.  However, our Committee has decided that it should make specific recommendations anyway, since this is the only input our neighborhood has on subdivision applications.
The second method by which the "excess" land can be tapped is through rezoning to PD-H.  (PD-H stands for Planned Development-Housing.)  This is a full blown zoning change with formal reviews and has all of the checks and balances that have been discussed in previous articles.  However, the PD-H classification does not have specific numeric requirements written into