John Coffelt, Editor

After some deliberation during the Nov. 19 Manchester Planning Commission meeting, the board approved the final plat for phase one, 62 lots, at the Stonehenge subdivision on Interstate Drive.  

The development, zoned R-4 high density residential, is owned by Donald Parker and will eventually have roughly 156 new homes.

According to Surveyor Nicholas Northcutt, representing Parker at the meeting, the 62 lots that make up phase one were included because they are able to connect to the Interstate Drive sewer line via gravity flow lines.

Paving, curbing and water and sewer utilities are complete for the development, with light poles and a Post Office kiosk remaining.

That kiosk, or specifically the parking that would serve the kiosk, was the subject of dispute between the city and the developer.

On the city’s side, the Codes Department included a punch list item calling for the parking spaces to serve what was originally the only mailbox kiosk for the whole development. The developer, however, felt that since a note on the preliminary plat and construction plans saying he would coordinate with the Manchester Post Office was approved, Parker felt the matter was resolved.

“We were not exactly sure why the punch list item came up (at this time),” Northcutt said. “It came up at the preliminary phase and we addressed that at that point by saying the developer would coordinate with the Postmaster.”

Northcutt said the Postmaster did not require any parking for the kiosk.

“It will be handicap accessible… It will be lit because it’s right next to a light pole,” he said. “But it’s the parking; there are no provisions for parking so far. At the time it was brought up for the preliminary plat there was no requirement and (Parker) didn’t want to do it.”

Planning Commission Chairman Mark Williams suggested that a single kiosk on the main entrance with no available parking to serve 156 homes could create a bottleneck and wondered if that queue of cars could spill out onto Interstate Drive.

Potentially there is room on the 70-foot right-of-way for a pull off. 

City Engineer Scot St. John, addressing the developer’s note saying he coordinated with the Postmaster, said that the parking requirement would be a city concern, rather than one for the Post Office.

“The Postmaster is not concerned with the parking side,” St. John said. “He’s concerned about the mailboxes. The city is concerning with the parking layout the queues and access. That’s why we try to layout standards to use.” 

John has been with the Manchester Times since May 2011. John has won Tennessee Press Association awards for Best News Photo and placed in numerous other categories. John is a 1994 graduate of Tullahoma High School, a graduate of Motlow State Community College and earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Middle Tennessee State University. He lives in Tullahoma, enjoys painting, dancing and exploring the outdoors.