Knox County hitting pause on plan that would change classification of agricultural land
Knox County will pause its plan to change how agricultural land is zoned, Mayor Glenn Jacobs announced Friday.
What This Story Is About
- Knox County is pausing its Unified Development Ordinance plan, which would change how agricultural land is classified.
Why It Matters
- Farmers in Knox County raised the alarm earlier in the week, saying they were left out of the planning process and highlighting concerns about conflict with new neighbors.
What Happens Next
- According to the county, Mayor-Elect Betsy Henderson and a suite of new commissioners will decide how to move forward.
For Context
- The Unified Development Ordinance is part of Advance Knox, the county’s 20-year growth and development plan.
Catch Up
- One farmer told us the change would be “devastating.”
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - Knox County will pause its plan to change how agricultural land is zoned, Mayor Glenn Jacobs announced Friday. Jacobs said the pause will allow the incoming administration, led by Betsy Henderson, to review the plan and make any needed changes.
The plan itself is called the Unified Development Ordinance, and it would move agricultural land to a new default classification: rural residential. It faced pushback earlier in the week.
“The second draft of the proposed zoning map has generated significant interest and feedback from residents and property owners throughout Knox County,” a notice from Jacobs’ office said. “The administration’s goal throughout the process has been to protect property rights while elevating development standards across the county.”
Specifically, the notice said Henderson and incoming county commissioners would be able to review the plan and “determine the appropriate next steps.” The mayor’s office pointed to the rezoning project’s timing, which will extend far into Henderson’s administration, as a reason for the pause.
“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,” Jacobs said in a statement. “Since we will not be able to complete this work before the end of my term, I am entrusting Mayor-Elect Betsy Henderson and the incoming County Commission to carry this work forward. Pausing the work now will give the next administration the opportunity to fully understand the proposal, gather more community feedback and make informed decisions about how to proceed.”
The Unified Development Ordinance falls under Advance Knox, the county’s 20-year growth and development plan.
Under the current agricultural zone, a one-acre minimum lot applies for dwellings. The proposed Rural Residential zone could allow up to two dwelling units per acre on qualifying properties of five acres or more with sewer access. Property owners may opt into more restrictive designations — Rural Preservation (2.5-acre minimum) or Agricultural Rural (5-acre minimum) — if their land qualifies.
Knox County farmers we spoke to said they didn’t get a voice in the planning process and raised the alarm over potential conflict that could result from the rezoning.
Bonnie Panettieri, the owner of Pygmy Harbor Farm in East Knox County, had strong words to say about the ordinance’s second zoning map.
“It’d be a devastating thing to happen,” Panettieri said. “People that move in and surround farms, they don’t understand that farms, they do what they have to do. We do things according to what is the best interest for the animals and for the farm.”
The county has offered up several resources for those with concerns to voice their opinions or gather more information:
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