The Northeast County Sector Plan is one of twelve sector plans prepared for Knoxville and Knox County. Focus is on physical development: land use, transportation and community facilities. The Northeast County Sector is approximately 58,000 acres (90 square miles) in size. The boundaries of the Northeast County Sector are the Union and Grainger County lines to the north and east, and the Holston River to the south. Bell Road, Brown Gap Road and I-640 comprise the western border. The sector boundaries are consistent with census tracts 52.01, 52.02, 64, and 65. Most of the sector is unincorporated portions of Knox County.

Contents
All sector plans contain a background report, a plan for community improvements and a land use plan. The background report outlines existing conditions in the sector and contains information on environmental resources, development trends and characteristics of the population. It serves as a tool to help the community identify development opportunities and plan for the future. Remaining sections comprise a comprehensive plan for future physical development of the sector.

Purpose of the Plan

• Identify significant resources
• Identify current development constraints and issues
• Evaluate significant changes that have taken place since 1997
• Explore special development opportunities
• Develop proposals to guide development over the next 15 years

Summary of Input
Residents of northeast Knox County understand that their community is a fragile and beautiful place that can be easily ruined by lack of planning and inappropriate development. They wish to strike a balance between preserving the natural landscape and offering a variety of opportunities for quality development.

During the fall of 2002 and winter of 2003, planners engaged the community in a series of meetings designed to define issues, identify opportunities and seek the best alternatives for future growth. Over 150 local residents and community groups participated, including residential property owners, business owners, farmers and developers. Meetings were held in Gibbs, Corryton, Ritta and Skaggston.

The difficult questions and issues discussed sometimes produced contradictory statements. A great need exists for better infrastructure in many parts of northeast Knox County, but with that investment comes additional subdivisions, more traffic and business expansion. For decades, the land use plan for this sector has called for rural, agricultural uses with land reserved for future growth. Some feel that the time for growth has arrived, while others are reluctant to see change take place.

While development pressures increase, lack of adequate infrastructure in appropriate locations continues to be a major barrier to quality development. Coordination of roadway improvements with sanitary sewer extensions is necessary before any significant changes in land use are realized. This coordination should take place as soon as possible. The current pattern of agricultural parcels being developed at one unit per acre has several long-term negative impacts. Sprawling development adds to traffic congestion, uses land inefficiently, pollutes the air, and endangers ground water sources. It also fosters an auto-based lifestyle that is harmful to the health of both adults and children.

Better-planned communities with houses, schools, shops, and workplaces within walking distance are needed and many residents are looking to the traditional neighborhood development patterns as a solution. They do not want the sector to become an anchorless, car-bound suburb. The classic rural village settlement provides another good example for the future, with development clustered around preserved open space.

The conventional suburban development model is at odds with the rural landscape of northeast Knox County, and should not become the predominant building pattern. The conventional suburban approach results in the entire parcel being covered with house lots and subdivision streets. As one parcel after another is eventually developed, the formerly open landscape evolves into a network of wall-to-wall subdivisions.

Some homeowners have relocated to northeast Knox County in order to escape west Knoxville. While this trend of people leaving the suburbs “wanting to live with nature right in their own back door” creates a new set of problems related to exurban growth, the message is clear. New development should respect the sector’s landscape and heritage, not destroy the very qualities that make it a desirable place to live.

Walkable neighborhoods provide a safe way to reach parks and schools.

Critical Issues

• Lack of public facilities including parks, libraries, and community centers
• Need for new elementary and middle schools
• Timing of road and other community improvements
• Increasing pressure to develop
• Lack of control over utility decisions
• Quality of future growth
• Preserving beauty and history of northeast Knox County
• Future of Knox County Detention Facility
• Future of General Shale property

Major Resources

• Proximity to I-40 and I-640
• Three Ridges Golf Course
• Active community groups
• Holston River
• Scenic vistas
• Rural heritage
• Significant historic sites
• Farmers Market
• Relatively large parcels of developable land
• Rutledge Pike as a development corridor

Development Constraints

• Steep slopes: House Mountain, Copper Ridge, Beaver Ridge, McAnnally Ridge and Black Oak Ridge
• Flood prone areas: Beaver Creek, Flat Creek, Murphy Creek and Holston River floodway
• Several sinkholes
• Public transportation rights-of-way: rail and interstate

Significant Changes Since Last Update

• Increased pressure for agricultural areas to be rezoned
• Adoption of Growth Policy Plan
• Improvements to Rutledge Pike

Community Goals

• Make decisions that limit sprawl and encourage quality development
• Identify locations for additional housing options, including condos, apartments and assisted living facilities
• Determine appropriate locations for commercial areas
• Encourage continued agricultural production by conserving prime farmland
• Preserve open space with future development
• Protect and seek recognition for numerous historic sites within the sector
• Implement planned improvements to roads, schools and parks
• Plan schools for future growth
• Insure adequate drainage measures
• Protect watershed areas and groundwater resources, including springs and wells
• Provide adequate biking and pedestrian facilities
• Create safe neighborhood access, especially to schools
• Better utilize the Farmers Market as a community resource

Recent improvements provide additional highway capacity on Rutledge Pike.

Millertown Meadows, a new subdivision near Knoxville Center Mall.

Eastbridge Industrial Park in Mascot provides jobs for many local residents.