On Wednesday morning, the Lee County Board of Commissioners voted in favor of removing Map 14 from the Comprehensive Plan it set up less than a decade ago. That is the map that shows where limerock is mined and was set up with a certain set of requirements for landowners wanting to become part of that land-use area.
After hours of public comments, commissioners voted 3-1 in favor of dropping that map and changing the way limerock land use decisions will be made.
Commissioner Frank Mann was the lone dissenting vote.
"I was here when we adopted the language that is going to be changed, and I will point out that our own staff strongly recommended the language that we adopted. Our attorneys were perfectly happy with the language that we adopted," Mann said. "We had high paid, outside consultants that strongly supported the language that we're, you're, about to change."
Now, instead of a comprehensive plan amendment, land owners would just need a zoning change, which environmental advocates say allows for less public input.
