JOHN COFFELTEditor

Currently, Coffee County has been in violation of state law regarding the way in which Board of Zoning Appeals members’ terms expire.

Over the course of two meetings, the last one held on Tuesday, Feb. 13, the Ad Hoc Committee for BZA met with the express goal of resolving the issue. According to the applicable Tennessee Annotated Code and the county zoning ordinance, members of the BZA serve staggered five-year terms with one member to roll off the commission each year.

But where the county has gone awry over the years, those (re)appointments have not been made regularly, and three members’ terms are set to expire this year.

“This is so convoluted … it hasn’t been don right yet,” Ad Hoc member Commissioner Joseph Hodge said. “It hasn’t been done right in (over) 11 years. This is embarrassing, folks.”

Tuesday the Ad Hoc Committee, made up of Hodge, committee chair Laura Nettles and secretary Dennis Hunt, studied full commission meeting minutes going back 15 years, finding a basic timeline when the current members were appointed and who those members replaced.

Hunt said that “we cannot take responsibility of mistakes (made prior to being elected), but we can take responsibility for correcting it if we do it right.”

The suggestion that immerged from the committee that will eventually go before the full commission was a recommendation that moving forward the longest serving member of BZA will roll off this year, followed by each subsequent member each following year.

This roll off is only intended to meet the state statute and is not an effort to replace the makeup of the BZA membership. The committee vocally anticipated each BZA member to receive reappointments if they desire. The members (Hunt also sits on the BZA) anticipated the BZA to welcome the fix commission’s solution to the problem.

“As important as powerful as the BZA is,” Hunt said, “it’s sad that it received as little attention as it did in years’ past.”

Duties of the BZA

The Board of Zoning appeals is the final authority, short of litigation, concerning rulings on zoning matters that include variance requests, administrative reviews of disputed decisions by county codes department or grant special exceptions to zoning provisions.

Variances are exemptions to portions of the zoning ordinance given by request for individuals with appropriate cause. For instance, the last BZA variance given at a recent meeting gave a landowner wanting to place a home on a lot in Lakewood Park forgiveness on a small portion of his required side setback.

Special exceptions are a special permitted use provision listed in certain zoning district. These are case-by-case approvals that allow the county the ability to fine tune land use. A recent high profile special exception was recently added to the M-1 District in 2022 that would allow with a special exception, manufacturers in that district to operate an asphalt plant. After the County Commission added that provision in to the zoning resolution, a request for the special exception has not been made.

Decisions by the BZA can only be overturned by litigation.

“It’s a pretty powerful board,” Hunt said. “That’s why I think it needs to be populated with people who understand what’s going on and need to have a little compassion with people.”

How we got here

The BZA, the final deliberative body concerning specific zoning matters, is authorized under TCA 13-7-106 through section 109, and the county’s zoning resolutions. It is made up of five members with an associate member who only votes in the absence of a voting member. According to county resolution, one member is to be a commissioner, one a member of the Planning Commission and one a full-time farmer.

BZA appointment nominations immerge from the commission floor and are confirmed by the full commission, usually at the January meeting.

Current members are Lowell Duke, Kevin Sipe, Sammy Morton Jr., Dennis Hunt and Tim Morris, with associate member Helen DeBellis. The first three members listed have terms that will expire this year. DeBellis will roll off in 2028, Hunt in 2025.

The Ad Hoc committee found that in January 2014 three members were reappointed at the same time, Kevin Sipe, Lowell Duke and Sam Morton. Morton passed away in September of 2014 and the committee felt that his son, current member Sammy Morton Jr. was appointed at that time.

Going back further, the committee found that in 2014, then-commissioners Bobby Bryant and Lee Duckett motioned and seconded the BZA members remain the same.

At that time, the board membership was Connie Larry, Gary Cordell, Lowell Duke, Kevin Sipe, Sam Morton and Bobby Bryan. The associate member was not designated.

he earliest appointments the committee could find were Duke and Sipe in 2012. Sammy Morton in 2014

were Bryan was appointed as an associate member in 2011. His last reappointment was in 2020.

“That’s how it would get messed up,” Hunt said, “if you just approve all of them to remain the same. That in itself, and if they were five year terms and whoever is in the mayor’s office trying to compile a list of term expiration dates and (that just note five years).”

The overall findings of the committee were in 2012 Kevin Sipe, Lowell Duke appointed regular members Bobby Bryan associate member, in 2013 Gary Cordell, Connie Larry, Bobby Bryan appointed regular members, in 2014 Connie Larry, Gary Cordell, Lowell Duke, Sam Morton, Kevin Sipe, Bobby Bryan appointed regular members, in 2019 Kevin Sipe, Sammy Morton Jr., Lowell Duke appointed regular members, in 2020 Dennis Hunt, Bobby Bryan appointed regular members and in 2023 Tim Morris appointed as a regular member with the designation as representative of the County Commission. Helen Debellis was appointed as associate member.

The Ad Hoc committee recommended moving forward that the commission appoints or reappoints a member each year, usually in January. The committee further opined that the Commission records the roll off dates and what if any of the three specified requirements the member meets. Hodge suggested the suggestion go before the Legislative Committee before appearing before the full commission. Hunt felt the matter, instead fell under appointments and nominations, a separate designation from the new resolutions that require vetting by the Legislative Committee. Regardless of the next step, the recommendation is slated to appear before the full commission at the March 12 meeting.

During the Feb. 15 BZA meeting, members unanimously approved largely symbolic motion to accept the recommendation of the Ad Hoc committee.

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.