Learn

Here’s a checklist we use when we are working on a land use issue that you may find helpful to understand what is involved.

Step 1 – Learn!
Use the information below to learn about the process and what you can do to support or oppose a project.

Step 2 – Organize!
Organize your team to give yourself the best chance of success. You will need to organize your neighbors, decide if you need to hire an attorney, and get support from other neighborhood groups.

Step 3 – Advocate!
Plan a campaign to advocate for your position. Reach out to the developer, to the planning staff, to commissioners, to neighbors and other supporters with a clear message and requested actions.

Knox County and the City of Knoxville established Knoxville-Knox County Planning (formerly known as the Metropolitan Planning Commission, and referred to as “Knox Planning” for the rest of this article) in 1956 as the agency responsible for their comprehensive planning and subdivision regulations. The Town of Farragut has a Planning & Zoning Division (“Farragut Planning” for the rest of this article) that administers the town’s planning documents, zoning ordinance and subdivision regulations.

The planning framework consists of five components:

1. Knox County Growth Plan – a 20 year plan identifying urban growth boundaries for municipalities (Knoxville, Town of Farragut), the county’s Planned Growth Area, and the couty’s Rural Area. State law requires each county to have a growth plan, and it is adopted by and binds county government (Knox County) and all munipalities in the county (City of Knoxville, Town of Farragut).
2. Regional / Municipal General Plans – a plan that guides and coordinates future land use. This is the “To Be” or desired state, and usually has a horizon of 20 or 30 years. State law requires zoning and land use decisions to be consistent with the general plans. Knoxville and Knox County Plans, Farragut Comprehensive Plan
3. Zoning regulations (zoning ordinance) detail a variety of zoning districts, uses permitted and certain specifications for building and other site improvements. A property’s zone describes the rights a property owner has. Zoning ordinances and maps are legislative actions.
4. Subdivision regulations govern the subdivision of land. Knoxville and Knox County, Farragut
5. Additional design and development guidelines are adopted for central Knoxville, Historic areas, and other districts. These guidelines assist staff and board members with evaluating specific plan submissions. Farragut also has some design standards on their website.

Knox Planning publishes charts of how the documents work together in the City of Knoxville and unincorporated Knox County. These are so helpful that we republish the images here:

​Every piece of property is associated with a Growth Plan classification, a Future Land Use classification, and has an associated “zone”. ​To locate designations for a specific piece of property, you can use the interactive features on KGIS Maps.

If someone wants to do something on their property that does not fit with the existing zone, they must make an application with the either Knoxville-Knox County Planning or Town of Farragut Planning to change the zone. This is often the first step to developing a piece of property, either for housing or for a business. If the desired zone is not compatible or consistent with the property’s future land use plan, then they also need to file a plan amendment application.

Knox Planning has an excellent page describing the various planning processes – rezoning, plan amendments, use on review, appeals, etc. 

We used to have a long page on the process, but Knox Planning now has a great page describing the processes for plan amendments, rezonings, uses on review, development plans, planned development, concept plans, plats, and appeals. Farragut doesn’t have this information on their website, but it’s generally the same.

Typical Planning Process

Land use approvals may involves two rounds of applications and hearings, depending on the current zoning (rights a property owner has) and the required reviews.

1.  Rezoning and Plan Amendment is often the first bundle of the process. If an applicant desires to use property in a way that the current zoning does not allow for, they must apply for a Rezoning. If the requested zoning is not consistent with the applicable General Plan, then they must also request a Plan Amendment.
2. Another “step” or bundle evaluates Uses on Review, Development Plans and Concept Plans. Many uses require a Use on Review (county) or Special Use (Knoxville) hearing where the proposed use is evaluated for integration with other uses in the area. Some zones require a Development Plan, that describes the types of uses, building layout, landscaping, etc. Finally, if a property is to be subdivided into multiple lots, then a Concept Plan is often required.

A NUMBER of commissions and bodies are involved in land use decisions. Keeping up with this is a full-time job. We do our best to monitor the agendas of each body, but ultimately citizens are responsible for monitoring the agenda for items that will affect them.