The Lafayette County Board of Supervisors extended the county’s burn ban for 30 days and denied a request to rezone three residential properties on Mississippi Highway 6 West to commercial zones in its meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 5.
Rezoning and development requests
Developer Atlas Oxford Flex I, LLC sought to develop C-3 (commercial high density) properties off the north side of Highway 6 West near County Road 171, rezoning them from R-1 (residential low density).
A residential low density zone allows for single-family detached homes on individual lots. A commercial high density zone allows for commercial and professional development in a limited area.
“If rezoning is approved, the applicant intends to construct a commercial flex space project consisting of either one or two buildings totaling up to 35,000 square feet depending on site constraint,” the request from Atlas said. “Each individual unit would total approximately 5,000 square feet.”
The Lafayette County Planning Commission agreed that the criteria for rezoning had not been met to grant the request from the applicant in a meeting on Aug. 24, 2026. County Planner Tristan Riddell presented the criteria for rezoning to the board.
“The criteria for rezoning is that either there was a mistake made on the original zoning or that the character of the neighborhood has changed to such an extent that is justified by reclassification and that there is a public need for the result,” Riddell said.
Riddell stated that the surrounding area has not grown or changed since the zoning ordinance was first established in 2018.
“When requesting a zone change, you have to show your request is compatible with the county’s comprehensive plan. … In this instance, properties along the Highway 6 corridor show zero potential for commercial zoning changes,” Riddell said.
Kyle Swafford, a representative for Atlas, said the company’s application is not a single event in an area where few developments have taken place. Swafford mentioned multiple commercial developments from recent years in areas just over a mile away from the proposed rezoning sites, which include Thompson Machinery, Roundabout Oxford RV and Water Resort.
“I don’t view my application as a single domino hoping to fall here where there’s not been a lot of commercial developments in the area,” Swafford said. “I’m the fourth, possibly fifth domino to fall as new construction is being had on Highway 6 West in this area each year.”
Atlas was previously denied its request to rezone the north side of a Mississippi Highway 6 area from an R-1 to a C-2 (community commercial zone) on May 18, 2026 in a 2-2 vote by the Lafayette County Planning Commission.
The board approved plans for developments made to the Rebel Gas Mart property on Mississippi Highway 7. The company proposed the installment of a secondary ingress point that will access Creek Drive. The planning commission requested “No Trucks” and “Do Not Block Drive” signs in the ingress point to prevent traffic blockage.
Burn ban extended
Lafayette County Fire Chief Wes Anderson requested a 30-day extension on the county’s burn ban after less rain fell than expected over the weekend. The board approved the extension until Nov. 6.
According to the Mississippi Forestry Commission, a burn ban is a restriction on outdoor burning during a drought or wildfire conditions. The ban has been in effect for the last 30 days and can be lifted at any time if environmental conditions improve.
Bridge repairs
The board also approved an encroachment agreement between Lafayette County and the Columbia Gulf Transmission Co. facility in Water Valley, Miss. Lafayette County will replace a bridge on County Road 459, which is near the Columbia Gulf facility. The county and the company have gone back and forth on an encroachment agreement, which needed to be approved by the board.
The meeting ended with an executive session on a video litigation before going into recess.
