Speculation that the Southwest Parkway leading from Bowling Green’s South Central Kentucky Industrial Park would spur more development is now reality.

Acreage along Kobe Way that connects to the new 5,500-foot-long road was approved Thursday by the City-County Planning Commission of Warren County for a rezoning expected to lead to development of four light industrial sites.

The planning commission voted 5-0 to approve rezoning 20.45 acres owned by David Alford’s Westen Apartments LLC. Only eight of the planning commission’s 12 members were eligible to vote on the rezoning under the body’s new rules limiting input from representatives of the county’s four small cities, and three of those were absent.

The rezoning will go to the Bowling Green City Commission for final approval, but Alford already has a plan in place that would take advantage of the improved transportation from the industrial park along Nashville Road to Russellville Road.

Alford’s plan calls for developing four sites with what he calls “non-smokestack companies” that will complement the many manufacturers already in the industrial park.

In a narrative included with the staff report presented to the commission Thursday, Alford wrote: “As the subject property is adjacent to the South Industrial Park, the zone change will provide for the orderly expansion of industrial property and facilitate further economic development and job creation in our community.”

Alford’s plan for the 20.45 acres that includes warehousing and other light industry is only the beginning of his plan to develop a total of 160 acres he owns in the area.

He said he would like to develop some of the property for heavy industrial use and some acreage near Russellville Road for commercial and retail use.

“I just want to create businesses that are good for the city and improve that area,” Alford said. “This is where I grew up.”

The planning commission also approved in a 5-0 vote the application of New Cingular Wireless PCS – doing business as AT&T Mobility – to locate a 199-foot telecommunications (cell) tower on property owned by Freda F. Davis at 1080 E. Henry Goad Road near the Rich Pond community.

David Pike, a Shepherdsville attorney representing AT&T Mobility, explained in the application that the company exhausted efforts to find an existing tower for “co-location” of its antenna.

“Because there are no suitable towers or other tall structures located within the search area where the antenna site must be located to remedy the growing coverage and/or capacity gap, construction of a rawland site is necessary,” the application reads.

Pike said the new tower will not provide 5G (fifth generation) mobile technology initially but will have the capability of being upgraded to that state-of-the-art cell signal.

The tower will be equipped to provide the new FirstNet broadband communications platform that is dedicated for use by first responders and others in the public safety community.

Also at Thursday’s meeting, the planning commission approved a rezoning application expected to lead to development of 40 apartments on Enterprise Court near Russellville Road.

The application made by Matt and Nick Fuqua of MNM LLC and property owners Wayne and Elva Overholt will rezone a 1.6358-acre tract on Enterprise Court from light industrial to multi-family residential.

Expected to lead to development of five buildings and 40 total apartments, the rezoning was approved 5-0 by the planning commission and will go to the Bowling Green City Commission for final approval.