Disposition Summary

Approve the CA (General Business) zone for the portion of the property shown on the agenda map because it is consistent with the Knox County Comprehensive Plan.

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Staff Recommendation

Approve the CA (General Business) zone for the portion of the property shown on the agenda map because it is consistent with the Knox County Comprehensive Plan.

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PURSUANT TO THE KNOX COUNTY ZONING ORDINANCE, ARTICLE 6.30.01, THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS MUST BE MET FOR ALL REZONINGS (must meet all of these):

THE PROPOSED AMENDMENT SHALL BE NECESSARY BECAUSE OF SUBSTANTIALLY CHANGED OR CHANGING CONDITIONS IN THE AREA AND ZONES AFFECTED, OR IN THE COUNTY GENERALLY.
1. Development trends along this section of Middlebrooke Pike have included a mix of uses and housing types, such as commercial and office uses and limited multi-family developments like townhomes and apartment complexes.
2. There has been a slow trend away from residential to non-residential zones, including CA (General Business) and OB (Office, Medical and Related Services) in the surrounding area since the mid-1990s.

THE PROPOSED AMENDMENT SHALL BE CONSISTENT WITH THE INTENT AND PURPOSES OF THE APPLICABLE ZONING ORDINANCE.
1. The CA zone is intended for general retail business and services.
2. Rezonings should be based on the entire range of uses allowed within a zone to ensure that any development brought forth at a future time would be compatible with the surrounding land uses. The requested CA zone is compatible with the surrounding zoning, which includes commercially zoned properties zoned CA, CN (Neighborhood Commercial), and PC (Planned Commercial).

THE PROPOSED AMENDMENT SHALL NOT ADVERSELY AFFECT ANY OTHER PART OF THE COUNTY NOR SHALL ANY DIRECT OR INDIRECT ADVERSE EFFECTS RESULT FROM SUCH AN AMENDMENT.
1. The subject property is between properties zoned CA zoning on the west and east sides, and it is located opposite the subject property on the north side of Middlebrook Pike. As such, the minor extension of the zone is not anticipated to negatively impact the surrounding area.

PROPOSED AMENDMENT SHALL BE CONSISTENT WITH AND NOT IN CONFLICT WITH THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN OF KNOX COUNTY, INCLUDING ANY OF ITS ELEMENTS, MAJOR ROAD PLAN, LAND USE PLAN, COMMUNITY FACILITIES PLAN, AND OTHERS:
1. The requested CA zone is partially related to the recommended CMU place type. Per Appendix H of the Comprehensive Plan, additional criteria must be met for partially related zones. The proposed rezoning meets the second criterion, as the adjacent properties on the east and west sides are currently zoned CA.
2. The recommended zoning complies with Implementation Policy 2 to ensure that development is sensitive to the existing community character, and Implementation Policy 3 to encourage the infill of underutilized commercial land. Approving the CA zone at this location would address a minor gap in commercial zoning in an area experiencing an increase in commercial development while maintaining a transition in land use intensity.
3. The subject property is within the Planned Growth Area of the Growth Policy Plan, which encourages a reasonably compact pattern of development and promotes the expansion of the Knox County economy. The proposed rezoning does not conflict with the intent of the Planned Growth Area.