CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – In a close vote, the County Commission has approved a zone change for more than 76 acres from agricultural district (AG) to single-family residential district (R-1) in west Montgomery County south of the terminus of Highway 374 to allow for a new housing development.
The applicants, Carolyn Jackson Houston and M. Ireland, asked for the rezoning south of Old Dover Court and east of Ross Lane.
Commissioner Ryan Gallant said Monday night he met with the grandson of Jackson weeks earlier and was told the land had become a financial burden on the family because they cannot use it for farming.
“It’s too costly; all they can do is pay the taxes on this land and be stuck with it,” Gallant said. “It’s become such a financial burden that he is begging us to get it off his hands, and I think that’s the best thing we can do for him, and we should.”
Commissioner Nathan Burkholder said while he understands the applicants are good people, and he would like to see them be able to utilize the property to its fullest potential, he doesn’t believe that can happen until the infrastructure in the area has been addressed.
“To be able to do that safely, we really need some improvements in that corridor, both state and county,” Burkholder said. “I appreciate our county highway supervisor requesting design funds for what we can do there to improve it. We’ve had several fatalities in the last couple of years. There’s been a lot of really close calls and accidents in that area. It’s definitely a problem that we need to address. I can’t vote for anything that’s going to put more traffic in that corridor at this time.”
The zone change was approved 12-8 with commissioners John Gannon, Joe Smith, Rickey Ray, Rashidah Leverett, Tangi Smith, Jorge Padro, Jeremiah Walker, Joe Creek, David Harper, Lisa Prichard, Gallant and David Shelton voting in favor.
Voting no were commissioners Michael Lankford, Burkholder, Carmelle Chandler, Walker Woodruff, Joshua Beal, Chris Rasnic, Billy Frye and Autumn Simmons.
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Background of 76 acres
Regional Planning Commission Director Jeffery Tyndall previously said the 76 acres of land consists of two parcels and is in the Planned Growth Area. Tyndall said the future use of this tract was listed as rural reserve, with the designation being applied so the State Route 374 right-of-way could be identified and acquired free of encroachment.
Land just east of the property has already been purchased for the future 374 right-of-way, according to previous reports. Tyndall said the RPC has worked alongside the applicant and TODT to figure out where the open space should be behind the homes to reserve it for any future additional right-of-way.
“TDOT has a very detailed plan now – they didn’t have it several years ago – but we do have a right-of-way plan that we can pretty much rely on down to the foot. So, anything that comes on this property, or any properties in the area, we know what that should look like,” he previously said.
Tyndall said they are giving Montgomery County a crossing of 374, “somewhere to the south of this property, south of Ireland Way, allowing the property here and across the street to connect.”
TDOT will approve the grade of the crossing, which could come in possibly as a bridge or culvert, he said. “What that does is it opens up this development to get out to South Liberty Church and over to the school or over to the signalized intersection. A lot easier than getting out on the intersection of Old Dover Road and Dover Road, which is not the best location,” he previously said.
Plan to direct traffic
Speaking for the applicants, Vernon Weakley previously said they’ll be directing traffic to the east. Weakley said they’ll provide two access points going east, with one going out on South Liberty Church Road and the other going north on Ireland Way, which takes you directly to Dover Road.
Weakley also said after his conversations with Tyndall, they are hoping to come up with a plan that’ll allow motorists on Ross Lane to use the proposed development/subdivision to get out, while the subdivision would not use Old Dover Road and Ross Lane as an exit route. Weakley suggested a one-way lane coming in from Ross Lane so motorists can have an alternative route going out to the east. “We are aware of that intersection, and we are working hard to diminish the amount of traffic that’s at that intersection currently,” Weakley previously said.
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