Planning commission recommends rezoning of Antioch Road parcel for 48‑home subdivision amid resident concerns over sinkholes and traffic

The Johnson City Regional Planning Commission on March 10 recommended that the City Commission rezone a 24.64‑acre parcel on Antioch Road from A1 (agricultural) to RP2 (planned residential), clearing the way for a concept plan showing 48 single‑family homes and about 15% (roughly 3.6 acres) of open space.

City planner Keith Martin presented the proposal and its supporting studies, saying the concept meets RP2 standards and that water and sewer service is available along Antioch and Woodhill roads. Martin said the plan includes two entrances — a primary access from Antioch Road and a secondary entrance via an existing 50‑foot Dresden Avenue right‑of‑way — and that the developer’s traffic study incorporated traffic from a nearby Woodland Grove development to analyze cumulative impacts. “This project … includes 15% open space which is about 3.6 acres,” Martin said.

Neighbors who spoke at the public hearing urged the commission to reject the rezoning. Steven Crosswite, who identified himself as a Beachwood Circle resident, said the parcel is surrounded by “sink holes, several sink holes about the size of my house” and blamed long‑running foundation problems in nearby homes on subsidence. Joe Martin, a Woodhill Road resident, said the combined traffic from Woodland Grove and this project would produce roughly 1,900 additional daily trips on Dresden Road and asserted that about 75% of traffic would cut through Dresden rather than use Antioch.

The applicant’s representative, attorney Scott Bergendall, said the plan was reduced to 48 lots in part to remain under the city’s 50‑unit threshold for a mandatory second paved entrance and that the applicant had not found documentation of sinkholes on the property during their preliminary review. Bergendall also said a geotechnical investigation has not yet been completed and will be required for road and house design.

The city’s public‑works traffic representative, Anthony Todd, told commissioners that intersection capacity — not just raw vehicle counts — determines whether additional traffic controls are required and that the combined analysis still showed the Walnut/Dresden intersection operating at an acceptable level of service despite increased short‑term queuing.

The fire marshal, identified in the meeting as Steve, warned against a locked gated secondary entrance for a 48‑lot subdivision because the Oxbox access system used by emergency responders requires personnel to stop and retrieve a key code; he said the gate could slow response times and that, under current city code, the single‑access threshold is 50 units.

Commissioners deliberated that the parcel represented an infill opportunity aligned with the city’s Horizon 2045 plan and the neighborhood residential future‑land‑use designation but acknowledged neighbors’ safety and wildlife concerns. After discussion, the commission moved and seconded a recommendation to approve the rezoning; the roll‑call vote recorded six in favor and two opposed. The recommendation will be forwarded to the Johnson City Commission for final action.

What happens next: The applicant will be required to complete geotechnical studies and final engineering during the subdivision review stage; any street improvements and drainage/stream crossings would be subject to Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) review and permitting. The decision the planning commission made on March 10 was a recommendation to the City Commission rather than a final zoning change.