TO: Mayor and Members of City Council
THRU: Kelly Strickland - Assistant City Manager
Dr. Gerald Newton, AICP - Development Services Director
FROM: Will Deaton, AICP, CFM, CZO - Planning & Zoning Manger
Craig Harmon, CZO - Senior Planner
DATE: February 24, 2025
RE:
Title
SUP25-01 - Special Use Permit (SUP) to allow for the reduction in the separation requirement between Automotive Wrecker Services and any residential district, school, or childcare center, located at 3424 Cumberland Rd (REID # 0426015026000) and being the property, Kodjo Sam Kouassi, Sam’s Towing.
end
COUNCIL DISTRICT(S):
Council District(s)
5 - Greene
b
Relationship To Strategic Plan:
Goal III: City Investment in Today and Tomorrow
Objective 3.2: To manage the City’s future growth and strategic land use
Executive Summary:
City Council is asked to hold an Evidentiary Hearing to determine whether a Special Use Permit (SUP) should be approved or denied. If approved, the SUP will reduce the 250-foot separation requirement between an automotive wrecker service located at 3424 Cumberland Road and residentially zoned property to approximately 10 feet.
During an Evidentiary Hearing, the burden of demonstrating that an application complies with applicable review and approval standards of this Ordinance is on the applicant, which shall be demonstrated by competent, material, and substantial evidence. The burden is not on the City or other parties to show that the standards have not been met by the applicant.
Background:
The property in question was annexed into the City on November 25, 2024. At that time, it was initially zoned HI - Heavy Industrial. Prior to annexation, an automotive wrecker service was formally operated on this property in the county’s jurisdiction. That wrecker service seems to have gone out of business between 2019 and 2021, according to Cumberland County’s online aerial photos.
The Applicant is requesting a reduction in the 250-foot separation standards between an automotive wrecker service and residentially zoned property. The Applicant’s request would reduce the separation down to approximately 10 feet. This separation includes the required Type D Buffer, which is a 10-foot buffer plus a six-foot solid fence. While this property abuts a residential zoning district, the closest residential structure is approximately 100 feet from the property line.
In the City’s Unified Development Ordinance, an automotive wrecker service is defined as an establishment operated for the purpose of temporary storage on-site of no more than nine wrecked or inoperable vehicles for a period no longer than 90 days. If an establishment has ten or more inoperable vehicles located on-site, stores inoperable vehicles for more than 90 days, stacks vehicles, or portions of the vehicles are dismantled or removed for sale, it shall be considered a salvage and junkyard.
Owner: Kodjo Sam Kouassi, Sam’s Towing.
Applicant: Kodjo Sam Kouassi, Sam’s Towing
Requested Action: SUP - Reduction in separation between uses.
Property Address: 3424 Cumberland Rd
Council District: 5 - Greene
Status of Property: HI - Heavy Industrial
Size: Approximately 0.80 acres of 2.33 acres
Adjoining Land Use & Zoning:
• North - SF-10: Single-family Detached
• South - R6A: Single-family Detached - Across Cumberland Rd
• West - HI: Auto Body Repair
• East - R6A, CC & C3: Single-family Detached, & Wrecker Service
Letters Mailed: 211
Annual Average Daily Traffic: Cumberland Road - 3,500
Land Use Plans:
Following the adoption of the 2040 Comprehensive Plan: Future Land Use Map & Plan on May 26, 2020, all properties within the city limits, as well as those in the Municipal Influence Area, are subject to its guidelines. The Plan recommends that this part of the city be developed as Medium Density Residential, which primarily includes single-family neighborhoods on small lots, with duplexes and townhomes interspersed. Low-rise apartments are also permissible.
Additional Reviews:
A Technical Review Committee examination was conducted as part of the Special Use Permit process. Standard development comments were provided, and are attached.
Issues/Analysis:
Surrounding Area:
The surrounding area primarily consists of single-family residences, with some more intense commercial uses. To the west of the subject property is a mixed-use site that includes auto storage, tire sales, and an auto mechanic. The subject property extends 1,163.6 feet in depth, with its rear boundary adjoining the Pine Acres single-family residential subdivision. Adjacent to the mixed-use auto property, at the corner of Cumberland Road and Ladyslipper Drive, is B’s All About Children Childcare Center. Directly across from the childcare center are an antique thrift store and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Cumberland County.
The property at 3404 Cumberland Road, also owned by Mr. Kouassi, was the subject of a rezoning request in early 2022. This property serves as the primary location for Sam’s Towing. It was rezoned to Community Commercial (CC) to align with existing County zoning, support strategic development goals, and ensure compatibility with surrounding land uses as part of the annexation process.
Special Use Permit Request:
The owner is requesting a reduction in the 250-foot separation standards between an automotive wrecker service and residentially zoned property. The applicant’s request would reduce the separation down to approximately 10 feet.
Use-specific standards are the requirements applied to individual use types regardless of the zoning district in which they are located or the review procedure by which they are approved. This section is intended to identify the use-specific standards for all principal uses identified in Table 30-4.A, Use Table, as subject to "additional requirements." These standards may be modified by other applicable requirements in this Ordinance.
These standards are not subject to a variance request. However, with the following exceptions or as explicitly stated in other sections of this ordinance, the separation standards may be reduced upon approval of a special use permit finding that the reduction in the separation standard does not increase negative impacts on surrounding uses and that there are specific characteristics that help minimize any negative impacts, such as natural or man-made features that create visual or physical separation between the uses. Consistent with standards for the procedure in Article 30-2.C.7 Administration - Special Use Permit, conditions may be attached to further minimize or prevent negative impacts, including limitations on hours of operation, maximum size, or range of activities.
Budget Impact:
This action should result in no increase in City Services.
Options:
OPTION 1
I move to APPROVE the Special Use Permit to allow the reduction of the separation requirement between an automotive wrecker service and residentially zoned property subject to the submitted site plans and conforming to the current Unified Development Ordinance standards as depicted on the attached site plan, as presented by staff, based on the standards of the City's development code and the evidence presented during this hearing. And that the application is consistent with applicable plans because: (1) the development is located in a Heavy Industrial (HI) zoning district and (2) that this use complies with the findings listed and (3) the proposed permit is in the public interest because the proposed SUP does fit with the character of the area.
[Applicable to Motion to Approve] If approved, this Special Use Permit shall become effective with the approval of the Order of Findings by the City Council. The SUP shall expire one year from its effective date if a building permit is not issued within that time.
*For a motion to approve, all six findings below must be met:
1. The special use complies with all applicable standards, conditions, and specifications in this Ordinance, including in Section 30-4.C, Use-Specific Standards;
2. The special use will be in harmony with the area in which it is located;
3. The special use will not materially endanger the public health or safety if located where proposed and developed according to the plan as submitted and approved;
4. The special use is in general conformity with the City's adopted land use plans and policies;
5. The special use will not substantially injure the value of the abutting land, or the special use is a public necessity; and
6. The special use complies with all other relevant City, State, and Federal laws and regulations.
OPTION 2
I move to DISAPPROVE the Special Use Permit (SUP) for the reduction of the separation requirement between an automotive wrecker service and residentially zoned property as depicted on the attached site plan, as presented by staff, based on the standards of the City's development code and the evidence presented during this hearing. And that the application does not meet the finding(s) of fact listed below. More specifically finding(s) #_____.]
* For a motion to deny only one of the findings shown below needs to not apply.
1. The special use complies with all applicable standards, conditions, and specifications in this Ordinance, including in Section 30-4.C, Use-Specific Standards;
2. The special use will be in harmony with the area in which it is located;
3. The special use will not materially endanger the public health or safety if located where proposed and developed according to the plan as submitted and approved;
4. The special use is in general conformity with the City's adopted land use plans and policies;
5. The special use will not substantially injure the value of the abutting land, or the special use is a public necessity; and
6. The special use complies with all other relevant City, State, and Federal laws and regulations.
[Applicable to Motion to Deny] If denied this action shall become effective upon the approval of the Order of Findings by the City Council.]
Recommended Action:
Staff recommends that City Council hold an Evidentiary Hearing and base their decision on the evidence and testimony provided.
Attachments:
1. Application
2. Aerial Map
3. Zoning Map
4. Land Use Plan Map
5. Subject Properties
6. Surrounding Properties
7. Storage Area Map
8. TRC Comments
9. PowerPoint