Disposition Summary

Approve the sector plan amendment to the RR (Rural Residential) land use classification because it is consistent with development in the area. The HP (Hillside Protection) area would be retained.

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Staff Recommendation

Approve the sector plan amendment to the RR (Rural Residential) land use classification because it is consistent with development in the area. The HP (Hillside Protection) area would be retained.

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SECTOR PLAN AMENDMENT REQUIREMENTS FROM GENERAL PLAN (May meet one of these):

CHANGES OF CONDITIONS WARRANTING AMENDMENT OF THE LAND USE PLAN:
1. The residential development to the north and northwest are predominantly on half-acre lots and were platted in the 1960s. These have the AG (Agricultural) land use classification, though they align more with the RR (Rural Residential) land use.

INTRODUCTION OF SIGNIFICANT NEW ROADS OR UTILITIES THAT WERE NOT ANTICIPATED IN THE PLAN AND MAKE DEVELOPMENT MORE FEASIBLE:
1. There are no known road or utility improvements in the area that were not anticipated in the plan and make the development more feasible.

AN OBVIOUS OR SIGNIFICANT ERROR OR OMISSION IN THE PLAN:
1. The AG (Agricultural) land use designation is not the result of an error or omission in the sector plan. However, the area to the north and northwest of this property was developed in the 1960s with residential lots of half-acre and smaller. The sector plan should have considered the RR (Rural Residential) land use classification for those developments. RR may be considered in the Rural Area of the Growth Policy Plan.
2. The RR land use classification allows consideration of PR up to 1 du/ac in the South County Sector Plan.
3. Section 1, Policy 3.2 of the Growth Policy Plan allows consideration of PR (Planned Residential) up to 2 du/ac, with lower densities on sites with steep slopes.

TRENDS IN DEVELOPMENT, POPULATION OR TRAFFIC THAT WARRANT RECONSIDERATION OF THE ORIGINAL PLAN PROPOSAL:
1. New residential development and rezonings have happened to the east, near and along the Chapman Hwy corridor. The population has increased significantly over the past twenty years. The RR land use classification is consistent with this ongoing trend towards residential land use while also limiting density to maintain the rural character of the property's surrounding environment.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS:
1. The subject property meets the RR (Rural Residential) land use classification's location criteria, which is for sites characterized as forested (tree-covered), especially on moderate and steep slopes and by sites adjacent to agricultural areas where conservation/cluster housing subdivisions may be appropriate.

State law regarding amendments to the general plan (which includes Sector Plan amendments) was changed with the passage of Public Chapter 1150 by the Tennessee Legislature in 2008. The law now provides for two methods to amend the plan at TCA 13-3-304:
- The Planning Commission may initiate an amendment by adopting a resolution and certifying the amendment to the Legislative Body. Once approved by majority vote of the Legislative Body, the amendment is operative.
- The Legislative Body may also initiate an amendment and transmit the amendment to the Planning Commission. Once the Planning Commission has considered the proposed amendment and approved, not approved, or taken no action, the Legislative Body may approve the amendment by majority vote and the amendment is operative.