To be heard August 14, 2025Agenda Item No. 20

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Staff Recommendation

Approve the request to remove the previously approved planned district (C) designation from this parcel because it will enable development that is consistent with the current zoning and the surrounding area.

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Prior to the adoption of the current zoning ordinance, the subject property was zoned RP-1 (Planned Residential) with up to 1 du/ac (1-D-16-RZ). The former RP-1 zoning provided optional methods of land development to encourage more imaginative solutions to environmental design problems and was intended to establish a unified building and site development program. The RP-1 zoning district required a use-on-review development plan prior to the permitting process to establish a new use on the site.

A use on review was approved for this parcel that consisted of a 38,000 sq ft memory care facility with 62 bedrooms (5-I-16-UR). Per Article 1.4.G (Previously Approved Planned Districts) of the City of Knoxville Zoning Ordinance, all previously approved planned districts remained in effect and are subject to all plans, regulations, and/or conditions of their approval.

Under the adoption of the City Zoning Ordinance on January 1, 2020, this property was assigned the RN-1 (Single-Family Residential Neighborhood) zoning district and HP (Hillside Protection Overlay), but retained the previously approved planned district (C) designation. The property was later rezoned in September 2024 from RN-1 to RN-4 (General Residential Neighborhood) and retained the HP and (C) designations (7-I-24-RZ).

If the former RP-1 zoning is removed from the site, the existing RN-4 and HP standards would apply to any proposed development. Before plans can be approved for a change to the site or use, the "C" designation must be removed via a special use.

STANDARDS FOR EVALUATING A SPECIAL USE (ARTICLE 16.2.F.2)

1) THE USE IS CONSISTENT WITH ADOPTED PLANS AND POLICIES, INCLUDING THE GENERAL PLAN AND THE ONE-YEAR PLAN.
A. Removal of the previous planned district does not establish a use. Once the property is developed, the use and its consistency with the One Year Plan and the Northwest City Sector Plan would be applicable at that time.
B. The RN-4 district is more consistent with the One Year Plan and Northwest City Sector Plan designation of MDR than the previous RP-1 at 1 du/ac. 1 du/ac is more consistent with rural areas, and this property is at the intersection of two arterial streets, Middlebrook Pike and N Gallaher View Rd.

2) THE USE IS IN HARMONY WITH THE GENERAL PURPOSE AND INTENT OF THIS ZONING CODE.
A. The RN-4 zoning district is intended to accommodate mixed medium-density residential development within the City of Knoxville. It is intended to be applied to neighborhoods characterized by such mixed residential development. Limited nonresidential uses that are compatible with the district's character may also be permitted. The RN-4 district is compatible with development in the surrounding area, which features a mix of housing types, including single-family, two-family, and multi-family developments.
B. Removal of the previously approved planned district designation would not cause nonconformance with the City of Knoxville's Zoning Ordinance. The memory care facility was never constructed, and the current single-family dwelling on the site is a permitted use in the RN-4 zoning district.
C. Any proposed development will be required to be consistent with the general purpose and intent of the RN-4 district and the City's Zoning Code.

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. This special use request is to remove a former planned district designation on a parcel that was part of a development plan approved in 2016, which is no longer vested. Since this request is not for a specific use, it is not out of compliance with this section of the zoning ordinance.
B. Removal of the "C" designation will enable uses permitted in the RN-4 zoning district, which is intended to support mixed-residential development. The suitability of an intended use will be determined when a use is proposed.
C. The RN-4 district requires special use approval of limited nonresidential uses and residential developments based on form and number of dwelling units proposed, such as townhouse developments of 9 or more units and multi-family developments of 5 or more units if in a single structure.

4) THE USE WILL NOT SIGNIFICANTLY INJURE THE VALUE OF ADJACENT PROPERTY OR BY NOISE, LIGHTS, FUMES, ODORS, VIBRATION, TRAFFIC, CONGESTION, OR OTHER IMPACTS DETRACT FROM THE IMMEDIATE ENVIRONMENT.
A. Removal of the previous planned district is not a specific use and its removal will not significantly injure the value of adjacent property.
B. All properties are required to comply with Article 10 of the City of Knoxville Zoning Ordinance, which regulates the aforementioned impacts.

5) THE USE IS NOT OF A NATURE OR SO LOCATED AS TO DRAW SUBSTANTIAL ADDITIONAL TRAFFIC THROUGH RESIDENTIAL STREETS.
A. Since the removal of the previous planned district is not a specific use, its removal will not draw traffic.

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 future development that is anticipated to occur at this site.