HPVA and KCPA Joint Statement on Hardin Valley Growth
Updated: December 6, 2021

A Joint Statement from HVPA and KCPA on Growth in Hardin Valley to the Knoxville-Knox County Planning Commission and Knox County Commission
December 6, 2021

There is a lot of Hardin Valley development activity on the December 2021 Planning Commission agenda. In front of Planning Commission this week are 3 rezonings and 3 residential development plans that have significant impact. These, plus the cumulative rezonings over the past several years, have residents looking at the cumulative impact.

Call to Action

HVPA and KCPA are very excited about the Comprehensive Land Use, Transportation, and Park Plans initiative that is just starting. We believe that this update will positively position Knox County, and Hardin Valley, for future residential and economic growth. It will also help preserve our sense of place that makes our community so desirable.

It will take 18-24 months to update the General Plan and Growth Plan, and then we need to enact the plans through updates to the Zoning Ordinance and Subdivision Regulations.

During the intervening time, with all the growth pressures and infrastructure investment needed, KCPA and HVPA asks that Knoxville-Knox Planning Commission and Knox County Commission:

  • Uphold the existing Sector Plans by applying the plans and guidelines to land use decisions, without assuming that what the updated General Plan will have until it is agreed to and adopted.

  • Deliberate about if a request should be approved based on the big picture of the area – what is the availability of public services and utilities in the are, and how the land use decision will impact the characteristics identified as important in the Sector Plan

  • Apply the requirements of the zoning ordinance, subdivision regulations to rezonings and Use on Reviews. With Use on Review applications, carefully consider character and adverse impact to neighbors, as impacts are more acutely felt in a more densely populated county.

  • Look for opportunities where land use decisions can further projects already identified in sector plans, such as parks, greenways, new schools, or transportation projects