A plan to build seven single-family houses in a heavily wooded area at the end of Garraux Road in Paces got an approval recommendation from NPU-A on Aug. 7.

The 55-acre tract currently has three large houses built along the Chattahoochee River. Garraux Estates LLC seeks to build the seven additional houses along the private road.

A map of the proposed Garraux Estates development shows Garraux Road running east-west through the middle of the site, with existing houses along the Chattahoochee River at the top and the seven proposed new lots at the bottom. The existing houses at the very bottom are along Riverly Road.

The current zoning is R-1, which would require minimum 2-acre lot sizes and other restrictions in a standard subdivision. Garraux Estates says that won’t work due to rugged topography, the desire to maintain the private road and the restrictions of river corridor protections. So the owner is requesting a rezoning to Planned Development-Housing, which allows irregular lots based on environmental conditions.

The request got an approval recommendation from NPU-A in an 11-0 vote with two members abstaining. The project is scheduled to go before the city’s Zoning Review Board in early September.

John Ruch is a former journalist who previously served as Managing Editor of Reporter Newspapers.