The Aiken Planning Commission unanimously recommended on Tuesday to allow RV camps as an accessory use inside City limits.
- The applicant, Rick Cram, owner of Highfields Event Center, requested the RV camp use on his property so as to allow individuals to stay the night during events that include large equestrian competitions.
- The Commission added several amendments to the zoning ordinance, which included that each lot or combination of lots be restricted to one RV park that should be limited to not more than 5 acres in size, regardless of parcels.
- Other amendments include that the owner of the RV park will have to maintain a guest register and each RV site should display a permit visible from the street.
- Commission member John McMichael said most public comments he's received on the proposed RV park has been positive.
In other business:
- Planning Commission recommended a request to provide City water and sewer services to a future fast food restaurant on the east side of Columbia Highway, near the I-20 eastbound ramp. The applicants requested the City's services for a proposed Bojangles' restaurant.
- Planning Commission recommended the annexation and approval of a concept plan for a proposed retail shop and restaurant to be located at the former TD Bank property on Whiskey Road.
All recommendations will go to City Council for two votes. The first vote will be held on Monday, June 8.
In other news, the Planning Commission agreed to put the discussion of whether to increase the building height in downtown Aiken to a vote next month.
- The current building height in Aiken is 50 feet and the Commission will decide next month whether to increase the height limit to 75 feet, particularly due to the proposed six-floor hotel addition next door to Hotel Aiken on Richland Avenue.
- Several Commission members voiced their support to change the height limit, but member Kent Cubbage said the Commission could be "opening (itself) up to dealing with issues and potentially controversial issues" given the "lower number" of applicants who want to increase their building height and the historic aesthetic of downtown Aiken.
- If passed by Council, any applicant requesting to increase their building's height would have to go before the Design Review Board for approval.
Maayan Schechter is the local government reporter with Aiken Standard. An Atlanta native, she has a mass communications-journalism degree with the University of North Carolina Asheville. Follow her on Twitter @MaayanSchechter.