Staff Recommendation

DENY the Concept Plan based on the following:

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1. Under Section 5.22.04.E.1.a (Agricultural Zone) of the Zoning Ordinance for Knox County the lot size standard reads as follows: "For each house or mobile home, and buildings accessory thereto, there shall be a minimum lot area of not less than one (1) acre. "
2. Under the Zoning Ordinance, Article 2. Definitions, Section 2.20. Specific Terms, a "lot" is defined as "A parcel of land which is or may be occupied by a building and its accessory buildings or uses customarily incident thereto, together with such yards or open spaces within the lot lines as may be required by this resolution."
3. Since the word "land" is not defined in the Zoning Ordinance, you would refer to a standard definition from a dictionary. A common definition of "land" is "the surface of the earth that is not covered by water".
4. When approving subdivisions that are zoned A (Agricultural) along Fort Loudon Lake, the Planning Commission has required the lots to have a minimum of one acre above the 813' contour which is the summer lake level established by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). While TVA has a flowage easement up to the 820' contour, it was determined that the summer lake level was the appropriate elevation to use.
5. Of the proposed 12 lots, only 4 lots include an acre or more above the 813' contour. Eight of the proposed lots do not meet the minimum lot size requirement for the A (Agricultural) zoning district and therefore staff cannot recommend approval.
6. The applicant has the option to request a rezoning of the property to PR (Planned Residential) which would eliminate the minimum one acre lot size requirement (as was done with the Jefferson Park West Subdivision which adjoins this property to the west).

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Disposition Summary

DENY the Concept Plan