Building rural subdivisions away from the outskirts of Lawrence’s city limits is getting a big thumbs down by a few county residents and organizations speaking out on the issue.

Subdivision regulations approved by Douglas County commissioners would allow placement of residential subdivisions anywhere in the county, opponents said. That is not going over well with farmers, said Betty Lichtwardt, a longtime member of the Land Use Committee and a member of the League of Women Voters.

“This is a farmer’s worst nightmare,” she said. “I can’t think of anything worse than this.”

Lichtwardt spoke during Wednesday night’s meeting of the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission. The Planning Commission must approve the county’s regulations before they go up for a vote by the Lawrence City Commission.

In a lengthy, detailed letter to the Planning Commission, the League of Women Voters also has opposed subdivision regulations because they allow subdivisions to be placed outside the urban growth area around Lawrence.

The Planning Commission tabled making a decision on the regulations until next month. Written comments on the proposals can still be submitted until noon April 28.

In other business, the Planning Commission tabled discussing and taking action on a proposal to adopt standards for a retail impact study in Lawrence. Commissioners said they wanted more information from city staff to be discussed in May.

The commission did, however, approve, with various language modifications, a series of revisions to the city’s development code, ranging from housing codes standards to retail market impact analysis for site planning.