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Wilson County planning commission delays PUD ordinance rewrite, schedules work session and public meeting
Summary
After hours of discussion and public comment — including concerns about septic systems — the commission deferred a proposed rewrite of the county’s planned unit development (PUD) ordinance to November and asked staff to schedule a joint work session and public outreach before returning the draft.
The Wilson County Planning Commission on Aug. 22 voted to defer action on a proposed rewrite of the county’s planned unit development ordinance until November and requested a staff-led work session and additional public outreach in the interim.
The draft ordinance, presented by planning staff member Christopher, would reduce minimum acreage thresholds for PUDs, change how density is calculated and require a larger minimum of preserved land in residential PUDs. Christopher said the draft reflects input from neighboring counties and the county commission and is intended to “encourage innovation” while increasing land preservation in new developments.
Commissioners and members of the public pressed staff for details and asked for additional time. Commissioner discussion focused on whether the proposed changes align with surrounding counties, how the new conservation requirements would be selected on individual sites and the potential strain higher densities could create for roads, sewers and other infrastructure.
The draft would, if adopted, change several thresholds that the planning department highlighted in the meeting packet: - Minimum acreage for commercial PUDs: 15 acres reduced to 10 acres. - Minimum acreage for residential PUDs: 100 acres reduced to 30 acres. - Minimum acreage for mixed-use PUDs: 100 acres reduced to 35 acres. - Density calculations: density to be based on up to 75% of total site acreage available for development (staff noted they will align final wording with existing county calculation methods). - Base densities in the draft: R-1 at 1.75 dwelling units per acre (single-family only); R-2 at 2.75 dwelling units per acre (single-family only). - Conservation requirement: an initial 30% of the total land area to be placed in a conservation or agricultural easement not to be developed; some additional density is allowed where developers preserve larger amounts of open space (staff proposed a 0.15 dwelling-unit-per-acre increase for each additional 10% of preserved open space up to a maximum voluntary increase of 0.3 units per acre).
Christopher said the draft also specifies that artificially created features (for example, man-made stormwater detention basins), septic drip fields or areas used for required active amenities (clubhouses, pools, playgrounds) generally would not count toward the 30% conservation acreage. He advised commissioners that he consulted planning staff in Williamson, Rutherford, Sumner and Davidson counties and the regional planning body GNRC while drafting the rewrite.
Public commenters urged caution. Perry Veil, who identified himself as a Wilson County resident and a member of the county’s Board of Zoning Appeals, urged commissioners to account for recent on-the-ground performance of community sewage treatment systems. Veil provided a packet to commissioners documenting results from multiple soil‑absorption (drip) systems in the county and argued that several larger systems serving 65 or more homes had “serious issues,” saying, “A 60% failure rate is not doing great.” Veil’s packet and summary prompted commissioners to request stronger documentation and to make the draft available for wider review before action.
After extended discussion and questions about implementation, enforcement and possible impacts on utilities and roads, the commission voted to defer the ordinance to the November meeting and asked staff to set a work session with the planning and zoning committee (and to invite that committee to attend). Commissioners also asked staff to circulate additional materials in advance of the work session.
Christopher told the commission that the land use plan process is moving in parallel: the planning staff will hold a public meeting on the county’s draft land use plan at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 25 at Cumberland University Alumni Hall; the public comment period will remain open for about two weeks after that meeting, after which steering‑committee review will resume.
The commission did not adopt any text changes at the Aug. 22 meeting and will take up the draft PUD ordinance after the scheduled work session and additional review.
Ending: Commissioners instructed staff to circulate meeting dates and materials ahead of the planned work session and to bring the PUD rewrite back for formal action after public input and committee review.
