JONES COUNTY, Ga. — Neighbors in Jones County say they're worried their quiet community could become less cozy if a new parking lot comes in.
Nearly 400 neighbors signed a petition against building a commercial lot along Lite N Tie Road.
That's the area where Amy Turner lives. She's worked in Jones County at Snipz Hair Salon for 20 years and lived in the county for the past two.
"We're such a close knit community, if anything happens in this community our people are here for each other," Turner said.
Last week, people gathered to discuss the proposed commercial lot. It would sit along Lite N Tie Road and Creekside Drive for boat, commercial truck, and bus parking.
Turner, like many others, isn't a fan.
"There would be high traffic coming through our neighborhoods, small kids blind driveways," she said.
She also worries about air and noise pollution the lot would bring.
100 folks shared similar concerns at a called meeting at Christ Community Church. They don't want the currently residential land to be turned commercial.
"Once you give that same permission to one, anyone that wants to start it, it becomes like a domino effect," Pastor Christopher Lee Peavy said.
He says the proposed use of the plot is in question. The property's owner says people would park in the lot to fish in the pond on his land. This explanation confused neighbors.
They also weren't happy about big trucks on their street.
"We're not against trucking. We need trucks. Without trucks we don't have supplies. We don't have what we need. We understand that, but there are places appointed, as I stated, on the outskirts of Jones County," Peavy said.
Peavy says large trucks currently aren't allowed on that street. You'll see signs up and down the street that say "weight limit 15 tons".
Others worry about lower property values, the damage from the gravel, the added traffic, and safety.
"Security, not to mention people coming in and out of our lot's who don't live here. That's all hours of the day and night you won't be able to control who comes here and what they do once they're in a commercial zoned lot," Peavy said.
The property is owned by a company out of South Carolina and some neighbors say the fact that they're out of state also concerns them.
Planning and Zoning Director Tim Pitrowski says the request was denied at the planning and zoning meeting.
"We have a set of standards that they use at evaluating the request, so the board using those standards and weighing the request did not find it compatible with the area," Pitrowski said.
This did ease the concern for some people.
"It did make me feel good to know that they did deny it," Turner said.
Now it goes in front of county commission for final vote July 18. One commissioner says they will look at Planning and Zonings request to deny and any new information the property owners may provide before making decision.