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Design board postpones review of 2802 North Broadway multifamily plan after neighborhood concerns
Summary
Design Review Board postponed action on a three-building multifamily proposal at 2802 North Broadway for 30 days after staff and neighbors raised concerns about parking placement, the Building C street entrance required by principal-use standards, and a pending rezoning that neighbors said they had not expected.
The Knoxville Design Review Board on March 18 voted to postpone consideration of a three-building multifamily project at 2802 North Broadway for 30 days, citing unresolved site-plan and neighborhood-notification issues.
Staff told the board the proposal (reviewed under pending R-6 rezoning) places surface parking and a driveway forward of the building facades, which conflicts with multifamily guideline recommendations that parking be located behind buildings or accessed from alleys. Staff recommended postponement to allow the applicant to revise the site plan to reduce parking visibility, add a clear Building C entrance that meets principal-use standards, and provide facade material percentages for metal or vinyl siding.
Rebecca Tucker, who lives at 1415 Branson Avenue behind the site, told the board she learned late of the rezoning and said the difference between recommended R-5 and approved R-6 zoning is substantial: “R-6 will allow it to 49 units and up to 65 in height,” she said, and urged the board not to approve the design while rezoning remained pending. The applicant’s representative, Logan Higgins, said the team will add an entry facing the street to Building C and examine façade differentiation and parking configurations; Higgins also said civil engineering constraints had limited viable alternatives without substantially increasing impervious area.
Board members called for clearer site sections showing how the buildings relate to adjacent single-family yards, revised elevations for Building C that meet principal-use entry requirements, and a tighter explanation of the parking and grading strategy. One member urged the board to allow the neighborhood more opportunity to review the proposal before final design approval. With that feedback, the board voted to postpone the case 30 days so staff and the applicant can provide revised front-elevation and site-section drawings and a more detailed explanation of pedestrian and vehicle circulation.
The matter will return to the board after the applicant submits the requested revisions and staff can verify compliance with principal-use and multifamily design guidance.
