'We can’t change anything:' Hamilton County unable to act on Ooltewah development concerns скачать в хорошем качестве

'We can’t change anything:' Hamilton County unable to act on Ooltewah development concerns

A Hamilton County commissioner says the county's hands are tied in the case of a controversial development in Ooltewah. This comes after a nearby homeowner shared her concerns about a retention pond and steep embankment that sit just feet away from her front porch. We took those concerns to the construction company and to Hamilton County officials. The county tells us this development is already years out of the planning process and secured approval across the board. We told you the story of an Ooltewah homeowner who was concerned about a deep retention pond that was installed next to her home as a part of a new development. The homeowner, Tracie Sutton, raised concerns about work near her home that is part of a new development off Ooltewah Georgetown Road known as Shadow Cove. She said there were issues with septic easement and a retention pond just 5 feet from her home. The developers, JMB Construction, says they've tried to come to a resolution with no luck. When we asked Hamilton County Commissioner Jeff Eversole if there was anything the county could do, he told us... "Unfortunately the county, we can't change anything. We can't go back and grandfather anything. All we can do is support however we can for the future." However, Eversole adds any loopholes allowing for situations like these have since been closed. In this Newschannel 9 Skyview video you can see the home of Tracie Sutton nearly surrounded by construction work. Hamilton County's Director of Development Services, Nathan Janewa told us in a statement "this development was approved in 2022 and met all applicable requirements at that time." But those rules changed last fall when new guidelines passed for developers in the county. Now, the county says 'water quality features are required to be set back 50 feet from the roadway with a 30 foot planted landscape buffer installed.' "We've got too many loopholes like that. They're all one sided for development and growth and not protecting what we currently have," Eversole says. According to developer JMB Construction, "the development was properly submitted, and the final plans were approved back in 2024." When we spoke with homeowner Tracie Sutton two weeks ago, she told us while she's not against new homes around her, she's worried about all the work around her home. "We were told there would not be a fence around here. The water that you see that will be the level that they said it would be at all times, because, in case we have 100 year flood," Sutton said. JMB claims they reached out to discuss purchasing the Sutton home, but did not receive a response. Sutton's attorney tells us she's pursuing legal action. But attorney Bill Speek, who isn't connected to this issue, says the law may not be on their side... "Under Tennessee law, this would be protected, and the developer acting in good faith and having incurred expenses would be able to be grandfathered in under the old ordinance."\ JMB Construction says the pond is located entirely on its property, and that it is following all county guidelines and procedures. _______________ Stay up to date with our social media: WTVC on Facebook:   / wtvcnewschannel9   WTVC on Twitter:   / newschannelnine   WTVC on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newschannel... WTVC on TikTok:   / newschannelnine_   Subscribe to WTVC on YouTube:    / @newschannelnine   Daily News Playlist:    • WTVC Daily News Playlist   For more information, visit https://newschannel9.com/ Have a news tip? Send it directly to us: Email us: tips@newschannel9.com Call the Newsroom: 423.757.7320 WTVC is a Tennessee-based station and an ABC Television affiliate with viewers in northwest Georgia, northeast Alabama & western North Carolina owned and operated by Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. 'Every day we will take the extra steps so our viewers are more aware, more prepared & better informed.' #WTVC #News #Chattanooga #NewsChannel9 #Channel9ABC