Planning commission to advertise R‑3 zoning text change with 8,000‑sq‑ft minimum after close workshop

The Madison County Planning Commission voted in a straw poll to advertise a zoning‑text amendment that would set an 8,000‑square‑foot minimum lot area for single‑family lots in the R‑3 district and clarify townhouse and multifamily lot standards. The commission directed staff to fine‑tune the language and bring the item to a January public hearing.

Al Esch, the applicant and property owner who presented the fourth workshop on the text amendment, said the change is intended to make some higher‑density housing products economically feasible while preserving open space: “at the end of the day, when you do, you you can't sell as many townhomes, and, you know, packed in housing like that, condos or whatever. They they they're not as desirable as a single family,” he told the commission as members discussed how a mix of single‑family, townhouses and multifamily units could affect yield and open‑space set‑asides.

Staff (Mister Nichols) and commissioners focused much of the discussion on two technical constraints: on‑site septic and public utilities. Nichols reminded the commission that where private well and septic systems are used the county typically requires a 1.5‑acre minimum (to accommodate a larger drain field and a 10,000‑sq‑ft reserve area), meaning many existing R‑3 parcels without public sewer would not be immediately developable at the smaller lot size. Commissioners raised the long lead time for utility extension and the limited number of Rapidan Service Authority (RSA) EDU allocations, which would limit how many R‑3 parcels could actually build at higher densities until sewer is extended.

Commissioners also discussed fiscal and school impacts. One commissioner noted the county lacks precise projections for how many school‑age children denser development would add and said that absent hard data the commission could only note the potential and solicit public comment at the hearing.

On the straw poll, the chair counted a bare majority in favor of advertising the ordinance with the 8,000‑sq‑ft minimum. Staff was asked to prepare the public‑hearing advertisement and bring a cleaned‑up draft back for the joint public hearing with the Board of Supervisors.

What happens next: staff will refine the draft ordinance language (correcting grammatical items and clarifying lot/footprint language), place the amendment on the January public hearing agenda, and collect public comment before the commission recommends any formal adoption to the Board of Supervisors.