The developer for a proposed 1,794 home development on a 794-acre parcel of land in Bulloch County has pulled the request for annexation and, as a result, the public meeting to discuss the project has been canceled.
The City of Statesboro was slated to host a public information meeting on Monday, September 9, regarding Blue Fern Development/Burkhalter Village, the proposed 1,794-unit housing development on Burkhalter Road. The meeting was called to offer the community time “to learn more and provide feedback on the “Burkhalter Village” development project being proposed by Blue Fern Development.”
It also followed a debacle with Bulloch County, in which the county, in response to citizen concerns, sought to object to the annexation process by the City in hopes of negotiating some conditions to ease the impact on residents in unincorporated Bulloch County. County staff, however, missed the deadline to file the paperwork with the state.
Emails obtained from the county suggest that while efforts were made to file the objection, the county did not meet the state’s deadline for objection and the application was rendered void.
When the project went before city officials in Statesboro, council members elected to table the project to give citizens and staff the opportunity to inquire further about the impacts of the project. The meeting for the public was scheduled and the item was placed on the upcoming council meeting agenda for Tuesday, September 17.
But the City of Statesboro said Monday just before 4:00 p.m. that the meeting to discuss the project at 6:00 p.m. had been canceled.
Tonight’s public information meeting regarding Burkhalter Village scheduled for 6:00 p.m. has been canceled. City staff received a formal request this afternoon from the developer, Blue Fern Development, to remove the project from the upcoming City Council meeting agenda scheduled for September 17th, and to put a temporary hold on the pending requests for annexation, rezoning, and planned unit development. Blue Fern Development cited the need for additional due diligence and hopes to revisit the requests in the First Quarter of 2025. Additional information on the status of the project will be forthcoming as the developer advances in its planning stage. We apologize for any inconvenience due to the cancellation of tonight’s meeting, but city staff felt there was no need to have the meeting since the developer has withdrawn the requests.
Please note that as a matter of formality, the Burkhalter Village annexation, rezone, and PUD requests will be on the September 17th meeting agenda since City Council voted to table the items to that meeting. However, no action will be taken on those items since the developer has withdrawn the requests.
