Impact
WARD: Citywide
COMMITTEE: Community Development
$ IMPACT: N/A
Title
Public Hearing - Code Amendment to the Zoning Ordinance to add new single-family residential zoning districts - City of Smyrna
Body
ISSUE: The City’s Zoning Ordinance does not currently have a residential zoning district for detached single-family homes on lots less than 12,000 square feet (up to 3.4 units per acre). Therefore, in order for developers and homeowners to have a smaller lot size, they need to rezone the property to RAD (6 units per acre). This gap between the R-12 and RAD zoning districts, with respect to density, has made RAD the catch-all district for all the recent infill development. In addition, since there are currently no single-family residential zoning districts to address the developments between 3.4 and 6 units per acre, it creates more variances during the zoning process as developers try to modify the existing code to fit their housing product. By establishing the new R-10 (up to 4 units per acre) and R-8 (up to 5 units per acre), the zoning districts can be created to address current development practices to reduce the need for variances and create more uniform development.
The setback and yard requirements will be discussed in a subsequent code amendment with the RAD zoning district.
BACKGROUND: The Community Development Department recently reviewed the list of allowable residential districts as part of a recommendation from the 2040 Comprehensive Plan. The consultant of the 2040 Comprehensive believed the RAD zoning district had become the city’s catch-all zoning district for single-family residential development because the Zoning Ordinance had not been amended to account for denser single-family residential development with densities between 3.4 and 6 units per acre. The consultant proposed looking into adding or modifying zoning districts to accommodate these changes. In addition, these proposed changes in the single-family residential zoning districts may provide for an opportunity to address housing affordability. Community Development has proposed two new single-family residential zoning districts (R-10 & R-8) to address the issues described above.
The proposed Zoning Ordinance Amendment was heard by the Planning and Zoning Board at their August 13, 2018 meeting and was recommended for approval by a vote of 6-0.
RECOMMENDATION/REQUESTED ACTION: Community Development has reviewed the City’s Zoning Ordinance with respect to residential single-family zoning districts and is proposing code amendments to create two new residential zoning districts. The proposed amendments include:
1) The creation of the R-10 zoning district; and
2) The creation of the R-8 zoning district.
Community Development recommends approval of the following code amendments to Section 703 of the City’s Zoning Ordinance.