☐ Consent Agenda ☐Quasi-Judicial Public Hearing
☐ Regular Business 6:30 pm
☒ Public Hearing Ordinance
DEPARTMENT: Planning & Zoning
SUBMITTED BY: Laura McClelland
PRESENTED BY: Misty Servia
TITLE & DESCRIPTION:
title
Ordinance / Comprehensive Plan Amendment / Essential Services (COMP-0017-2025)
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REQUESTED MOTION:
A motion to approve/deny the proposed ordinance for the adoption of the Comprehensive Plan Amendment related to Essential Services.
SUMMARY:
The proposed text amendment to the DeSoto County Comprehensive Plan Future Land Use Element is related to land uses designated as Essential Services with the goal of increasing efficiency for providing Essential Services to the residents and business owners in DeSoto County.
BACKGROUND:
DeSoto County Government owns and operates various types of infrastructure, including potable water and sanitary sewer utility systems, which includes underground pipes but also includes physical plants, pump stations, water towers, lift stations, and other above-ground infrastructure. Additionally, the county’s Public Safety Department provides fire and emergency management services, and the county also operates a landfill for solid waste disposal. These services are housed in buildings owned/operated to serve the public, another component of Essential Services.
The City of Arcadia’s Airport is critical infrastructure, but it is not currently included under the definition of Essential Services. This deficiency was noted when the airport sought a small expansion to build cabins for their existing campground for temporary lodging for pilots, but the expansion was difficult to complete within the procedural requirements of the LDR without an approved master plan/Development Plan showing those entitlements. And, while the airport is owned and operated by the City, the airport is in unincorporated DeSoto County and therefore subject to the county’s regulations.
While the City’s airport was the catalyst for re-evaluating the application of Essential Services in the Comprehensive Plan, it also provided an opportunity to refine the definition to broadly include structures and services owned and operated by government entities.
Expanding and clarifying the existing definition will also allow the Comprehensive Plan and the LDR to consistently reference Essential Services in both documents, as the existing definition of Essential Services in Policy 1.1.14 is currently inconsistent with the definition in the LDRs.
Amendments to the LDRs are being proposed simultaneously but can only be adopted after adoption of the Comprehensive Plan amendment. Should the Comprehensive Plan amendment fail to be adopted, the LDR amendments could not be approved.
It is noted that the Essential Services definition contextually is not related to the essential services debated during the COVID epidemic but limited to services from a land use perspective, recognizing that it is appropriate to allow them in all zoning districts given their role as critical supporting infrastructure and services to the public.