Sometimes it is the simplest idea that is the most effective in addressing the toughest of problems. Such is my proposal below, which was published in today’s AJC “Readers Respond” column. Although I have long argued that most of Gwinnett’s growth problems could have been minimized or avoided if we had just followed the county’s Comprehensive Land Use Plan for each rezoning case, it was not until this week that I finally put it down “on paper.”

I have also emailed the article (included below) to the County Commission via the address commishes@aboutgwinnett.com, which automatically sends your single email to all five Commissioners at once.  I ask that you take a moment to do the same. Perhaps, with this single simple idea, we can finally begin to rein in the mindless development that still plagues many areas of the county.

>> Proposals Should Stick to the Plan

Here is a simple solution for Gwinnett’s unrestrained growth — the county should not accept an application for rezoning unless the proposal already complies with the land-use plan.

If a developer wants to build something that doesn’t match the land-use plan, he must first petition to change the plan … and the burden of proof is on the applicant to show that the proposed use is more suitable than the use established by the plan. Land-use plan changes are only considered twice a year, and a public hearing is required, as is done now.

This approach would have two primary benefits — first, it would increase the value of the land-use plan. Today, the plan is often ignored simply because somebody asked — because a developer filed a rezoning. Under my proposal, the land-use plan would become much more than a nonbinding “guideline for growth.”

Second, development decisions would not be made under pressure of a pending rezoning, after just 20 minutes of public discussion. The land-use plan is developed over months with input from staff and professionals, developers and the public. It should be the authoritative word on when and where growth should occur.

If a builder didn’t follow a plan, his structure would collapse. We must follow a plan for growth to protect our community from a similar fate.

County Commission: commishes@aboutgwinnett.com

PS: Growth-related initiatives can also orginate with the Planning Commission. You can send the same email to all at Planning Commissioners at once at plancomm@aboutgwinnett.com .