Jeff Whitten, Correspondent

Bryan County Commissioners on Tuesday night deferred a decision on whether to rezone some 3.8 acres near the historic Burnt Church Cemetery to allow a Parker’s Kitchen convenience store.

The vote to defer the decision for 30 days to look into concerns raised by opponents to the project came after several residents – including parents of children buried in the 195-year-old cemetery – urged commissioners to deny the rezoning.

Ben Anderson and his wife Ashley both spoke out against the planned development near the cemetery, not far from the Highway 144 roundabout at Belfast River Road. Their son, Bryson, was buried in Burnt Church in 2020.

Ben Anderson told commissioners they buried their son in Burnt Church “for nature, for nurture and for the spiritual and religious serenity you get from this location,” and said that would be gone if he convenience store was allowed.

Ashley Anderson noted the cemetery was currently “a very beautiful spot,” with abundant wildlife that to her was “a sign from God my little boy’s okay.”

She said she chose the site after assurances the place would be protected from development, and went on to tell commissioners the loss of nature there would destroy the serenity for all who have family buried at Burnt Church.

“Our loved ones deserve respect in their final resting place,” she said. “Quite frankly, if I could move him I would but I can’t. I’m anchored in Richmond Hill, that’s where my boy is forever.”

Also among those buried in the cemetery are members of some of Bryan County’s oldest families. Matt Campbell, whose son Michael and parents Johnny and Pat are buried at Burnt Church, reminded commissioners of the history of what is routinely said to be the oldest known cemetery in Bryan County, dating back to the 1830s, and urged commissioners to take their time in making a decision.

Among those buried in the cemetery are members of many of Bryan County’s oldest families.

“Whether it’s a Parker’s or an apartment complex or anything else, I ask you to consider what it’s going to do to the community, and is it really necessary,” he said.

Opponents also pointed to drainage and the potential the store would open the cemetery up to vandalism while also making it more dangerous for visitors to get in and out in an area already dangerous due to heavy traffic.

Longtime Richmond Hill resident Brice Ladson, an attorney and founding elder at Bryan Neck Presbyterian Church – Burnt Church cemetery is named for the original church, which burned in 1882 – said the site where Parker’s wants to build the store “is a wonderful site for a convenient store, if it weren’t too close to a traffic circle next to a cemetery in an area with all sorts of drainage problems,” he said.

“And the bottom line is just because the property would be a desirable one for a convenience store, is it appropriate for one,” Ladson stated.

Ladson continued, saying that the project needs more study and should include checking over the site with ground penetrating radar for unmarked gravesites.”

Many of those who spoke out against the project praised the convenience store chain owner Greg Parker and his company for its philanthropy, and Daniel Ben-Yisreal, the property development manager for Drayton-Parker Properties, told commissioners the company would work with residents to address their concerns and abide by county requirements for the site, such as buffers.

“We don’t want to come off as being insensitive,” Ben-Yisreal said. “We intended to be good neighbors and support the community as we’ve always done.”

Winning support might be an uphill battle, given the parcel’s proximity to the cemetery, which still has more than 1,100 gravesites available, according to those who operate Burnt Church.

“There are presently about 1,117 lots that are available for sale,” said Deanna Hardy, who with her husband Hugh takes care of the cemetery for Bryan Neck Presbyterian Church. “That’s about $1.3 million worth of lots at the present price, and we’re going up. This pays for maintenance and operation of the cemetery, if we can continue to sell lots. But I cannot tell anyone that it’s a good idea to bury a loved one behind a gas station, and I won’t.”

Cemetery volunteer Philip Corbin told commissioners he foresaw damage to gravestones and other problems, such as trash and noise from vehicles and people at the gas station.

“It will be disturbing at funerals,’ he said. “If I’m in the middle of a ceremony at a funeral trying to put a loved one in the ground, I’m not going to be real happy about it.”

Opponents of the rezoning, while lauding Parker and his business acumen, also noted there was no need for another convenience store on the roundabout – which sits at the entrance to Buckhead East and the South Bryan Administration Complex and already includes one gas station.

Parker’s, which started with one location in 1976 in Midway, now has 100 stores in Georgia and South Carolina, including four in Bryan County.

In other news

Commissioners on Tuesday approved a preliminary plat for phase 2 of the Lakes at Black Creek, LLC, by a 3-2 vote, despite opposition from nearby residents, who cited traffic, safety, flooding, environmental and litter concerns.

Commissioners Alex Floyd and Patrick Kitzgen voted against the motion.

One resident, Kristin Stampfer, cited the cost the additional homes would impose on taxpayers. She calculated children living in the 144 homes in the proposed development would cost the school system more than $3.2 million per year while generating only about $291,000 in taxes based on an average sale price of $300,000.

Stampfer said the county budget doesn’t have enough funding to meet all the needs and requests currently before the commission.

“So why are we adding more,” she asked, adding that while she’s been told by state law the county can’t legally tell someone what to do with their land, developers also can’t burden taxpayers.

Stampfer also contended the county could be open to lawsuits for allowing homes to be built in a flood zone.

Jeff Whitten is a freelance correspondent for the Bryan County News.