Bristol council approves first reading to rezone 1808 King College Road over neighborhood objections

Bristol, Tenn. — The Bristol City Council voted to approve a first reading of ordinance 26-2 on April 7, moving a proposed rezoning for a large King College Road parcel to the next stage of review despite opposition from nearby residents.

The rezoning request would reclassify just over 132 acres of a 152-acre parcel at 1808 King College Road (owner Audrey Zaidy) from existing residential districts to the city's Planned Residential District, or PRD, which allows a mix of housing types and flexible design standards. Planning staff told the council the planning commission voted 7–0 to recommend approval.

Neighbors said the project risks traffic, safety and geotechnical problems. “This is a neighborhood that you have chosen to destroy,” said David Winship of Beechwood Drive, who said past development attempts found caverns and sinkholes on parts of the land and warned that the proposed subdivision would flood and increase traffic on narrow streets. Suzanne Morrell and Sierra Struble, both neighbors, called the developer’s unit estimates misleading and said the land includes unbuildable areas that should remain green.

Developer representatives with Ardent Development described a phased plan with a mix of single-family, cottage and twin-home products across several price points. Cameron Maloney said the design divides the site into four price-point areas, noting, “one and two do connect each other and one and two do have access to King College and to Paperville,” and that soil borings and further engineering are planned. Staff confirmed earlier soil borings and said additional geotechnical work will be required during later master-planning and preliminary-plat phases.

Planning staff emphasized that approval of the rezoning is a legislative step that permits further, more detailed reviews. Michelle Young (planning staff) told the council that a traffic impact study, stormwater plans, and utility impact studies will be required at the preliminary plat phase, and that infrastructure built by the developer must meet city and state standards before acceptance and maintenance by the city.

Council members recorded the first-reading vote in favor of ordinance 26-2. The motion passed on first reading with the council members present voting yes. Under the city's process the council will hold a second reading and public hearing at the May meeting; if rezoning is adopted, future preliminary and final plats and technical studies will be reviewed and approved by the planning commission before construction can begin.

Clarifying details drawn from council staff and the developer: the rezoning request covers about 132 of a 152-acre parcel addressed 1808 King College Road; zoning “math” presented by staff indicates up to 504 units could be allowed under current zoning if raw acreage-only calculations were applied, though staff noted topography, roads and infrastructure reduce that theoretical maximum; developer-provided area breakdowns listed ~33.9 acres and ~32.7 acres in different price-point sectors; the school system estimated up to about 190 additional students under a highest-unit scenario; required traffic and utility impact studies remain to be completed.

The next procedural step is a May public hearing and second reading before the council and then detailed master-plan, preliminary-plat and final-plat review by the planning commission; the rezoning alone does not authorize construction and will be followed by technical studies and regulatory approvals.