Commission approves rezoning for four homes on Belmont Circle, with wording to be clarified before council

The Smyrna Planning and Zoning Commission voted unanimously on Sept. 15 to recommend rezoning about 1.53 acres on Belmont Circle from R‑15 to R‑10 conditional to allow four single‑family detached homes at a density of 2.61 units per acre. The commission's recommendation will be forwarded to Mayor and Council for final consideration on Oct. 20.

Staff presented the site as a single tax parcel split into two legal pieces and described standard conditions and several site‑specific stipulations: front, side and rear setbacks (25 feet front, 7.5 feet side, 25 feet rear), a minimum lot size of 10,000 square feet, minimum lot width of 50 feet, minimum driveway length of 22 feet, installation of sidewalk, relocation of an on‑site pet waste station and connection of Lot 4 sewer to an existing 20‑foot sanitary easement in the side yard. Staff recommended approval with those conditions and with the development built in substantial compliance with the submitted site plan and elevations.

Applicant Rick Kolb, who identified himself as the applicant and builder working in the area, told the commission the parcel presented practical constraints: a telephone pole and guy wire near the westernmost lot limit the location of utilities and the driveway, and a prescriptive sewer easement on the east side constrains building placement. Kolb said staff agreed to revisit a stipulation that would require driveway alignment to Belmont Circle because field constraints prevent complying with the original language.

Kolb and co‑presenter Sean Murphy described planned floor areas: three lots to the east were described as roughly 2,200 square feet each with four bedrooms and two‑and‑a‑half baths; Lot 1 to the west would be built to the applicant’s Shelby plan at about 2,700 square feet. Kolb estimated price points in general terms, saying he was “hoping low sixes” for the three eastern lots and “high sevens” for Lot 1.

Members of the public raised three topics during the hearing. Cindy Devine, 2270 Belmont Circle, asked why Lot 1 required R‑10 zoning when only one house is proposed and whether the city might eventually continue the sidewalk across existing properties. Devine also raised concerns about rodents and habitat disturbance when wooded land is cleared. Staff and the applicant responded that the parcel is being zoned as a whole and that future changes would require the applicant to return to the board; staff noted that public works evaluates off‑site sidewalk connections as part of development reviews. The applicant said he plans to preserve sizable tree areas at the rear of the lots where possible and to clear dense undergrowth before construction.

A motion to recommend approval was made and seconded; the commission approved the application 6‑0. The record shows that staff and the applicant will continue working on wording for a small number of stipulations (driveway alignment language and the pet waste station location) before the Mayor and Council hearing.