Woodstock Proposes Heavy Industrial Zoning at Dixie Speedway

There is a 138-acre piece of Woodstock that has no zoning at all right now. Not residential, not commercial, not industrial. None.

That includes Dixie Speedway. And the city has published a map showing what it intends to assign — with a council vote in four weeks.

How land ends up with no zoning

On May 11, 2026, Governor Brian Kemp signed House Bill 1568, annexing roughly 138 acres into the City of Woodstock by legislative action. The Swims family had requested that Dixie Speedway be brought into the city.

Here is the part most people miss. When a legislative annexation takes effect, the county's zoning on that land goes away. Cherokee County's classifications were vacated, and the city has not yet assigned its own. Until it does, those 139 properties sit in a genuine gap.

Woodstock moved quickly to cover that gap. Council adopted an emergency moratorium on May 18, then replaced it on June 8 with a 120-day moratorium that expires October 6, 2026. A moratorium is a pause button, not a decision — it stops applications while the city sorts out classifications.

What the proposal map actually assigns

The city posted a Proposed Rezoning map with the case. It is worth reading parcel by parcel, because one decision covers land currently used three very different ways:

• HI — Heavy IndustrialParcels 15N06277 and 15N06E183 — the two largest tracts, including the Dixie Speedway property
• GC — General CommercialParcel 15N06275, the frontage strip near Highway 92 and Elliott Industrial Drive
• LI — Light IndustrialParcel 15N12013A, on the eastern edge
• R-1 — Single FamilyParcels 15N06301 and 15N06302, north end near Bascomb Carmel Road
• R-3 — Medium DensityParcels 15N06K001A and 15N06K124A — the Townview Commons streets (Bobbie Way, Townview Drive)

The existing Townview Commons neighborhood is proposed to stay residential. The speedway and the land around it are proposed as the heaviest industrial category on the city's list.

Worth holding next to that: in August 2025, council adopted the Highway 92 Development Standards, a Livable Centers Initiative effort funded by a $176,000 Atlanta Regional Commission grant. Its stated aims are improving walkability and architectural quality along a corridor the city itself describes as high-traffic and auto-centric. The annexed tracts front that same corridor.

The case record

• CaseZ#173-26 — Dixie Speedway & Townview Commons
• ApplicantCity of Woodstock (city-initiated, not a developer request)
• ScopeInitial zoning for 139 recently annexed properties
• AuthorityHouse Bill 1568, signed May 11, 2026
• City plannerNiwana Ray

The meetings that decide it

• May 11Gov. Kemp signs HB 1568; county zoning vacated
• May 18Council adopts an emergency moratorium
• Jun 8Replaced with a 120-day moratorium expiring Oct 6
• Jul 23City GIS publishes the proposed rezoning map
• Aug 11Public input meeting (already held)
• Sep 3Planning Commission — 7:00 pm, Chambers at City Center, 8534 Main St
• Sep 28City Council — the vote that assigns the zoning. 7:00 pm, same location

Why it matters

If you own in or near Townview Commons: your own parcel is proposed to stay residential (R-1 or R-3). The change next door is the one to read — Heavy Industrial abuts the neighborhood's western edge on this map. Initial zoning sets permitted uses, setbacks and buffers for whatever comes later.

If you're buying nearby: until council votes there is no zoning of record to look up. Any agent telling you what will be built there is guessing. After September 28 there will be a category on the map, and that category is what a buyer's due diligence should turn on.

If you own land in the corridor: initial zoning across 138 adjacent acres resets the context for every parcel around it. Heavy Industrial on the two largest tracts becomes the new baseline for what the corridor is and what neighboring land is worth.

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