Approve PR (Planned Residential) up to 4.3 du/ac.

Disposition Summary

Approve PR (Planned Residential) up to 4.3 du/ac.

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Details of Action

Approve PR (Planned Residential) up to 4.3 du/ac.

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Staff Recommendation

Approve the PR (Planned Residential) zone up to 4 du/ac 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. This section of E Emory Road has experienced a significant trend in residential development over the last twenty years, primarily consisting of single-family subdivisions on a range of lot sizes.
2. Since the early 1990s, the surrounding area has gradually transitioned from A (Agricultural) zoning to residential zoning, such as RA (Low Density Residential) and PR (Planned Residential) with up to 2 to up to 5 du/ac.
3. The commercial corridor along Tazewell Pike is 1.36 miles to the east, featuring various retail and service-oriented establishments, and Gibbs Elementary, Middle, and High Schools are roughly 1.6 miles to the northeast.

THE PROPOSED AMENDMENT SHALL BE CONSISTENT WITH THE INTENT AND PURPOSES OF THE APPLICABLE ZONING ORDINANCE.
1. The PR zone provides flexibility for residential development, allowing a mix of residential uses and lot sizes that would be characterized by a unified building and site development program.
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 PR zone with up to 4 du/ac is compatible with the surrounding residential zoning, including properties zoned PR from up to 2 to 5 du/ac and RA.

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 PR zone ensures that site plans undergo a public review process and obtain Planning Commission approval of any proposed developments. The plan will be reviewed to determine whether the proposed development is compatible with the surrounding community.
2.In 2018, the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) realigned this section of E Emory Road from the intersection of Beeler Road to the east, with the intent that additional safety improvements would be completed at a later date due to the high traffic volumes and vehicular crash rates in this area. The section of E Emory Road between Maynardville Pike and Tazewell Pike was identified for widening from 2 to 5 lanes in the 2017 TDOT IMPROVE Act. However, TDOT has since released a 10-year Project Plan that does not include funding for that project, and therefore it is on hold with no definitive schedule for construction. As such, a lesser density of 4 du/ac would be more appropriate here, as it would permit residential development better suited to the current infrastructure along this section of E Emory Road.

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 property has the RC (Rural Conservation) place type in the Knox County Comprehensive Plan. The RC place type recommends a housing mix featuring single-family and attached residential subdivisions in a conservation pattern.
2. The PR zone is partially related to the RC place type. Per Appendix H of the Comprehensive Plan, additional criteria must be met for zoning amendment requests where the proposed zoning district is partially related to the place type. The recommended rezoning meets the second criterion, as it would be an extension of the PR zone with up to 4 du/ac from the west.
3. The subject property is within the Planned Growth Area of the Growth Policy Plan, which is intended to encourage a reasonably compact pattern of development, promote expansion of the Knox County economy, and offer a wide range of housing choices. In growth areas, the RC place type indicates places that may be subject to development similar to the adjacent place types, but where more compact and low-impact site design is expected. The subject property borders a swath of the SR (Suburban Residential) place type from the west and south. The recommended density of 4 du/ac would allow for a transition in land use intensity between the suburban residential development patterns supported by the SR place type and the less dense, conservation-oriented development characterized by the RC place type.
4. The recommended density of 4 du/ac complies with the Comprehensive Plan's Implementation Policy 2, to ensure that development is sensitive to existing community character. The PR zone with a density of 4 du/ac would permit development that is compatible with the surrounding area and help establish a transition in land use intensity between developments in the SR and RC place types.
5. The recommended density also complies with Implementation Policy 9, to coordinate infrastructure improvements with development. As previously mentioned, improvement plans for this stretch of E Emory Road have been tabled for the foreseeable future, and a lesser density of 4 du/ac would be more appropriate here as it would permit residential development that is supportive of the current infrastructure.