The Gloucester County Planning Commission recommended the creation of a new zoning district during a meeting Thursday night in the colonial courthouse. The matter now moves to county supervisors.

Following a public hearing and some discussion, commissioners voted by a 5-1 margin in favor of the creation of a Residential Mixed Use (RMX) district, with Adam Taylor casting the lone negative vote and member Christopher Poulson absent. The intent of the RMX district is to encourage orderly development of a residential-oriented, mixed-use neighborhood environment, Anne Ducey-Ortiz, director of planning and zoning said.

The district is aimed at the area in and around the county’s two village centers—Gloucester Court House and Hayes/Gloucester Point. Ducey-Ortiz said several developers have inquired about such a district.

Attorney Raymond Suttle Jr. said that creating the RMX district would allow his client, Newport News developer Bobby Freeman, to move ahead with plans to build...