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BZA defers temporary RV-occupancy request tied to caregiving; law director flags limits in code
Summary
Board deferred a request to allow temporary occupancy of an RV for 60 days while the applicant explores building, lot consolidation or other options; the law director noted the zoning code contains no formal medical‑hardship temporary‑variance provision.
The Knox County Board of Zoning Appeals granted a 60‑day deferral and temporary enforcement pause for a case involving an elderly couple whose family sought to allow a grandson to occupy a 28‑foot recreational vehicle on a neighboring lot to provide daily caregiving.
Kimberly Waller spoke for her parents, citing medical hardships and preexisting utilities and septic at the RV site. She described the arrangement as temporary and based on caregiving needs: "My parents are 87 and 85 years old... we're seeking a temporary waiver to allow their grandson to occupy his 28 foot recreational vehicle..." Waller provided a physician’s note and documentation that a mobile home had previously been located at the RV site.
Law director Mike Moyers advised the board that the zoning code does not explicitly authorize a temporary, medically based variance (a practice the board employed in the distant past but that is not supported in current code). Moyers said the board could grant relief if it chose but warned that such ad‑hoc exceptions could be subject to legal challenge.
Board members discussed options: pulling a building permit and applying for a temporary-use permit (typically tied to new-home construction), placing a HUD‑standard mobile home on an appropriately sized lot, or combining parcels so the site meets lot-size requirements. The board voted to defer the item for 60 days and requested the applicants pursue building‑permit or other documented plans; enforcement of the current violation was held for the same 60‑day period.
Next steps The board asked the applicants to consult planning, pull necessary permits if feasible, and return in 60 days with a plan or permit to establish a pathway to compliance. If construction or a mobile‑home installation begins within the required timeframe, the board indicated it could then consider administrative relief tied to that progress.
