'Behind people's backs': Lawsuit alleges Wilson County zoning unfair to property owners

Andy Humbles, Nashville Tennessean
·3 min read

A lawsuit challenges several new zoning regulations approved in Wilson County, stating they are illegally approved and will ultimately hurt property values and limit certain property owners.

In May, Wilson County commissioners approved several zoning changes that include raising the minimum amount of land the county will allow to be subdivided in several zoning categories.

The zoning changes approved “in my opinion” were a response to widespread public opinion to the impact of extreme growth in Wilson County and Middle Tennessee, said the county's planning director, Tom Brashear.

The new regulations do not impact land within the city limits of Lebanon, Mt. Juliet and Watertown.

Jay White with Agee & Johnson Realty and Auction in Lebanon, Tenn., is part of a lawsuit claiming new Wilson County zoning regulations meant to manage growth will harm existing property owners.
Jay White with Agee & Johnson Realty and Auction in Lebanon, Tenn., is part of a lawsuit claiming new Wilson County zoning regulations meant to manage growth will harm existing property owners.

“They did this thing behind peoples backs,” said Frank Bryant, a Wilson County resident and developer who owns multiple large tracts and is one of four plaintiffs. “They’ve brought in all these companies and now they want to change the rules. A lot of people would never know that this would affect their farm.”

Zoning: The changes

There is a new minimum amount of land that can be subdivided in the county for “A1” agricultural zoning category for property owners without public sewer access.

Property owners could previously subdivide a minimum 40,000 square foot parcel – nearly one acre – for "A1 agricultural zoning for landowners without sewer access. Commissioners raised the amount of agricultural property to an 80,000 square foot minimum – nearly two acres.

“It does affect your bottom line. It affects your net worth. If you never sell, it will affect your heirs that do sell,” said Jay White, a plaintiff in the lawsuit who owns several larger tracts.

White also owns Agee & Johnson Realty and Auction and communicates regularly with larger tract landowners.

“If there were more education and it was known there would have been a lot more opposition against this,” White added.

Other zoning changes the lawsuit raises concerns about are:

  • Suburban Residential minimum lot sizes for a single-family home with access to public sewer go from 10,000 to 20,000 square feet and for duplexes from 15,000 to 30,000 square feet (R2 Suburban Residential).

  • R1 residential zoning now mandates a 40,000-square-foot lot regardless of access to public water and sewer and eliminates the previous allowance to subdivide a 25,000-square-foot lot without public sewer access. The lawsuit alleges the change eliminates prior incentive for developers to install public sewer instead of septic systems, which attorney for the plaintiffs Elliott Benson believes could impact public health.

Wilson County can pass new zoning regulations according to state guidelines. But the lawsuit alleges those guidelines were not followed in some instances.

Wilson County Attorney Mike Jennings and Mayor Randall Hutto did not comment on the lawsuit.

"The change to the zoning regulations in May directly impacts every piece of real property subject to Wilson County’s zoning regulations,” Benson said. “A landowner may not have his property for sale today to realize it yet, but property value has been taken by this regulation.”

What led to the lawsuit

Benson believes the new regulations unfairly lower the property values of the plaintiffs and have a negative impact on overall land values in Wilson County. The new lot size requirement also eliminates a property owner parceling one acre to a family member or anyone else to build on.

The plaintiffs believe:

Zoning changes deviated from the required public notice about the commission meeting and limited the knowledge of affected property owners and what was proposed and then approved after the required public hearing had closed changed.

“Tennessee law requires a complete summary of a proposed change to a zoning regulation be published; no complete summary was provided prior to the passage of this regulation,” Benson said.

The lawsuit seeks to void the county commission legislation that amended the zoning regulations, which Benson said would revert all of the zones back to the prior minimum lot sizes.

Reach Andy Humbles at ahumbles@tennessean.com or 615-726-5939 and on Twitter @ AndyHumbles.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Lawsuit contests new regulations set up to manage Wilson County growth