Land Use Districts

Based on its use or proposed use, each piece of property in Habersham County is assigned one of the following land use districts: Agricultural Protection, Low Intensity, Moderate Intensity, or High Intensity.

Listed below is a brief summary of the four districts.

Agricultural Protection (AG): Land that is used for bona-fide agricultural purposes is classified as Agricultural Protection. Such property may also include certain types of dwellings and home businesses or cottage industries.

Low Intensity (LI): Property found in rural areas that are a mixture of cropland, poultry, residences, other land uses, and large undeveloped tracts of land, where urban services such as public water and sewer are unavailable, may be assigned to this district, depending on its use.

Moderate Intensity (MI): In this moderate-density district, some land development has taken place, some urban services (such as public water and sanitary sewer) are available, and property is a mixture of rural and suburban land uses.

High Intensity (HI): This district, with its more intensive land development, contains mostly commercial, light industrial, and higher-density residential uses where public water, sanitary sewer, and access to an arterial street are available.

This broad overview of land districts should not be used as a basis for determining how a piece of property should be designated. Each district has its permitted uses, and each permitted use may have conditions that must be satisfied.

For example, a townhouse is not permitted in an Agricultural Protection or Low Intensity district, even if found in an area where most of the properties are AG or LI. Townhouses must be in Moderate or High Intensity districts.

Another example is single-family detached residences, which are allowed in all districts. However, to be assigned the AG or LI district classification, the lot size must be a minimum of one acre; to be designated MI or HI, the minimum lot size must be one-half acre.

Other factors, such as variances and map amendments, may also influence which category of land district the property is given. For more information, see Building Variances Help in Cases of Hardship, Structuring Growth By Means Of Conditional Use Applications, and Land Use Map Amendments Provide the Flexibility to Grow and Change.