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Cheatham County approves rezoning for Sams Creek property and adds lighting/electromagnetic rules to zoning code
Summary
The county approved rezoning of a 1.23-acre portion of Map 77, Parcel 53 (1918 Sams Creek Rd.) from Agriculture to R-1 and adopted a new Zoning Resolution section (4.140) imposing limits on glare (0.5 foot-candle at residential boundaries), requiring shielding and restricting electromagnetic interference across zone lot lines; both measures passed unanimously (11-0-1).
Cheatham County commissioners unanimously approved a homeowner-initiated rezoning and a new zoning performance standard addressing exterior lighting and electromagnetic interference on June 24.
The Legislative Body voted 11'Yes, 0'No, 1'Absent to approve a zone change for Dorene Bruce that rezones a 1.23-acre portion of Map 77, Parcel 53 (property addressed as 1918 Sams Creek Rd.) from Agriculture to R-1. The minutes note that part of the parcel lies in a Special Flood Hazard Area.
At the same meeting the commission voted 11'Yes, 0'No, 1'Absent to amend the Cheatham County Zoning Resolution by adding Section 4.140, titled "Performance Standards Regulating Glare and Electromagnetic Interference." The new section does the following:
- Defines a foot-candle as the unit of illumination (text includes the technical description used in the resolution). - Limits direct and indirect light from a source so it does not exceed 0.5 foot-candles when measured at a residential district boundary or at the street right-of-way line. - Requires site lighting to be shielded so that substantially all directly emitted light falls within the emitting property line. - Prohibits any lighting that may be confused with, or construed as, a traffic-control device and bars illumination that interferes with safe operation of vehicles on public streets. - Prohibits operations that cause electrical disturbances (electromagnetic interference) to be transmitted across zone lot lines and adds a site-plan requirement for detailed lighting plans consistent with the new section.
Why it matters: The changes add explicit, measurable limitations for outdoor lighting and a new design requirement in site-plan reviews; the electromagnetic-interference language is framed broadly to prevent operations that transmit electrical disturbances across zone lines.
Votes, procedure and next steps
Both items were advertised and heard at a public hearing earlier in the session; the minutes record no public comments on either the rezoning or the code amendment. The zoning map amendment and the code amendment were each approved by roll-call votes recorded in the official minutes.
Sources
Details on the parcel, flood-hazard note, the exact text of Section 4.140 and the added site-plan requirement appear in the meeting packet and are recorded verbatim in the official minutes (Resolution 5 and Resolution 6).
