Knoxville-Knox County Planning Commission approves multiple rezoning and subdivision items, delays two contested proposals

Knoxville — The Knoxville-Knox County Planning Commission handled more than two dozen land-use matters at its monthly meeting, approving several planned-residential rezonings and subdivision concept plans while denying one zoning change and postponing two contested items so applicants can meet with neighbors.

The commission voted to deny a request to rezone a West Emerald Avenue lot from RN-2 to RN-4, rejected a plan amendment in Karns but approved a planned-residential rezoning at up to 12 dwelling units per acre for a separate Mullins application, and approved multiple subdivision concept plans and engineering variances across the county. Two rezoning requests that drew neighbor opposition — a Ball Camp Pike townhome proposal and a development on Boyd’s Bridge Pike — were postponed to give applicants time to meet with residents and staff.

Why it matters: The commission’s actions move several projects forward that will add housing units and require later development-plan reviews; the postponements reflect neighborhood concerns about traffic, sidewalks and utilities that applicants and staff agreed to address before the cases return. Several approvals included engineering variances and conditions that planning staff and Knox County Engineering and Public Works said were necessary to accommodate local topography or infrastructure limits.

Key outcomes and votes at a glance

- Item 7 (South side of West Emerald Ave; Applicant: Parker Bartholomew) — Rezoning request from RN-2 to RN-4 denied. Motion to deny carried (mover: Commissioner Midas; seconder: Commissioner Browning). Recorded outcome: denied (vote 12–2). The denial followed public comment and a split commission that included arguments for preserving neighborhood character and counterarguments that higher density could increase housing affordability. Applicant Parker Bartholomew said he hoped to build two small modular homes and described them as a path to more-affordable homeownership: “These homes ... cost less than a hundred thousand dollars. The payment would be less than $700 a month.”

- Item 11 (North side of Baldcamp Pike; Applicant: Alex Bodizet) — Postponed 30 days at the applicant’s request (mover: Commissioner Levinson; seconder: Commissioner Adams). Neighbors cited traffic congestion on Ball Camp Pike, lack of sidewalks and safety near schools; staff clarified that sidewalk access exists on the terminus of Hinton Drive but not along Ball Camp Pike itself. Several neighbors asked for traffic and infrastructure follow-up before the case returns.

- Item 18 (North side of Boyd’s Bridge Pike; Applicant: Reginald Bell) — Postponed 60 days (mover: Commissioner Adams; seconder: Commissioner Anderson) after neighbors raised concerns about traffic at the proposed access and stormwater and that the entrance may be near a curve. The applicant said he would work with neighbors on a revised plan.

- Item 22 (Subdivision concept, Riverside Road; Applicant: LIA Engineering) — Concept plan approved for 10 lots in RN-2 subject to nine staff conditions. Motion carried (mover: Commissioner Overton; seconder: Commissioner Anderson). Nearby residents had opposed based on narrow roadway width and sight distance; the applicant said the required roadway widening will be addressed in design review.

- Item 26 (Meadowlands resubdivision; Applicant: Benchmark Associates Inc.) — Two motions approved: variance to allow an additional lot on a substandard joint permanent easement (subject to a turnaround meeting AASHTO standards) and final plat approval to create four lots (mover: Commissioner Higgins; seconder: Commissioner Levinson). Knox County Engineering supported the variance with a turnaround condition.

- Item 27 (Re-subdivision of property of Billy P. Mosier; Applicant: Brenda Houser) — Approved variance to include an access easement area in lot area totals and approved final plat for two lots (mover: Commissioner Levinson; seconder: Commissioner Higgins). Staff justified the variance by historical deed lines and hardship.

- Item 33 (Benjamin C. Mullins property, Oak Ridge Highway) — Two motions: commissioners followed staff recommendation to deny a plan amendment to change a small portion of the sector plan to Traditional Neighborhood (motion 1, passed) and then approved a Planned Residential (PR) rezoning with up to 12 dwelling units per acre for the remainder of the requested area (motion 2, passed; mover: Commissioner Levinson; seconder: Commissioner Anderson). Neighbors cited traffic congestion at the one-lane underpass and asked for protections; staff said the site is adjacent to amenities (library, park, schools) that support higher-intensity development and that a development plan would return to the commission with design details and required traffic analysis.

- Item 43 (James Smith property, Maloney Road) — Approved Planned Residential (PR) with up to 2 dwelling units per acre; floodway designation retained (mover: Commissioner Browning; seconder: Commissioner Dailey). Speakers from a neighbor HOA asked the commission to confirm sewer availability, geotechnical work and to consider safety at the narrow Maloney Road approaches. Applicant’s team said KUB provided a letter allowing sewer connection and that geotechnical and design details would be addressed in subsequent engineering review.

- Item 44 (Masana Investments, Hill Road/Cabbage Lane) — Approved PR up to 4 dwelling units per acre (mover: Commissioner Barger; second recorded). Several residents asked for a lower density (3 per acre) citing narrow, curving roads and sight-distance concerns; planning staff explained RA and nearby PR examples informed the staff recommendation.

- Item 45 (1222 Development LLC, Millartown Pike) — Approved PR up to 4 dwelling units per acre (mover: Commissioner Midas; seconder: Commissioner Adams). Applicant described an age-restricted, single-level townhome product and noted new sewer infrastructure being extended nearby that supports the project’s feasibility.

- Item 49 (Isabel Estates concept plan modification) — Commission approved a modification of condition number 3 for the concept plan per the applicant’s request, subject to two conditions; staff and TDOT previously discussed timing for intersection improvements and staff said TDOT would allow lot creation once the contractor mobilizes and a notice-to-proceed is issued.

- Item 50 (Belltown subdivision, multiple roads and variances) — The commission approved four engineering variances, alternative design standards and the concept plan subject to 11 conditions. Knox County Engineering recommended the variances on topographic and TVA-easement grounds; motions carried on staff recommendation (mover: Commissioner Barger; seconder: Commissioner Daley).

- Item 52 (The Plains; Knoxville Habitat for Humanity) — Four actions approved: a small reduced-tangent variance, alternative design standards, the concept plan (subject to seven conditions) and the development plan for up to 74 attached houses on individual lots (motions carried; mover: Commissioner Levinson; seconder: Commissioner Barger). Habitat’s applicant and staff said engineering constraints had been examined and the variances were minor adjustments to follow site topography.

- Item 53 (Parks at Maybelle, Lot 72 development plan) — Despite opposition from homeowners who argued that Lot 72 had been understood as common area on earlier neighborhood materials, the commission approved the single-lot development plan subject to four staff conditions (mover: Commissioner Anderson; seconder: Vice Chair Huber). Counsel and staff explained that the 2018 replat changed the legal status of the two lots at issue and that the planning commission decision is on the development plan and zoning compliance, not HOA governance or private covenant enforcement.

What commissioners and residents pressed the most

- Traffic and sidewalks: recurring concerns at Ball Camp Pike, Ballcamp/Baldcamp area, Boyd’s Bridge Pike, Riverside Road and Hill Road. Residents asked staff and applicants for traffic studies, sidewalk plans and clarity about which agency (city/county/TDOT/KUB) is responsible for capital infrastructure.

- Infrastructure and utilities: multiple speakers asked whether sewer, stormwater, geotechnical and utility capacity had been confirmed; staff and applicants said KUB letters, concept-level engineering and future development-plan reviews will address the technical items.

- Neighborhood character and legal status of common areas: in the Parks at Maybelle case there was strong resident opposition claiming the lot was originally “common area.” Staff and counsel said plats, deeds and subsequent replatting in 2018 had altered legal lot lines; the commission’s role is limited to zoning and development-plan compliance, not enforcing HOA covenants.

Quotes

“These homes are modular certified ... They’re eligible for 30 year home loans, housing vouchers, and they cost less than a hundred thousand dollars,” applicant Parker Bartholomew said while describing a proposed two-unit missing-middle solution for a West Emerald Avenue lot.

“I am appalled by the dishonesty coming from staff on this very issue,” resident Bentley Marlowe said in public comment during the same item; Chair Tim Hill responded that he had not observed dishonesty from staff and asked the speaker to take a seat.

“Because of the opposition, the applicant chose to postpone,” staff said on the Ball Camp Pike item after neighbors raised safety and sidewalk concerns; the applicant agreed to a 30-day postponement to meet neighbors.

Ending

Most approvals at the meeting included conditions and required later engineering, development-plan or final-plat reviews; several contested matters were postponed to allow applicants and neighbors to meet with staff. Projects that advanced will return to staff and to the commission at the concept, development-plan and engineering stages with technical reports and design details before building permits are issued.