Sheffield council approves rezoning

SHEFFIELD -- The city council approved rezoning a parcel of property that could eventually lead to the development of garden homes near the Village and Rivermont subdivisions.

The council, unanimously, with Councilman Gary Scales absent, approved a recommendation by the city's planning board to rezone 12 acres from single family with a minimum of a 12,000-square foot lot to residential garden, which would have a minimum of 5,000-square foot lots.

The property is between Blackwell Road and Pickwick Street. Developer Carl Waddell said he wants to build 34 garden homes on the site.

After Monday's meeting, Waddell said the next step is to present the plans and the development plat to the planning board for approval. If the plans and plat are approved, they will be passed on to the city council for approval.

Mayor Billy Don Anderson said planning board and council must approve the plans and plat before work can begin on the subdivision, called Plantation Village.

Several residents of the Village and Rivermont subdivision have voiced concerns about the proposed development.

"Despite what some people think, we are for progress,'' Mary Joyce Hobson said of the people who oppose the development. "But we think progress needs to be made in retail and industry that will bring paying jobs to our city. It seems we have plenty of people, but no jobs.''

She said the ones opposed to the proposal believe residents of the garden-type homes will be more "transit'' than those who live in the Village.

"Our area has been known for years as a good place to live, and we want to keep it that way.''

According to local historians, in 1918 during World War I, the U.S. government built the Village, which consisted of 85 bungalows, a school and officers' barracks, to house personnel at Nitrate Plant 1. From 1933 to 1949, the Village was owned by the Tennessee Valley Authority and TVA employees occupied the houses.

In the motion to approve the rezoning change, Councilwoman Verna Brennan insisted that the wording included single-family dwelling as the only thing that could be built in the development.

In other unanimous action, the council: