Planning commission recommends declining rezoning request for Hoodoo Road parcel; debate on 5-acre rule and family variance continues

The Planning Commission on July 22 recommended that the County Commission decline a request to rezone a parcel at 1009 Hoodoo Road from A-1 to C-1. The commission's negative recommendation followed a public presentation by Nicholas Northcutt, who said he was representing the Telefords and that the owners wanted to divide the parcel so they could place a house toward the rear of the lot. Northcutt said the parcel is on a state road and that the proposed division would meet setbacks and lot-size requirements for the new lot. Commission members said the larger issue raised by the application was the county's recent zoning change that established a 5-acre minimum lot size in A-1. Commissioners repeatedly emphasized that rezoning to C-1 would remove local controls over future uses on the split parcel. "If we change it to commercial, they can put something commercial," one commissioner said during discussion. After extended discussion about alternative pathways'including the Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) and a family-variance mechanism'Commissioner Randy Harold made a motion to recommend declining the rezoning request; the motion carried. The recommendation is advisory: the parcel and rezoning request will be considered by the full County Commission. Commissioners and staff spent much of the meeting debating how to allow limited, case-by-case departures from the 5-acre minimum without broadly opening A-1 to commercial conversion. Options discussed included clarifying the zoning resolution to use the term "special question" or "special exception" in place of "variance" to align with Tennessee Code Annotated (TCA), and drafting explicit conditions for family variances. One compromise repeatedly cited informally by commissioners was the "5-5-5" idea: splits limited in number (five maximum from a parent parcel), with a five-year holding period and that the minimum parcel remain 5 acres in general. Planning staff and commissioners agreed to prepare and refine language before the commission's next meeting and to aim to present a resolution or ordinance wording to the County Commission in October. Commissioners asked staff (Amanda/Mark referenced in the meeting) to draft the necessary changes to the zoning resolution and to clarify how minor subdivisions and variances should be handled in both the zoning resolution and the county's subdivision regulations. Why it matters: The decision and follow-up work affect how rural landowners can divide property in A-1 zones and whether short-term sales or small commercial conversions become more likely. Commissioners repeatedly noted that rezoning removes local discretion over permitted uses and that any permanent change to A-1 land use carries long-term consequences for the county. The commission did not vote on any text changes at the meeting and directed staff to return with drafted language for review and for a formal vote at a subsequent meeting.