By Katie Northcott, News Director
At its meeting on Monday, March 16, the Tullahoma Planning Commission voted to recommend that the Board of Mayor and Alderman (BOMA) rezone 704 Cedar Lane and its adjoining property to commercial use. The properties are located behind the Coffee County Health Department.
The applicant, Christy Surber, said she wished to rezone her property due to the fact that it adjoins other commercial property. Surber is looking to sell both parcels together.
Mayor Lynn Sebourn warned Surber that the BOMA may push back against rezoning residential use property to commercial use.
“We’ve had some members of the Board of Mayor and Aldermen kind of express a concern about eliminating [low-density residential] lots,” Sebourn said. “So just be aware of that when you come to the Board of Mayor and Aldermen. Just be thinking about the case you want to make for that, assuming it passes here, tonight.”
Sebourn’s comment precipitated a discussion about where the commission would draw the line on rezoning residential property on Cedar Lane.
“If you zone yours commercial, what’s your neighbor going to do? What’s their neighbor going to do?” Commissioner Brett Gregory said.
Sebourn said that these parcels were good candidates for a rezone. He said that the properties north of the parcels were mainly commercial, while properties to the south were mainly residential.
“At some point, we need to draw a line, but that one seems reasonable to me,” Sebourn said.
Commission Chairman Alex Rice agreed. He said that the commission would soon look at Tullahoma’s future land use map to possibly make changes. He said mixed use or all commercial use for Cedar Lane might make sense.
“I see [Cedar Lane] being used less in the future for residential uses. So, in my mind, all down Cedar Lane, commercial use is not out of what it should be,” Rice said. “Your main roads, your main arterials or whatever, should be more prominent commercial versus residential. I think we have a good amount of residential in the community.”
Sebourn said that the city’s goal is to eventually widen Cedar Lane to be a three-lane road, especially the northern portion.
“Especially if Cedar Lane is looking to be widened, one of the better ways to obtain the necessary right-of-way to widen that is when a property is developed commercially,” Planning and Development Director Samuel Luthi said. “When the site plan is submitted, the public works department can request an increase in that right-of-way.”
The commission voted unanimously to recommend BOMA approve the rezoning request.
If BOMA approves, the property would be rezoned to a C2 zone, allowing the following uses for the property:
- Business services
- Financial services
- Retail sales and services
- Drinking establishments
- Family and group daycares
- Public libraries
- Public services
- Utility stations
- Restaurants,
- Micro breweries
- Indoor recreation
- Automotive sales
- Gas stations
- Automotive repair services
- Contractor’s offices
- Commercial printing
- Commercial schools
- Community commercial centers
- Cultural institutions
- Fast food restaurants
- Group car facilities
- Hospitals
- Hotels
- Light commercial
- Neighborhood commercial centers
- Outdoor recreation
- Rehab centers
- Religious, cultural, and fraternal activities
- Theaters
- Self-storage warehouses
The post Tullahoma Planning Commission Votes to Rezone Cedar Lane Property for Commercial Use appeared first on Thunder Radio.
