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Record of Proceedings

Chattanooga Historic Zoning Commission Meeting - October 15, 2026

City Council & City Boards — Thursday, October 15, 2026
BodyChattanooga, Tennessee
SessionCity Council & City Boards
DateThursday, October 15, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 48:19

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

5:06

Present

Speaker 2

5:07

Todd Morgan.

5:10

John Cabot.

5:12

Cassie Courtney.

5:14

Present.

5:15

Nathan Bird.

5:17

Matt McDonald.

5:18

Present.

5:19

Skip pond.

Speaker 3

5:20

Present.

5:22

And reminder, I assume we're streaming.

5:24

So please use your mics as we're going around.

5:27

Next, we'll do the swearing in.

Unassigned speaker

5:31

If

Speaker 2

5:31

you're planning to speak, if you'll just stand and raise your right hand to be sworn

Unassigned speaker

5:34

in.

Unassigned speaker

5:35

Do you solemnly swear or affirm the testimony you're giving today will be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth will help you guide?

Speaker 2

5:41

Thank you so

Unassigned speaker

5:42

much.

Speaker 3

5:43

All right.

5:43

I'll go over our rules of procedure today.

Unassigned speaker

5:46

Uh

Speaker 3

5:46

the order of business for hearing certificate of appropriateness cases will be as follows.

5:51

Each case will have a staff presentation followed by an applicant presentation of no more than 10 minutes.

5:56

After which we'll have comments by others for or against the project for five minutes total.

6:01

Then the applicant will have a chance for rebuttal if they wish to for uh no more than five minutes.

6:07

After which we'll discuss the can the commission members will discuss the case and make a motion.

6:12

A certificate of appropriateness will be issued within a week of this hearing.

6:16

If you defer your case or if you have conditional items to bring back before the commission, you must contact staff and ask to be added to the agenda for the next meeting.

6:25

You will not automatically be added to the agenda.

6:28

If you plan to speak, you must be sworn in and please sign in at the podium when you come up.

Unassigned speaker

6:32

If

Speaker 3

6:33

you need it to there's a laser pointer on the podium to point out anything on screen.

6:38

If you would like to defer your case to be heard at a later date, a deferral must be requested prior to the prior.

6:45

A deferral must be requested prior to the statement of the case and case's motion.

6:51

If you if you uh exit the meeting room, please wait till you get outside of the wooden doors to uh talk or use your cell phone.

6:59

All construction work must meet the certificate appropriateness and design guidelines as approved by this commission or staff.

7:05

If plans change, a new application will be required.

7:09

If work is not started within six months of the issue date, a new COA will need to be issued.

7:14

A COA is not a building permit or a land disturbing permit.

7:18

Please contact the land disturbing office or the building permit office prior to the start of your project.

7:22

The COA must must be posted in a visible location or on file on the property until the project is complete.

7:30

Applicants are respectfully requested to ensure that they have submitted the required application and supporting documents prior to the meeting

Unassigned speaker

7:37

and

Speaker 3

7:37

to adhere to the time limits as previously explained.

7:40

Board members are requested to limit questions and comments on the case to the only those items within the purview of the board.

7:47

Code setback variants and zoning issues are not within the purview of the commission and will have to be addressed by the applicant with the appropriate personnel within the city.

7:56

Reminder this meeting is being recorded.

8:01

Okay, next we need to approve our minutes from last month's meeting.

8:04

If everyone's had a chance to take a look at those, I'll take a motion to approve

Unassigned speaker

8:08

them.

Speaker 4

8:10

Second.

Speaker 3

8:11

Seconded, all in favor.

8:14

All right, the minutes are approved.

8:16

Okay, do we have any staff reviews?

Unassigned speaker

8:19

Uh

Speaker 5

8:20

yes, here's a listing of the staff reviews.

Unassigned speaker

8:23

All

Speaker 6

8:23

right, and we'll move into old business.

Speaker 5

8:25

Okay, great.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Historic Preservation█████████████████████████████████████████████49%
Planning And Zoning███████████████████████████████████████42%
Procedural████████9%
Summary of Proceedings

Chattanooga Historic Zoning Commission Meeting - October 15, 2026

The Chattanooga Historic Zoning Commission met on October 15, 2026, to consider three certificate of appropriateness cases: two in the St. Elmo Historic District and one involving new construction. The meeting included approval of previous minutes, staff updates, and discussion of design guidelines for additions, new construction, and site improvements.

Discussion Items

  • Case HZ2696 – 4313 San Almo Avenue (Old Business, New Construction on Vacant Lot): The applicant presented revised plans after previous feedback. The commission discussed the design's compatibility with the St. Elmo Historic District. Commissioner Cassie Courtney recused herself, initially causing a quorum issue; the case was tabled until Nathan Bird arrived. After Bird joined, the commission approved the case without conditions.
  • Case HZ26108 – 4501 Tennessee Avenue (Addition to Historic Structure): The applicant proposed a rear addition and a side shed dormer to expand attic space. The commission expressed concern about the size and prominence of the side dormer on the original facade. After discussion, the commission approved the rear addition options (both the offset gable with clerestory windows and the symmetrical shed dormer) but deferred the side dormer for further design refinement. The motion also allowed the applicant to choose the rear option based on pricing.
  • Case HZ26110 – 4613 Guild Trail (New Driveway): The applicant requested to demolish and replace an existing steep, ungraded driveway with a new concrete driveway to provide safe access to a non-contributing house on a flagpole lot. The commission approved the project with conditions that the driveway be concrete and the historic retaining wall remain undisturbed.
  • Staff Updates: Staff announced a public informational meeting for the Lupton City Local Historic District on Monday, October 26, 2026, from 6 to 8 p.m. at 1543 Mercer Street. A new Development Review Planner, Jody Corbin, will start on October 30, 2026, and be in training for the November meeting. The Lupton City Historic Deferral will be heard at the November 2026 meeting.

Key Outcomes

  • Minutes Approved: Unanimously.
  • HZ2696 Approved: Motion to approve with no conditions; seconded and passed (with Cassie Courtney recused).
  • HZ26108 Partially Approved: Rear addition options approved; side dormer deferred to a future meeting for revised design. Motion carried.
  • HZ26110 Approved: Subject to conditions of concrete driveway and undisturbed historic retaining wall. Motion carried.
  • Meeting Adjourned: Motion made and seconded; passed.

Meeting Transcript

Present Todd Morgan. John Cabot. Cassie Courtney. Present. Nathan Bird. Matt McDonald. Present. Skip pond. Present. And reminder, I assume we're streaming. So please use your mics as we're going around. Next, we'll do the swearing in. If you're planning to speak, if you'll just stand and raise your right hand to be sworn in. Do you solemnly swear or affirm the testimony you're giving today will be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth will help you guide? Thank you so much. All right. I'll go over our rules of procedure today. Uh the order of business for hearing certificate of appropriateness cases will be as follows. Each case will have a staff presentation followed by an applicant presentation of no more than 10 minutes. After which we'll have comments by others for or against the project for five minutes total. Then the applicant will have a chance for rebuttal if they wish to for uh no more than five minutes. After which we'll discuss the can the commission members will discuss the case and make a motion. A certificate of appropriateness will be issued within a week of this hearing. If you defer your case or if you have conditional items to bring back before the commission, you must contact staff and ask to be added to the agenda for the next meeting. You will not automatically be added to the agenda. If you plan to speak, you must be sworn in and please sign in at the podium when you come up. If you need it to there's a laser pointer on the podium to point out anything on screen. If you would like to defer your case to be heard at a later date, a deferral must be requested prior to the prior. A deferral must be requested prior to the statement of the case and case's motion. If you if you uh exit the meeting room, please wait till you get outside of the wooden doors to uh talk or use your cell phone. All construction work must meet the certificate appropriateness and design guidelines as approved by this commission or staff. If plans change, a new application will be required. If work is not started within six months of the issue date, a new COA will need to be issued. A COA is not a building permit or a land disturbing permit. Please contact the land disturbing office or the building permit office prior to the start of your project. The COA must must be posted in a visible location or on file on the property until the project is complete. Applicants are respectfully requested to ensure that they have submitted the required application and supporting documents prior to the meeting and to adhere to the time limits as previously explained. Board members are requested to limit questions and comments on the case to the only those items within the purview of the board. Code setback variants and zoning issues are not within the purview of the commission and will have to be addressed by the applicant with the appropriate personnel within the city. Reminder this meeting is being recorded. Okay, next we need to approve our minutes from last month's meeting. If everyone's had a chance to take a look at those, I'll take a motion to approve

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