MADISON COUNTY, Miss. (WJTV) – The mayor of Madison has filed suit against three Madison County supervisors, alleging a rezoning deal broke state law.
According to the lawsuit filed by Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler, a rezoning scheme and land donation from the mid-2000s is illegal.
The Bozeman Family Limited Partnership donated approximately 35 acres of land to Madison County with one condition; construction of Reunion Parkway must begin within two years of the land donation.
The land donation also resided in 350 acres of already zoned land.
“The property that we are talking about is in our path of growth. We are proposing to annex that property. The county blanket zoned 350 acres of land, but most of all, they re-zoned it based on the property owner giving them land the right of way. You cannot give land for rezoning,” said Hawkins Butler.
To rezone property in Mississippi, you must prove there was a mistake in the original zoning or that the surrounding area has changed so much that a change is justified and that the public will benefit.
A public hearing must also be held for all interested parties, including citizens.
“You can not legally rezone property in exchange for right of way,” said Hawkins Butler.
The lawsuit targets District 3 Supervisor Gerald Steen, District 4 Supervisor Karl Banks, District 5 Supervisor Paul Griffin, and the bonding company in an effort to get them to repay the $965,000 used to purchase the land.
Madison County Board of Supervisors Attorney Mike Espy declined to comment, citing a review of the lawsuit.
