Current Agricultural Zoning Safe For Now
It seems everywhere I go, I hear complaints from Knox Countians about traffic congestion. It is a legitimate complaint, as over time, it is increasingly apparent we have more folks driving on more roads. According to statistics, the City of Knoxville had 185,121 people in 2016; Knox County had a population of 456,410 in 2016. Today, the best estimates are that there are 203,991 residents in the City of Knoxville and 515,309 people living inside Knox County. Those are likely conservative estimates. Another frequent complaint, both from city and county residents, is the skyrocketing cost of housing. The root cause of that has to do with supply and demand. People are moving here in a constant stream and paying more for houses, which, naturally, drives up the cost for everyone. The demand for housing increases and rents escalate. Another reason for housing costs to rise is that tax hikes – like raising the property tax – also raise mortgages and rents for EVERYONE. The City of Knoxville has raised the property tax just about every two or three years under Madeline Rogero and Indya Kincannon. The City has a spending problem, and while they increase their spending every year, somehow they deliver fewer and fewer services.
Knox County, which runs the school system and provides the bulk of services for its citizens, has not raised property taxes in 30 years. No realistic person believes that will last forever. And for those people who yammer about “fully funding the schools,” ask them just what that figure is, exactly. My guess is those people can’t give you an accurate figure and quite likely don’t even know what we are spending on our schools presently. When factoring in federal, state and local funds (and we are all federal, state and local taxpayers), we are spending over $713 million on our school system. The entire budget for Knox County (including for schools) is roughly $1.1 billion, so we are spending an incredible amount of our entire budget on our school system, leaving the balance to cover everything else.
Knox County will be considering a very important matter soon that will almost certainly dramatically affect not only our existing infrastructure but also increase our already terrible traffic congestion. The most important change in the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO), which will be considered by the Knox County Commission is the fact that the most recent draft removes the “Agricultural/Residential” designation entirely. It ceases to exist under the current draft. Instead, everything presently zoned “agricultural” is designated as “rural residential” under the current draft. It sounds much the same, but it most certainly is NOT. Under the current agricultural zone, a one-acre minimum lot size applies for dwellings. The proposed “rural residential” zone would maintain a one-acre minimum in most cases, but under specific circumstances — including access to sewer and adequate roadways on properties of five acres or more — developers could build up to two dwelling units per acre with a minimum lot size of 5,000 square feet. If the new “rural residential” designated area has access to sewer and a legitimate “classified” road, then there would be no hearings before Knoxville-Knox County Planning or the county commission. There would be no need for a zoning hearing. It would be a done deal. At best, there might be a “traffic study” or a “concept plan” requested, but it’s largely all over but the shouting. A neighbor having five acres could sell it to have a subdivision without hardly any effort.
The gift to developers is that, if approved, it will instantly have the effect of rezoning 170,000 acres inside Knox County. It will also give vested rights to developers to build subdivisions. The changes are VERY important to the future of our community and will only cause more urban sprawl, increase traffic congestion, and, like the city, reduce our green areas to the occasional lot of scrub grass on a lot populated by asphalt and concrete. There are already areas in our county that are being reduced day-by-day from a designed scenic highway to something far different. Drive down John Sevier Highway sometime if you don’t believe it.
Inside the city, they are constantly building huge apartment towers with the residents pouring out onto main thoroughfares without the least bit of planning or consideration addressing traffic congestion. We’ve mentioned this in editorials before; the best current example is the city trying to cite more apartment complexes while pouring out traffic along Chapman Highway with one bridge closed because it supposedly cannot handle the weight of cars and trucks, the James White Parkway is being closed sporadically for inspection, and the people of South Knoxville left with the Henley Street Bridge as their only option. The city has traffic pouring into both sides of Chapman Highway right at the precise point where the bridge exists. If there has been any consideration for existing residents, it is a closely guarded secret. We can all look forward to situations like this if we do not pay close attention to what our government officials are discussing and voting on.
My experience has been that when our officials are rushing something through, more than likely, the people will pay the price – one way or the other.
To his credit, Mayor Glenn Jacobs pulled the plug on the rush to have the UDO plan approved before the new mayor and commission take office on September 1.
“From the beginning, we have said we want to get this right, and we are going to follow through with that, even if it takes more time,” Mayor Jacobs announced.
Jacobs said it will be up to Mayor-elect Betsy Henderson and the incoming Knox County Commission to “fully understand the proposal, gather more community feedback, and make informed decisions about how to proceed.”
Informed citizens can help direct public policy; an ill-informed or complacent public allows the politicians and special interests to do as they please. The choice is up to you.
