Disposition Summary

APPROVE the request for a parking lot as depicted on the site plan, subject to 4 conditions.

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Staff Recommendation

APPROVE the request for a parking lot as depicted on the site plan, subject to 4 conditions.

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1. Meeting all requirements of 3.50. - Off-street parking requirements.
2. Meeting all applicable requirements of the Knox County Department of Engineering and Public Works.
3. Meeting all applicable requirements of the Knox County Zoning Ordinance.
4. Installing all landscaping shown on the landscape plan, and all other landscaping required by the Knox County Zoning Ordinance.

With the conditions noted, this plan meets the requirements for approval in the PR (Planned Residential) district and the other general criteria for approval of a Use on Review.

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The proposal is to create additional parking for a shopping center on an adjacent vacant lot. The lot is 0.327 acres in the PR zone district of an existing single-family subdivision.

Section 3.51.10. Parking in a more restrictive zone.
The planning commission shall have the authority to approve off-street parking as a use-on-review in any zone which is more restrictive than that required for the major land use it is intended to serve subject to the preceding conditions. The following conditions shall also apply:

A. The parking lot shall not have access from the more restrictive zone. (The parking lot's only access is from the shopping center's parking lot on 2109 W Emory Rd.)
B. All sides of the lot, except those openings for ingress and egress, shall be enclosed with an opaque ornamental fence, wall or dense evergreen hedge having a height of not less than five (5) feet nor more than six (6) feet. Such fence, wall or hedge shall be maintained in good condition. Bumper stops shall be provided so as to prevent any vehicle from projecting over the buffer strip. (Landscape buffer is 18-ft wide consisting of evergreen shrubs 6-8-ft tall. Buffer goes around all sides of the parking lot except the ingress and egress. All parking spaces have bumper stops.)

DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS FOR USES PERMITTED ON REVIEW (ARTICLE 4.10 - SECTION 2).
The Planning Commission, in the exercise of its administrative judgment, shall be guided by adopted plans and policies, including the general plan and the following general standards:

1) THE USE IS CONSISTENT WITH THE ADOPTED PLANS AND POLICIES, INCLUDING THE GENERAL PLAN AND SECTOR PLAN.
A. The site is within the North County Sector Plan, which proposes LDR (Low Density Residential) for the area. Per 3.51.10. Parking in a more restrictive zone. The planning commission shall have the authority to approve off-street parking as a use-on-review in any zone which is more restrictive than that required for the major land use it is intended to serve.

2) THE USE IS IN HARMONY WITH THE GENERAL PURPOSE AND INTENT OF THE ZONING ORDINANCE
A. The site is within the Planned Residential zone. Per 3.51.10. Parking in a more restrictive zone. The planning commission shall have the authority to approve off-street parking as a use-on-review in any zone which is more restrictive than that required for the major land use it is intended to serve.
B. There shall be 5 parking spaces provided for each 1,000-sq ft of shopping center building. The proposed building is 5,806 sq ft and the total parking minimum is 30 spaces. 22 spaces are available in the shopping center main lot. The additional parking lot has 20 spaces, which is more than the minimum requirement. (3.50.10. The minimum number of off-street parking spaces)
C. The parking lot abuts 2 rear yards of the subdivision and is within the 5-ft setback requirement, where the parking lot abuts rear property lines of a residential zone. (3.51.08. Parking lot setbacks.)
D. 3.50.01. Off-street parking for other than residential use shall be either on the same lot or within two hundred (200) feet of the building. The parking lot is approximately 100-ft from the building.

3) THE USE IS COMPATIBLE WITH THE CHARACTER OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD WHERE IT IS PROPOSED, AND WITH THE SIZE AND LOCATION OF BUILDINGS IN THE VICINITY.
A. The lot does not have frontage on any streets within the single-family subdivision. Its only access is through the shopping center parking lot on W Emory Rd.

4) THE USE WILL NOT SIGNIFICANTLY INJURE THE VALUE OF ADJACENT PROPERTY.
A. The proposed parking lot is not expected to cause any adverse impacts or injure property values.

5) THE USE WILL NOT DRAW ADDITIONAL TRAFFIC THROUGH RESIDENTIAL AREAS.
A. Traffic volume in this neighborhood will not be increased as a result of the proposed parking lot.

6) THE NATURE OF DEVELOPMENT IN THE SURROUNDING AREA IS NOT SUCH AS TO POSE A POTENTIAL HAZARD TO THE PROPOSED USE OR TO CREATE AN UNDESIRABLE ENVIRONMENT FOR THE PROPOSED USE.
A. There are no known uses in the area that could be a potential hazard or create an undesirable environment for the proposed use.