Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Use topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Collierville board approves rezoning for schools operations center after heated public comments
Summary
After extended public comment and questions about noise, health and equity, the Collierville Board of Mayor and Aldermen voted to rezone about 21.22 acres on Highway 72 to allow a Collierville Schools Operations Center; opponents urged delay and raised environmental and equity concerns.
The Collierville Board of Mayor and Aldermen on Nov. 10 approved a rezoning on third and final reading to allow the Collierville Schools Operations Center to locate on a 21.22‑acre portion of a parcel along Highway 72.
Town planner Jamie Gross told the board staff recommended approval despite noting the request is inconsistent with the town's Collierville 2040 land‑use plan because the tract is large enough to retain commercial frontage on Highway 72 while rezoning the interior to Restricted Industrial for bus storage, fleet maintenance and warehousing. "The staff recommendation was for approval," Gross said.
Why it matters: The operation center would consolidate bus storage, fleet maintenance and refrigerated warehousing for school cafeterias at one site. Residents say the move would shift noise, traffic and air‑quality burdens to a different neighborhood; the board's approval sets the rezoning in motion but additional permitting, conditional‑use review and site‑plan steps remain.
Opponents cited health, traffic and equity concerns during a lengthy public‑comment period. Julia Bentley, who said she was diagnosed with cancer two years ago, asked the board to reconsider and "study it some more" because she fears added noise and air pollution near homes. Virginia Faith Strickland, speaking with donated time, said the relocation amounted to "gentrification" of Alcorn Village and warned the neighborhood would be "surrounded by industrialization." Harold Smith and other residents questioned whether the site selection had been decided before community input and urged elected officials to represent neighbors.
School board and operations officials defended the site selection and described mitigation steps. Wright Cox, chairman of the Collierville School Board, said the school board "unanimously voted to approve this plan" and that the district will seek neighborhood input on building design. Thomas Doherty, the district's chief of operations, said his office had not had any inspections by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation or the Shelby County Health Department in his 11 years and that the district controls bus routing under normal circumstances.
Board members pressed for facts on noise dispersion, building height and allowable uses in the proposed zoning. An alderman asked about noise falloff beyond 700 feet; the applicant described the presentation as conceptual and estimated a service building height of about 20 feet. Planner Jamie Gross clarified that restricted industrial allows indoor warehousing and light manufacturing but not outdoor storage, and that a conditional use permit and site plan would follow rezoning and provide additional detail and mitigation such as screening.
The vote: On roll call the board recorded "Yes" votes from Miss Marshall, Mister Stamps, Mister Robbins, Mister Hall and Mayor Frasier; Alderman Jordan voted "No." After the vote the mayor told residents there will be "many more steps that will take place, and there's lots more opportunities for public input" during conditional‑use and site‑plan review.
What comes next: Rezoning approval allows the district to proceed to conditional‑use permitting and site‑plan review, which will include specific details on building placement, screening and traffic plans and will offer additional formal opportunities for public comment and review.
