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Isle of Wight County’s Planning Commission voted on Aug. 24 in favor of rezoning of 9.5 acres at the intersection of Cut Thru Road and Garrison Drive, over the objections of a neighbor.

Property owners Steven and Timothy Cobb had requested the land be rezoned from rural agricultural conservation to rural residential for the purpose of building three single-family residences. The 9.5 acres are part of a 100-acre parcel that spans the north and south sides of Cut Thru Road, of which 78% is currently in agricultural use. It’s located just outside the county’s Windsor Development Service District.

According to the planning report by county staff, the proposal as presented would keep the majority of the farm acreage, which is on the south side of Cut Thru Road, intact. The county is, however, requiring a wetlands delineation to be submitted and confirmed by the Army Corps of Engineers prior to plat approval. A wetlands delineation marks specifically where wetlands do and do not fall on a particular parcel.

During a public hearing on the matter, Nicole Wade of Cut Thru Road urged the commissioners to reject the proposal.

“If Isle of Wight County continues to rezone its farmland and develop the community, we will irreversibly no longer have a rural community,” she said.

She then presented the commissioners with a letter she said was signed by herself and several other neighbors opposed to the project.

But her objections didn’t sway the commissioners, whose vote to recommend the project’s approval was unanimous, with one member absent.

The matter will head to the Board of Supervisors for a final decision Sept. 16.