Planning commission approves Magnolia Green preliminary plat but removes proposed gated emergency connection after neighbor objections

The Franklin Municipal Planning Commission approved the Magnolia Green preliminary plat on April 2025, allowing 59 single-family residential lots and eight open-space lots on about 69 acres south of Murfreesboro Road (806 Murfreesboro Road). The commission approved the plat after an amendment to remove a planned emergency access connection to the adjacent Charlton Green private alley.

The City fire marshal, Andy King, presented the fire department’s strong recommendation that the developer construct a gated, emergency-use-only access connection to Charlton Green to provide a secondary fire apparatus route. The marshal cited the adopted 2018 International Fire Code Appendix D (Section D107.1) and said developments exceeding 30 dwelling units are required to have two separate fire apparatus access roads; the department argued the gated connection would mitigate the risk posed by the existing single-access point at Watercrest Drive.

Several Charlton Green and Henley residents testified in opposition to physically connecting Magnolia Green to their private alley, saying the alley is privately maintained by eight homeowners, is not built…