Monday night’s town meeting was dominated by a land dispute that may stop a new shopping center planned for Littleton.
Charles Bennett of Warrenton and his son, Gary, were before the town Board of Commissioners requesting the board vote on the final decision on rezoning the property, adjacent to Mordecai’s.
The Bennetts request was to change the property zoning from residential agriculture to commercial.
The delay in rezoning is over a difference in surveys. The survey for the purchase of the property from Thomas Alston is in conflict with the survey held by the Johnson family who own the adjacent property.
The dispute is partially over 30 feet of road frontage.
The board noted that it did not have the authority to settle any boundary disputes but could approve a rezoning with it being conditional on the final survey.
The Johnson family members wanted the board to live up to a verbal statement made at last month’s rezoning meeting that no decision would be made until the dispute was resolved.
Commissioner Betty Willis made a motion to vote on the rezoning based on a comment made by town attorney Gilbert Chichester that the town could approve a rezoning request with the condition of the final survey approval so the project would not be delayed.
The motion died because no one would second it. The debate then continued on over why a vote should be delayed and when one would be taken.
In the final decision the board agreed to delay the vote for another 30 days. Bennett told them that if it is not approved at that time he was going to withdraw the purchasing offer.
The board agreed that a decision would be made next month one way or the other.
Bennett plans to put a business complex consisting of 14 to 18 shopping and office spaces. The complex will sit on approximately 12 acres of land.
In other business at the meeting the board appointed Julie Johnson to the Board of Adjustment, and appointed Sylvia Alston and Eric Spragins to the Town Planning Board.
Commissioner Terry Newsom reported to the board that the purchase and use of a laser gun would not cause a cost increase for insurance.
After a citizen question, Chichester reported that Halifax County has condemned the two houses on Mosby Avenue that have almost fallen down. The town has been trying for almost two years to have them removed.
It is unclear when the property owners or the county will remove the houses.
Town officials said County Attorney Bill McBlief and County Manager Matthew Delk can be contacted for the status of removing the houses.
The meeting was then recessed until April 9 when the board plans to make a decision on a request made earlier in the meeting by Mickey Manley of Advertising Solutions.
He asked the town to place an ad in a publication that will be distributed to local hotels and visitors centers.