South City Sector Plan Update

MPC staff has drafted an update to the South City Sector Plan and has scheduled an open house to share the document with the public:

Tuesday, July 26, 2011, 5:30 - 7:00 p.m.

Adoption of this plan will update the previous version that was created in 2001. The plan consolidates recommendations from the Urban Wilderness Corridor initiative, the Knoxville-Knox County Parks, Recreation and Greenways Plan, the Knoxville Street Tree Master Plan, the South Waterfront Vision Plan, the Vestal Site Improvement Plan, and the Chapman Highway Corridor Study. It also offers several new mixed land use districts.

This sector plan is the first to include a green infrastructure element, outlining recommendations for connecting the trail system, parks, and schools and for protecting forested ridge lines. Several implementation strategies are outlined:

• Support Legacy Park's Knoxville Urban Wilderness and Historic Corridor initiative
• Connect new community facilities to the Urban Wilderness and Historic Corridor
• Conserve wooded hillsides, which help maintain our natural ridge system
• Protect the area's watershed system
• Preserve historic fort areas
• Extend the Urban Wilderness and Historic Corridor to other South County areas
• Preserve the South Waterfront Greenbelt that forms the backdrop to the waterfront.

The land use pattern remains primarily the same, with the addition of seven new mixed use special districts. These districts are areas within which there may be a variety of land uses developed, and they often have their own specific community facilities and transportation recommendations. These districts include:

• The South Waterfront - which builds off the recommendations contained in the Vision Plan, including new streets, parks, and pedestrian and bicycle connections
• An area adjacent to the South Waterfront District - where planned zones are recommended to ensure proper buffering of adjacent residential uses
• Log Haven - where planned zones are recommended in order to maintain the natural setting
• Chapman Highway (Downtown to Martin Mill Pike) - where higher intensity uses are encouraged and a form-based zone is proposed
• Chapman Highway (Taliwa Court to Fronda Lane) - where a town center and park improvements are encouraged
• Chapman Highway (Lakeview Drive to Lindy Drive) - where a new form-based district is recommended to create neighborhood-oriented mixed use development
• Downtown Vestal - where a new form-based district will implement the design concepts of the Vestal Site Improvement Plan.

The first step in the adoption process will be consideration by the Planning Commission at its August 11 meeting. The plan will be available for review at Lawson McGhee library in downtown Knoxville, and it can be viewed online.