By Katie Northcott, News Director
At its meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 4, the Manchester Board of Mayor and Alderman voted to annex 108 acres into the city.
The property is a vacant lot on New Bushy Branch Road belonging to Allan and Marilyn Howard.
Before annexing the property, BOMA voted to accept a Plan of Services for the property. The Public Works Department, Planning and Zoning Department, Police Department, Finance Department, Parks and Recreation Department, and Fire Department said their services could support the annexed land.
Hillsville Utility District has agreed to provide water services to the property if given approval from the Manchester Water and Sewer Department (MWSD) Director. However, HUD would need to install a new meter and tap. The City of Manchester is currently under a self-imposed moratorium order from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation for sewer taps upstream of several manholes.
Find more details on the self-imposed moratorium here.
MWSD advised that sewer “is not directly available for the property” and “every new connection to the sewer system requires state approval” due to an Agreed Order from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC). Due to this order and an “area of concern directly downstream of this proposed property annexation,” MWSD could not give a commitment that TDEC will approve connection of the proposed development.
In a letter to BOMA, Mark Williams, Manchester Planning Commission Chairman, said the Planning Commission voted to recommend approval of the Plan of Services at its meeting on Jan. 20. Williams said the developer would be responsible for “providing adequate water and sewer infrastructure as well as appropriate approvals from both TDEC and Manchester Water & Sewer.”
Dr. Joey Vaughn, Director of Manchester City Schools, indicated that the school district would need at least three years to plan for the development of the parcel as it is zoned for College Street Elementary (CSE) and Westwood Middle School (WMS). According to Vaughn, CSE has “limited space for growth” and WMS is “at capacity.”
Manchester Fire Department Chief George Chambers said the Department could provide services for the vacant lot but “should the land be used for something in the future, then there may be other requirements associated with the new proposed land use.”
At the BOMA meeting Alderman Julie Anderson flagged these concerns, saying she was not comfortable annexing the land into the property at this time. She suggested that the land could be annexed in later years should the City of Manchester develop the infrastructure to support development of the land.
A couple Coffee County residents also expressed concerns, including a need for a road near the property to be widened if the property was eventually developed for residential use.
Vice Mayor Mark Messick said that since the lot is currently vacant, BOMA will get a chance to approve or deny any future proposed development. He said BOMA should annex the land now and deal with approving or denying proposed development of the land if it comes.
The annexation passed with a 5-1 vote. Anderson was the lone dissenting vote.
