BAY MINETTE, Ala. — Resident registered voters in Planning District 18 will head to the polls Oct. 28 to decide if the rapidly growing area in south-central Baldwin will become the eighteenth district to adopt land use regulations.

The one-question ballot states: “Do you favor the area of Planning and Zoning District 18 being subject to the planning and zoning jurisdiction of the Baldwin County Commission?”

The election will be from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Old Langford Truss Building at 20189 Hadley Road in Foley.

The building is on the north side of Foley about .1 miles east of U.S. 59 on Hadley Road behind WHEP radio station.

Probate Judge Adrian Johns ordered the election after the Baldwin County Commission approved a second planning and zoning election in late August.

District 18 begins at Robertsdale’s southern municipal boundary and surrounds unincorporated areas around Summerdale and Foley.

The Commission agreed last year to bypass the petition process to allow a March 27 vote to establish the district. That vote failed by a 160-151 margin.

Seventeen of the county’s 30 planning and zoning districts have been activated by elections and each presented petitions of at least 10 percent of the qualified, resident voters.

This time, organizers told commissioners they had widespread support. If approved by voters, a 180-day, temporary moratorium will be instituted regarding land use and structures.

During that time, an advisory, five-member planning and zoning committee of residents from all walks of life will be established to prepare a zoning map and comprehensive development ordinance for adoption by the commission.

During the process, the Baldwin County Planning and Zoning Department will review the documents, public hearings will be held and the commission will make the final implementation decision.

Owners of the 4,824 parcels in the district will be assessed $10 in additional taxes for two years which will flow to the planning and zoning department.