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Planning Commission approves PUD for Epsom Road site after floodplain questions and traffic conditions
Summary
Rutherford County planners voted to approve a plan-unit development for 5350 Epsom Road with conditions including a traffic/access study, compensatory cut for any fill in the floodplain and removal of heavy-industrial uses requested by the applicant. Neighbors had urged stronger flood safeguards.
The Rutherford County Regional Planning Commission on May 11 approved a plan-unit development (PUD) for a roughly 31.5-acre site at 5350 Epsom Road, resolving a months‑long review that began after county staff identified unpermitted activity on the property.
Planning staff presented the application as a continuation of a prior review and said an earlier stop‑work order had been issued after staff found materials stored in a disturbed area. Staff member Doug Deamasi said the applicant provided a drone overflight to show the change in contours and proposed site layout, and the county will require a site plan and standard road‑connection performance agreement if the rezoning proceeds.
Concerns from residents focused on flooding. Mike (county road staff) told commissioners the parcel is adjacent to the East Fork Stones River and other tributaries and is overtopped in heavy storms even though much of the developed footprint is not inside FEMA’s special flood hazard area for structures. "We will probably...require a compensating cut somewhere else so we don't lose that storage volume," he said, explaining that county policy requires excavating equivalent storage when fill is placed in floodplain areas.
During the public hearing, Chris Courtner, who lives at 4934 Epsom Road, said: "I've seen that area flood...I'm concerned the floodplain could exceed and go over into neighbors' property," and asked whether the PUD would permit residential development. Ruth Reeves, a long‑time Christiana resident, also recounted past flood events and warned that houses built on low ground could become trapped.
The applicant's engineer, Matt Taylor of SEC, told the commission his client had flown the site by drone, identified the disturbed areas and proposed cut locations to compensate for past fill. Taylor said the applicant is willing to remove heavy‑equipment rental from the list of permitted uses and to include a traffic‑impact study requirement in the pattern book.
Commissioners pressed staff and the applicant about compensatory‑cut calculations, the appropriate elevation bands to evaluate (from the two‑year to the 100‑year storm), and whether access improvements or left‑turn lanes would be needed. Deamasi and Mike said a traffic/access study could be required and that the site plan review would evaluate turn‑lanes, driveway width and fire‑apparatus turning templates.
A motion to approve the rezoning included conditions discussed in the meeting — removal of certain industrial activities from the pattern book, a traffic/access study or requirement, and adherence to staff comments and site‑plan standards. The motion passed on roll call with one abstention (Jason Beavers) and the remaining voting members in favor.
Next steps: the rezoning decision will go to the Board of Commissioners for final consideration on June 11 unless the applicant or planning commission defers or withdraws it. If approved at the county level, the applicant must submit an engineered site plan addressing flood compensatory measures, any required access improvements and the county’s buffering and performance standards.
