Proposed Birchwood development deferred at planning commission

HAMILTON COUNTY, Tenn. (WDEF)-  The Hamilton County Regional Planning Commission has deferred a project that could bring roughly three hundred homes to the Birchwood area.

The Windy Ridge subdivision would be located on Eldridge Road off of Birchwood Pike.

The developers want it to be designated as a residential development district, that would allow them to pay for infrastructure upgrades through property taxes generated by those who purchase these lots.

This is in order to upgrade a mile of Eldridge Road to county standards.

Nearby residents voiced their disapproval over several concerns.

Hamilton County Finance Director Lee Brouner also voiced concerns over the burden this could place on the county’s finances, which could be around $2.6 million dollars.

Brouner said, “There are just a lot of questions revolving around if the development doesn’t take place, how do we pay this debt off? In the early years, when the property has been sold, how does that debt get paid off?”

This issue can not come back before the Planning Commission until January at the earliest.