Smaller but still big: Update on new Columbia County subdivision proposed near Grovetown

Plans for a 400-plus-unit subdivision near Grovetown are moving again after its backers waited more than a year for Columbia County's seemingly nonstop development to catch up.

Details and timelines have been tweaked in the most recent proposal for Branch Springs, which developers Mill Branch Investments LLC had introduced to county planners and commissioners in late 2022.

Original plans for 539 housing units and several acres of commercial space included two entrances off Horizon South Parkway, across from the Gateway commercial development. It will border Grovetown's city limits.

Branching out: Developers propose Branch Springs neighborhood bordering Grovetown city limits

But since construction of Horizon South had not yet been completed at the time, developers withdrew their rezoning request to turn the agriculturally zoned land into a planned unit development.

Now, with Horizon South work completed, developers know the projected path of Gateway Boulevard, which will connect with Branch Springs' entrance. A second entrance originally proposed off Horizon South will not be immediately pursued.

The original 337-acre development has been shaved down to 260 acres and 421 units. About 22 of those acres will be for commercial development, and at least 52 acres will become greenspace for the multiphase neighborhood.

According to the developers' projected timeline, barring further delays, construction for the first phase of 183 homes could begin in June 2025 and conclude in 2028.

The Columbia County Planning Commission is scheduled to review the new proposal at its Sept. 5 meeting.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Smaller but still big: Update on new Columbia County subdivision proposed near Grovetown