Edit (8/20/18) - I presented this petition to the Pooler City Council on 8/20/18. The City Manager challenged my sources on if the 200' buffer was placed by City action or (as the lawyer for the property owner claims) if it was placed as a deed condition by International Paper.

The lawyer argued that the buffer was a deed condition, which was lifted when the property changed ownership. I am dubious if this is truly the full story, as even at Planning & Zoning in February, the buffer was mentioned as a use condition, not as a deed condition.

In any case, I believe the spirit and intent of the petition remains the same: the Residents of Godley Station want that buffer preserved and protected. I want to thank everyone for signing the petition, we certainly did kick start the conversation. 

-Aaron Higgins

Original petition - 
On March 6, 2018, the Pooler City Council voted to approve a minor subdivision recombination of the Godley Station Professional Park (GSPP) at 1000 Towne Center Boulevard. This business park was originally approved in 2003 contingent upon a necessary 200' wooded buffer between it and adjacent N. Godley Station Boulevard. This buffer zone was removed when the city approved the recombination.

Now the developers of GSPP are proposing two office buildings and a parking lot to replace the current 5.4 wooded acres. This will irrecoverably alter the character and sightlines of this residential area of Godley Station. Now residents enjoy the natural beauty of the trees; if this project is allowed to continue, the trees will be removed entirely and the view will instead be made up of the backs of two office buildings which will abut N. Godley Station Boulevard.

We, the undersigned, are the residents of Copper Village, The Arbors, Forest Lakes, & The Carlyle at Godley Station. We believe that losing these trees will negatively affect our neighborhoods, home values, and quality of life that we have come to enjoy. We believe the Pooler City Council is duty-bound and responsible to enforce the original 200' buffer as envisioned by the past Council only fifteen years ago. We believe the intent of the Council in 2003 was for the buffer to remain permanently and this change runs counter to that intent. We therefore request that the Council reinstate the 200' buffer both immediately and forever.