PORTERDALE, Ga. — Porterdale City Council approved a series of zoning changes Tuesday that clears the way for final plans to be drawn to convert The Oaks golf course into a mix of single- and multi-family housing and a retail area.

The Council voted unanimously to approve Covington-based Infinity Homes and Development LLC’s request for rezoning of 270 acres at the corner of Brown Bridge and Crowell roads for development of the course into a mixed-use development including 332 single-family attached and detached units, 360 multi-family units, about 27 acres of commercial development and a nine-hole executive golf course. 

The site is bounded by Crowell Road on the west, Brown Bridge Road on the south, the Yellow River on the east and unincorporated Newton County on the north.

Developers have projected a completion date of 2025.

Opponents, including residents near the site, had said they feared the plan would further congest traffic on two-lane Crowell Road, which is a commuter route because it connects with I-20 north of the area.

Councilwoman Linda Finger, who made the motion for approval Tuesday, said she believed it was “just part of Porterdale’s growth.”

“I certainly think that it’s going to benefit the city,” she said.

Councilman Lowell Chambers said he believed it was a good plan for a site that will develop in some way in coming years because it already is zoned for residential uses. Infinity’s plan calls for upscale residential development, he said.

Chambers also noted city officials can continue to make changes to the plan as it goes through final approval processes.