Covenant Life given deadline to seek RV park rezoning
Norris, through its city attorney, has asked Covenant Life Church to apply no later than Nov. 1 to seek rezoning of property on which the church built a recreational vehicle park/campground in 2020 without first obtaining the required zoning change or building permits.
In a letter dated Oct. 21 from Norris City Attorney P. Edward Pratt to Knoxville lawyer Daniel Sanders, representing the church, Pratt wrote:
“A review of the City of Norris’ records revealed that Covenant Life has not applied for nor received approval for the development of an RV Park or any of the required permits, which is in direct violation of the City Code.”
The letter further stated:
“Pursuant to … City Code, failure to comply with the City Code is unlawful and the Building Inspector or other appropriate authority may institute an injunction or another appropriate action to correct or abate such violations.
“Thus, if Covenant Life fails to correct the violations … in connection with the development of Solid Rock RV Park and any other construction on the property, action will be taken by the City of Norris to abate such violations without further notice.”
The letter to the church’s attorney also laid out the alleged violations: “Specifically, the property is located in the Professional and Civic (P-1) zoning district, which does not allow RV parks as a permitted use. …
“Further, the previously approved Site Plan for the church building did not include the development of an RV park. As stated above, Covenant Life has not obtained the required building permits or certificate of occupancy for any structures related to the RV park.”
The letter then lists “Corrective Actions Required” by the church, including:
• “Because of the ongoing violations, the Covenant Life matter is on the agenda for the Norris Municipal Planning Commission Meeting scheduled for November 7, 2022, at 6:00 p.m. [the following is in boldface type:] Therefore, an application to the Norris Municipal Planning Commission for the proposed rezoning of the property should be submitted by Covenant Life by Tuesday, November 1, 2022 [end boldface type].”
• If the rezoning is successful, the church then would be “required to submit a proposed site plan for the RV Park to the Norris Municipal Planning Commission,” and then to make “applications for building permits and soil grading permits,” in accordance with city code, the letter notes.
Sanders, contacted at his Knoxville law office, said Monday that “I am not authorized to discuss” the city’s allegations against the church and the letter from the city attorney.
But he added, “We’re looking at it. We don’t agree with everything Mr. Pratt put into his letter.”
During its Oct. 3 meeting, the Norris Planning Commission debated what its next moves should be in the city’s dispute with the church over the RV park, especially since a church representative failed to show up as promised at that meeting.
The commission had expected church representative Carl Beaty to appear to discuss plans for possibly bringing the RV park into compliance with city zoning regulations by formally requesting the zoning change.
“I’d like to know what the next steps are,” Mayor Chris Mitchell said when it became clear no one from the church was in attendance.
“They are in violation now,” the mayor said. “They said they would be here tonight.”
City planner Kathryn Baldwin advocated immediate legal action.
“They should be cited into city court for violation of the zoning ordinance,” she said. “We are not hearing anything from the church.
“It should be automatic from your codes-enforcement officer,” Baldwin said. “This is a rarity. This is very uncommon.”
Planning Commission Chairman Joe Feeman said he would contact MTAS – the University of Tennessee’s Municipal Technical Advisory Service – to “see what they have to say” about what actions the city could take.
“I believe it’s been going on too long,” Feeman said.
The church, which sits inside the Norris city limits on Andersonville Highway (Tenn. 61), built and opened its “Solid Rock RV Park” to the public in October 2020.
Now, the city has begun looking at actions it could take against the church, including forcing Covenant Life to remove the RV park if it does not apply for rezoning and submit plans that are acceptable to the Planning Commission and, ultimately, the City Council.
Beaty, who identified himself as a representative of the church, appeared before the Norris Planning Commission in September to inquire about rezoning the land upon which the RV park lies.
But the information Beaty gave to the commissioners about the facility was vague and often contradictory, and no official request for rezoning was filed.
Instead, the city was left with more questions than answers about the church’s construction and operation of the RV park, whose entrance is off Norris Freeway (U.S. 441) just across from Cross Pike Road.
The RV park has 16 spaces on a 22-acre site for motorhomes and camper trailers, along with utility hookups. The sites are advertised on the church’s separate website for the facility (thesolidrockrvpark.com).
Beaty told the commissioners repeatedly that the RV park was not intended for public use and was a “ministry” of the church intended primarily for use by visiting ministers and evangelists.
“We don’t have anything there that we rent out nightly,” Beaty said.
But the RV park’s website makes no such restrictions on customers.
At the September meeting, Beaty suggested that the church would like to have the property rezoned from its current P-1 designation to a commercial C-2 designation, which would allow for an RV park.
Commissioners cautioned Beaty that the church might lose its nonprofit tax-exempt status on the property if such a rezoning were to occur. The church currently pays no property taxes on its campus or facilities.
“The property becomes eligible for property tax and sales tax if it’s rezoned and generates revenue,” Baldwin told Beaty.
