OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Johns Creek Planning Commission Meeting – March 3, 2026

City CouncilTuesday, March 3, 2026
BodyJohns Creek, Georgia
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, March 3, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 32:52

Transcript — Verbatim
0:40

All right, good evening.

0:41

I like to call the March 3rd, 2026 meeting of the City of Johns Creek Planning Commission to order.

0:49

At this time, I'd like to ask everyone to please silence or turn off your cell phone.

0:53

This planning commission is a recommending body to the mayor and to the city council, and we follow guidelines in conjunction with the public hearing to assist in formulating a recommendation.

1:04

Copies of the Planning Commission's procedures and staff reports are available at the entrance to this chamber.

1:10

The presiding officer will call cases on the agenda for public hearing.

1:14

First, we shall recognize planning staff to make a presentation of the case with their recommendations, and then we will open the public hearing.

1:22

The applicant shall receive a time period of 10 minutes to present their case.

1:27

If there is any concurrent variance, each shall be granted the applicant an additional ten minutes.

1:32

This time is kept by the planning department staff.

1:35

The applicant may choose to use their entire allotment or reserve a portion of their time for rebuttal.

1:41

Any member of the hearing body, us, upon recognition by the presiding officer, may ask questions of the applicant or agent of the application.

1:50

The period of questions from the planning commission is not deducted from the applicant's time period.

1:55

Opposition is granted an equal time period per application to present data, evidence, and their opinions.

2:01

If a large number of people wish to speak in opposition, it is advisable to designate a spokesperson to make that presentation.

2:09

The city is not obligated to provide the full time period to opponents if they elect not to use their time, and the opposition is not granted a rebuttal period.

2:19

Any member of the hearing body upon recognition by the presiding officer may ask questions of any person giving public comment.

2:26

After completing this process, the presiding officer will indicate that the public hearing is now closed.

2:32

Upon closing the hearing, the planning commission can no longer be addressed by the applicant or by opposition.

2:38

The planning commission may ask questions of city staff at this time, and once all questions have been asked and addressed, the presiding officer will call for a motion, and if properly seconded will call for a vote on the matter.

3:16

So the first item of business on the agenda today.

3:39

Great.

3:39

Thank you.

3:39

Can I get a second?

3:41

All right.

3:41

Any discussion needed at all on the meeting minutes?

3:45

I'm modifying a little bit based on our discussions.

3:48

All right.

3:48

All those in favor say aye.

3:51

All right.

3:51

Motion is approved.

3:52

What are we?

3:53

Five zero.

3:54

Five-zero in a favor.

3:56

The first item of business on the agenda is zoning ordinance text amendment A-2601.

4:04

Good evening, Planning Commissioners.

4:06

Uh first meeting in 2026.

4:08

Excited about to see you all.

4:09

So hope you're all doing good.

4:12

Um presenting a text amendment of the zoning ordinance, A-26-001.

4:19

This is a council initiated amendment.

4:22

And it amends sections of the zoning ordinance pertaining to fence regulations.

4:30

And the request is or the amendment is to allow for replacement of existing fences adjacent to invisible from the right of fee when such fences are impacted by a city or state road project.

4:45

Section 4.11 of the zoning ordinance details the allowed materials for fences and walls related to residential properties.

4:52

Section 12 E.3.

5:00

These are the community standards that we always bring to you in terms of materials.

5:04

Except for AG 1 zoned properties used for agricultural purposes.

5:10

Chain link fencing is currently not permitted adjacent to public roads.

5:16

So now we'll look at a little example here.

5:44

So just to kind of have understanding of what we're talking about is the map here shows.

5:51

Sorry.

5:52

The map here shows this is all blue is Saint Ives neighborhood.

5:57

And these two circles are showing the limits of the extent on Parsons Road or Abbotsbridge Road between Parsons Road and Chattahoochee River.

6:06

So the yellow is the highlighted area where the fence is, the chain link fence was removed.

6:14

Oh sorry.

6:15

So council has identified the need to allow for those residential developments impacted by city or state road projects to replace existing chain link fencing adjacent to the right of way.

6:28

So therefore, staff recommends amending the following articles of the zoning ordinance to allow for chain link fencing to be replaced along the right of way when impacted by city or state road projects.

6:40

This impacts Article 4, general provisions and Article 12E, community standards.

6:46

And I'll further go into the ordinance language here.

6:49

So Section 4.11, fences and walls.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Zoning Regulations█████████████████████████████████████████████60%
Procedural████████████16%
Public Engagement██████8%
Personnel Matters█████6%
Economic Development█████6%
Stream Buffer Variance███4%
Summary of Proceedings

Johns Creek Planning Commission Meeting – March 3, 2026

The Johns Creek Planning Commission met on March 3, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. at City Hall Council Chambers. The primary agenda item was a zoning ordinance text amendment (A-26-001) to allow replacement of chain-link fencing along rights-of-way when impacted by city or state road projects. The commission also approved previous meeting minutes, received departmental updates, and discussed future meeting schedules.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of December 2, 2025 Meeting Minutes: Motion by Commissioner Katzen, seconded, passed 5-0 without discussion.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No members of the public spoke either in favor or opposition to the text amendment A-26-001.

Discussion Items

  • Zoning Ordinance Text Amendment A-26-001: Staff presented a council-initiated amendment to sections 4.11 and 12E of the zoning ordinance. The amendment permits replacement of existing chain-link fencing adjacent to public rights-of-way when fences are impacted by city or state road projects. It also clarifies permit requirements: a fence permit is now only required if the fence is adjacent to a right-of-way, within a 75-foot stream buffer, or within the 2,000-foot Chattahoochee River corridor; agricultural fences in AG-1 districts remain exempt. Chairman and commissioners asked clarifying questions:
    • Commissioner Katzen inquired about conflicts with HOA restrictions (both must be met), barbed wire strand limits (recommended maximum of 3 strands, applicable across all zoning districts), and the status of a removed chain-link fence along Parsons Road (confirmed removed by GDOT, St. Ives neighborhood to replace).
    • Commissioner Horton asked who would replace the fence (St. Ives) and sought clarification on when a permit is required (only for areas near sensitive environmental features).
    • Commissioner Ross had no questions.
  • Departmental Updates: Staff reported no pending rezoning cases, so the April 14 meeting is likely canceled. A new planning commissioner, Cal Couch, was appointed by city council, replacing Chris Jackson. Future meeting dates: May 5 (potential meeting) and June 2. Discussion included updates on Medlock development (apartments, interior build-outs for retailers, grand opening October 29), and a conversation about landscape strips, tree preservation, and a recent court ruling regarding a tree removal permit (clarified that the ruling applied to administrative action, not to comprehensive plan interpretation for rezoning).

Key Outcomes

  • Motion to Approve Text Amendment A-26-001 (as amended): Commissioner Horton moved to approve with an amendment to limit barbed wire to a maximum of 3 strands. Commissioner Ross seconded. The motion passed unanimously (5-0).
  • Adjournment: Motion to adjourn was made and seconded, passed without objection.

Meeting Transcript

All right, good evening. I like to call the March 3rd, 2026 meeting of the City of Johns Creek Planning Commission to order. At this time, I'd like to ask everyone to please silence or turn off your cell phone. This planning commission is a recommending body to the mayor and to the city council, and we follow guidelines in conjunction with the public hearing to assist in formulating a recommendation. Copies of the Planning Commission's procedures and staff reports are available at the entrance to this chamber. The presiding officer will call cases on the agenda for public hearing. First, we shall recognize planning staff to make a presentation of the case with their recommendations, and then we will open the public hearing. The applicant shall receive a time period of 10 minutes to present their case. If there is any concurrent variance, each shall be granted the applicant an additional ten minutes. This time is kept by the planning department staff. The applicant may choose to use their entire allotment or reserve a portion of their time for rebuttal. Any member of the hearing body, us, upon recognition by the presiding officer, may ask questions of the applicant or agent of the application. The period of questions from the planning commission is not deducted from the applicant's time period. Opposition is granted an equal time period per application to present data, evidence, and their opinions. If a large number of people wish to speak in opposition, it is advisable to designate a spokesperson to make that presentation. The city is not obligated to provide the full time period to opponents if they elect not to use their time, and the opposition is not granted a rebuttal period. Any member of the hearing body upon recognition by the presiding officer may ask questions of any person giving public comment. After completing this process, the presiding officer will indicate that the public hearing is now closed. Upon closing the hearing, the planning commission can no longer be addressed by the applicant or by opposition. The planning commission may ask questions of city staff at this time, and once all questions have been asked and addressed, the presiding officer will call for a motion, and if properly seconded will call for a vote on the matter. So the first item of business on the agenda today. Great. Thank you. Can I get a second? All right. Any discussion needed at all on the meeting minutes? I'm modifying a little bit based on our discussions. All right. All those in favor say aye. All right. Motion is approved. What are we? Five zero. Five-zero in a favor. The first item of business on the agenda is zoning ordinance text amendment A-2601. Good evening, Planning Commissioners. Uh first meeting in 2026. Excited about to see you all. So hope you're all doing good. Um presenting a text amendment of the zoning ordinance, A-26-001. This is a council initiated amendment. And it amends sections of the zoning ordinance pertaining to fence regulations. And the request is or the amendment is to allow for replacement of existing fences adjacent to invisible from the right of fee when such fences are impacted by a city or state road project. Section 4.11 of the zoning ordinance details the allowed materials for fences and walls related to residential properties. Section 12 E.3. These are the community standards that we always bring to you in terms of materials. Except for AG 1 zoned properties used for agricultural purposes. Chain link fencing is currently not permitted adjacent to public roads. So now we'll look at a little example here. So just to kind of have understanding of what we're talking about is the map here shows.

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