Norhaven Partners and Peeples Owner LLC had secured approval for a 97‑unit townhome project called Overlook on Pettit in Bartow County, Georgia, in January 2023. By October, the plans had earned a land‑use disturbance permit, but the developer still had to contend with a neighboring property owned by Justin Rice that had already been zoned for heavy industry.
Rice applied for a conditional use permit on July 2, 2024, to add a waste‑processing plant that would handle construction and demolition debris. The county’s Section 9.5.6 bars a waste‑handling area from being within 1,000 feet of any residential dwelling that is “used” at the time of the application. Norhaven argued that the 46 homes, though not yet built, should be protected under Section 3.1, which expands the definition of “used” to include land intended for future occupancy.
At the August 2024 public hearing the planning commission leaned toward approval but imposed conditions: a berm along the boundary and a ban on incineration. The September 4 hearing saw the county commissioner approve the permit with those same conditions, citing that the proposed facility sat at least 1,000 feet from every existing dwelling. Norhaven, however, filed a petition on October 3, 2024, arguing the ordinance applied only to constructed structures; the trial court sent the case back to the commissioner in September 2025 for further factual findings.
In January 2026 the trial court rejected Norhaven’s remaining arguments and upheld the permit. The Georgia Court of Appeals, in its November 2, 2026 opinion, agreed, holding that the ordinance governs constructed buildings, not undeveloped sites. The decision means the waste plant can proceed, but the county must enforce the berm and distance conditions, giving Norhaven the green light to start construction pending compliance checks. A longtime homeowner in the area said the berm will protect his family’s safety.