Smyrna zoning board approves church at Rock Springs Road with access, buffer and utility conditions

The Town of Smyrna Board of Zoning Appeals voted to approve a special‑exception request permitting a religious facility on a roughly five‑acre parcel at 1443 Rock Springs Road, subject to staff‑recommended conditions intended to address access, utilities and neighborhood impacts.

Kevin (planning staff) told the board the site is landlocked and would rely on a recorded ingress/egress and utility easement across adjacent property; the access currently crosses a creek and would require construction of a bridge meeting town and FEMA standards and a two‑lane minimum approach from Rock Springs Road. He said the parcel lacks water, gas and sewer and that such utilities would have to be extended to the site. Staff noted the property sits partially in a floodplain and recommended a minimum Type C landscape buffer along the south and east property lines to protect adjacent residential parcels, restrict waste‑removal hours to 8 a.m.–8 p.m., and require planning‑commission review and approval of the final site plan.

Board members raised questions about the easement, whether traffic could funnel through nearby neighborhoods and the proximity of a 62‑plus apartment building to the south. Staff responded that the recorded easement from Rock Springs Road is the only vehicular access to the parcel and that the bridge should be designed to convey stream flows and provide reliable emergency access. No members of the public spoke during the hearing.

A board member moved to approve the special exception with staff recommendations, another member seconded, and the board approved the request by a voice vote. The approval includes conditions to ensure adequate emergency access, required buffers, restrictions on waste‑removal timing, and that the final site plan conform to zoning standards prior to any building permits being issued.