Coffee County BZA defines "special question" as variance, strikes property-value standard

The Coffee County Board of Zoning Appeals on Tuesday amended its zoning resolution to define a “special question” as synonymous with a variance under Tennessee law and removed a clause that would have allowed the board to consider whether a minor subdivision would “negatively affect neighboring property values.”

The change establishes that, for purposes of administering the county zoning resolution, “a special question shall be construed as synonymous with variance as controlled by section 13-7-109, Tennessee Code Annotated,” language read into the record by Amanda, staff member. That definition was added along with a new subsection (letter e) to Section 10.8 governing standards for granting special-question variances for minor subdivisions in the A-1 district.

The amendment matters because it clarifies the legal basis the Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) will use when answering special questions and sets standards for minor subdivisions — defined in the revised language as the division of land into four or fewer parcels under five acres in the A-1 district. Those standards, as read aloud during the meeting, include lot-size and dimensional requirements, compatibility with surrounding density and land-use plans, access and infrastructure provisions, limits on adverse impacts…