The DeKalb County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday evening unanimously rejected an application to permit an abattoir behind a single-family home located on a 5 1/2-acre lot at 1676 Rice Rd., in Lithonia. The zoning application sought a rezoning from R-100 (Residential Medium Lot) District to RE (Residential Estate) [large lots] for the property just north of S. Deshon Rd.
The vote against was 6-0-0. (Commissioner Nancy Jester did not attend the zoning meeting.)
According to an analysis by the county's planning department, the business has had a state license to operate as an abbatoir and meat processing plant since February 2015. However, it is not a permitted use in the R-100 zoning district, as detailed in the county's zoning code.
"The name of the business as advertised online is Bradford’s Livestock," says the Planning Department's analysis. "Customers select the animals from the onsite inventory. They are butchered, packaged and given to the customer on site. Although legally licensed by the State of Georgia an abattoir is not a permitted use within the currently zoned R-100 (Residential Medium Lot) District."
The department had recommending denial of the application, noting that that even if the property is rezoned to RE, the use would not comply with building setback requirements in the county code.
The application and other information can be found at: http://bit.ly/2JmIUfB
