Farragut BOMA backs brick rule amendment
West End Center owner Tommy Vann soon may move forward with plans to construct a new retail building, following unanimous approval by the Farragut Board of Mayor and Aldermen of a text amendment that adjusts building façade requirements.
The vote, taken Thursday, Jan. 22, approved the amendment on first reading. It must pass on second reading before becoming part of the town’s zoning ordinance.
The change would allow architects to average the face brick requirement across all elevations of a new building rather than requiring each exterior wall to be 75 percent brick.
This adjustment is intended to help new construction blend with the existing West End Center buildings, which were built before the current standards were adopted.
“I’m glad the Planning Commission worked on this [during its Jan. 15 meeting],” Alderman Alex Cain said. “I was there the night of the meeting, and based on the architectural design plans they presented, I think the building’s going to look really good; and being able to get it to fit in is a really good thing here.
“Working with new and old buildings and long-time owners and developers is something we need to do,” he added.
“I think the flexibility of this change is important,” Vice Mayor Scott Meyer said.
Community Development director Mark Shipley said the amendment will allow new buildings to follow the Town of Farragut Architectural Design Standards for the Town Center Subarea and remove references to older Town Center Design Requirements.
“This item was reviewed at the Planning Commission in November and approved at its December meeting,” Shipley said. “The item involves a request to amend the building facade requirements for new buildings in the Mixed Use Town Center portion of the General Commercial (C-1) Zoning District.”
The new structure would be located in the parking lot of the existing West End Center, at the south intersection of West End Avenue and West Point Drive.
Shipley noted because the West End Center predates the formation of the Mixed Use Town Center (MUTC) and its regulations, the original buildings currently do not meet the current façade requirements.
“One of the requirements in the ordinance is that each exterior wall of a new building within the MUTC must have at least 75 percent face brick,” he said. “Since West End Center predates this, the existing buildings are well below that threshold.”
