What began as a nearly 400-home South Hall housing development featuring apartments and townhomes ended up Thursday night as a 225-townhome complex.

The Hall County Board of Commissioners voted Jan. 28 to approve Ridgeline Land Planning’s rezoning request to allow the 40-acre development at 7285 Spout Springs Road, near the massive Reunion subdivision.

The decision displeased residents who showed up to oppose the project, with shouts of “No way!” and “Boo!” after the vote. One resident on the way out of the meeting said, “Wait until the election, Kathy.”

South Hall Commissioner Kathy Cooper made the motion to approve the project.

Residents also spoke out against the development during the meeting. One person especially decried the traffic, saying, “It’s a nightmare.”

Spout Springs Road is being widened from Hog Mountain Road to Union Circle. A second phase between Union Circle and Thompson Mill Road, passing by the Ridgeline development, may be years away, officials have said.

Ridgeline initially was seeking 274 apartments and 124 townhomes on the property but had those numbers whittled in a split Oct. 19 vote recommending approval by the Hall County Planning Commission.

Several residents spoke against the proposal at the planning board meeting as well, saying they believed the project was too dense. They also said they were concerned about traffic the project would generate.