Disposition Summary

Approve the RA (Low Density Residential) zone because it is consistent with the Knox County Comprehensive Plan and surrounding development.

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Staff Recommendation

Approve the RA (Low Density Residential) zone because it is consistent with the Knox County Comprehensive Plan and surrounding development.

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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. The area surrounding the subject property has transitioned from forested and agricultural lands to residential uses since the early 2000s.
2. Two lots within the subject site, lots 2101 and 2103, are nonconforming in that do not meet the minimum lot area requirements for the A (Agricultural) zones. All lots within the A zone must be a minimum of one acre. Lot 2103 is 0.51 ac and lot 2101 is 0.75 ac. Approving the requested RA (Low Density Residential) zone will bring the two lots into conformance as they meet the minimum dimensional standards for the RA zone, which is 20,000 sq ft for properties not served by sanitary sewer systems.

THE PROPOSED AMENDMENT SHALL BE CONSISTENT WITH THE INTENT AND PURPOSES OF THIS RESOLUTION.
1. The RA (Low Density Residential) zone is intended to provide for areas with low population densities.
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 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 site falls within the (HP) Hillside Protection area, and the southern portion of the site contains slopes in the 15-25% range. The slope analysis determined that 1.8 ac of the 2 ac within the HP area may be disturbed.
2. The minimum lot area for properties not served by sanitary sewers in the RA zone is 20,000 sq ft. With a lot area of 2.33 ac and based on minimum lot area alone, the subject property could yield up to 5 lots.
3. Rosewood Drive is a short collector street connecting Rutledge Pk and Millertown Pike, both of which are classified as arterial streets. Therefore, no traffic would be required through side streets to access this property.

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 subject site falls is designated as the SR (Suburban Residential) place type in the Knox County Comprehensive Plan. The RA zone is listed as being directly related to the SR place type. The allowed uses within RA align with the primary and secondary uses of SR, which are predominantly residential and civic in nature.
2. The subject property is located within the Urban Growth Boundary, which aims to encourage a reasonably compact pattern of development. Approving the requested RA zone supports policy 6.1 of the Growth Policy Plan pertaining to Urban Growth Boundaries, which includes offering a wide range of housing choices, by allowing flexibility in dimensional standards for residential development.
3. The rezoning complies with the Comprehensive Plan's implementation policy 2, to ensure that new development is sensitive to existing community character. The lot sizes and uses allowed by the RA zone are consistent with other residential development in the area.