‘You win some, you lose some’: Developer details withdrawal of proposed Pembroke development
Nearly three hours before a vote to deny or approve the rezoning of land for a large housing development in Pembroke, residents learned the developer, James Dasher of Fetzer Lakes LLC, withdrew his application.
“We just didn't feel like council was ready to move forward with a project of this magnitude,” said Dasher.
Mayor Tiffany Zeigler made the announcement of the withdrawal at the city council meeting Monday. According to Zeigler, Dasher had not specified why the application was withdrawn. City Manager Chris Benson thinks the developer will have to wait six months before reapplying.
Many were in attendance at the Pembroke City Council meeting Monday night to condemn the proposed development. The project would have seen hundreds of homes built near Wildwood Church Road.
When asked if he will submit another application in the future, Dasher said, “If Pembroke is ready for a planned development in six months, we would love to apply.”
More: 'This could double the population:' Developer looking to bring 800 homes to Pembroke
Dasher said he mulled over the decision and waited until late that afternoon to pull out. According to Dasher, he met with city staff members for a year and suspects they did not want to move forward after receiving backlash from the community.
“The general public doesn't realize what has taken place to get to this point,” said Dasher.
Dasher felt confident the proposed development would move forward because he was the first one to bring forth a development of this kind.
“We saw something in Pembroke long before everybody else but then whenever the neighbors come out and protest, the city said okay, never mind, we're not going to do it now," Dasher said.
Dasher also clarified that the project never called for 800 homes, saying that the company's capacity study for the property was 500. Pembroke's City Manager Chris Benson previously told the Savannah Morning News the development would include a mix of 795, "single family residential units with a variety of densities."
He also pointed to what many call smart growth and felt a year’s worth of planning was just that – smart.
“People continue to say we need to do it smartly,” said Dasher. “I don't know how much smarter our plan could have been working with everyone I've mentioned for over a year.”
Latrice Williams is a general assignment reporter covering Bryan and Effingham County. She can be reached at lwilliams6@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Why developer pulled application for Fetzer Lakes development in Pembroke
