A new land ordinance could be curbing growth in Lex County

With the recent introduction of a new land ordinance in Lex County, concerns are being raised about its potential impact on countywide growth. This newly proposed legislation calls for developers to take additional responsibility for their projects, in particular, road and stormwater infrastructure maintenance. However, this move is being seen by some developers as an effort to curb rapid growth in the fast-developing county.

System changes

The new ordinance extends the period that developers are responsible for maintaining roads and stormwater systems from two to five years after a project’s completion. Under existing regulations, developers are accountable for all road and drainage maintenance throughout the construction phase of a project. Once a project is complete, county officials inspect any damages to infrastructure, formulate a repair plan with developers, and then transfer the roads back to county ownership. The developers, however, remain liable for the maintenance of road and stormwater systems for two years following this transfer.

Extended Warranty Period

This new ordinance debuted in the council’s August 13 meeting and proposes to extend the warranty period from two to five years. According to Josh Rabon, a managing partner at Civil Engineering of Columbia, the de facto warranty period already approximates five years since it only starts after repairing any damage that occurred during construction, which typically takes about two years to complete.

Rabon, despite not being a developer himself, views the legislation as a means to stifle growth within the county, which he believes has already been tackled in previous legislations. He pointed out, “There’s been seven more ordinances that keep making it more and more restrictive to develop housing, more restrictive, more costly — every one of them making it more expensive and therefore driving the price of homes up.”

Perspective of County Officials

However, county officials see this legislation in a different light. Lexington County Chairwoman Beth Carrigg expressed that the new ordinance will ensure that developers fully complete their projects, which sometimes take more than two years. She aims for longevity in infrastructure, wanting roads to remain stable for at least 10 to 15 years. According to her, developers should maintain the roads using the profits from their projects, thus easing financial burdens from the county and taxpayers alike.

The council is set to hold a second reading of the ordinance on September 10.

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