Commissioners rezone Randy Anderson parcel after surveyor explains split-district rule

Coffee County commissioners approved an amendment to a prior rezoning so that property owned by Randy Anderson on Old Manchester Highway was rezoned commercial, after county staff and a surveyor explained a zoning rule that permitted a single owner’s lot to take the regulations of one district where a boundary divided a lot.

Nicholas Northcutt, the surveyor who surveyed Anderson’s property, told the commission that part of Anderson’s parcel was already zoned commercial and that the split left the owner with a narrow, essentially unusable residential strip between the commercial area and railroad tracks. Northcutt said the rezoning would make the lot one contiguous commercial parcel rather than split zoning.

Deborah Davenport, who lives at 4238 Old Manchester Highway, spoke in opposition during public comment and urged commissioners to consider the rural character of the area and the presence of farms and horses. After Northcutt explained the split-district provision and county staff reviewed the code, Mayor Hunt apologized for the confusion and said county staff had overlooked the zoning-parcel provision when Anderson first applied. The mayor said Anderson had the option to withdraw but elected to proceed.

The commission voted to approve the rezoning by a unanimous recorded vote of 18–0. Commissioners said the decision was consistent with a provision in the county’s zoning resolution that allows a lot divided by a district boundary to be regulated as a whole by either district under certain conditions.

The rezoning will be processed administratively consistent with county procedures; any subsequent development proposals will proceed through the planning commission and other required permitting steps.