County board approves TIF plan for Colonnade and permit for subdivison

Published 3:59 pm Monday, November 15, 2021

Lafayette County Board of Supervisors approved the Tax Increment Financing plan for Colonnade Crossing on Highway 30 and a conditional use permit for Lott’s Branch subdivision.

Colonnade is a 88-acre, 22-lot development commercial subdivision west of Park Drive and across Molly Barr Road. A third of the property is being zoned for Traditional Neighborhood Business with the remaining two-thirds being zoned for Suburban Corridor.

“We’re super excited about how it could impact the taxes for the county and for the city,” said Christiana Sugg, Gouras & Associates in-house counsel. Gouras & Associates represent the developers, MFM Development, LLC.

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According to Sugg, the development would net the county $430,000. In addition, the industry will bring in $85 million in private investment and address traffic issues in the area.

The city of Oxford has already voted to approve the TIF plan and the developers will meet with the city board in Tuesday’s meeting.

Last month, private citizens were disputing over an easement that crosses into the back end of two lots in the Lott’s Branch subdivision. The owner of the easement uses it as a driveway and they would be driving across the backyards of the homeowners of lot one and lot two of the subdivision.

The developer and the private citizen are currently negotiating under the Lafayette County Planning Commission’s recommendation.

The board approved the conditional use permit with the stipulations that the lots sizes cannot change, adequate lighting must be placed at the entrances for residents and the developers must create a 50 foot, vegetative buffer zone around the subdivision.

The Lott’s Branch Subdivision will be located in a A2 district, designated for single-family homes and farming. Subdivisions are permitted in these districts under conditional use.