Planning commission approves preliminary plat for Venture Laster Farms with conditions

The Farragut Municipal Planning Commission voted unanimously June 19 to approve a preliminary plat for roadway improvements tied to the Venture Laster Farms development, a Knox County project that will affect town streets.

Staff described the project as a proposed multifamily and townhouse development just east of the Tapestry Apartments. The developer—identified in the application as Venture Laster Farms—plans approximately 240 multifamily units and 80 townhomes on roughly 18 acres. Because the development’s traffic impact study showed effects on town rights‑of‑way, the plat includes proposed improvements to Outlet Drive and to the North Campbell Station Road and Snyder Road intersection.

The improvements described in staff materials and the traffic impact study include: a westbound deceleration (taper) and storage lane on Outlet Drive (a 75‑foot taper with 140‑foot storage), a northbound right‑turn lane on North Campbell Station at Snyder Road (a 140‑foot taper with a 100‑foot storage area), and replacing a three‑section signal head with a five‑section right‑turn signal head at an intersection noted in the study. Staff also noted that signal timing at the Owlett Drive intersections will need to be adjusted at project conclusion to account for development traffic.

Staff recommended approval subject to three conditions: add a note limiting initial occupancy to no more than 100 certificates of occupancy until the town‑portion of the improvements are satisfactorily completed, resolve a roughly 20‑foot discrepancy between taper lengths shown on the plans and those recommended in the traffic impact study, and provide a letter of credit guaranteeing satisfactory completion of work in the town’s rights‑of‑way. The town engineer will determine the letter‑of‑credit amount.

Jason Hunt, the applicant’s engineer from Cannon and Cannon, told the commission the taper difference was driven by constraints at a gas station entrance and that the design maximized the taper available without modifying the existing channelized island. Mirza Smoon, representing Millstone Ventures LLC (the developer and general contractor), said the developer agreed to the three conditions, that they would coordinate with the town on the letter of credit, and that the multifamily project is expected to last roughly 24 months from start of site work; he estimated road improvements would be completed about 10–12 months after site work begins.

Commissioners asked about traffic effects on Campbell Station northbound under the Interstate and about construction timing; the developer said the lane work would be largely asphalt/milling and overlay and that major mill/overlay operations would be done at night with traffic management. Commissioners and staff said the work should not produce prolonged daytime regressions in traffic operations and that timing would be coordinated with town engineering and traffic management requirements.

A commissioner moved to approve the preliminary plat with the three subject‑to conditions. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.