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Panel votes ‘no’ on Apison Dollar General as future of area considered

Staff photo by Mike Pare / A large tract of land for sale at East Brainerd and Bill Jones roads shown here sits across the street from an smaller parcel where Dollar General wants to put up a store in Apison. Some neighbors fear the larger piece of land also could be developed into commercial space.
Staff photo by Mike Pare / A large tract of land for sale at East Brainerd and Bill Jones roads shown here sits across the street from an smaller parcel where Dollar General wants to put up a store in Apison. Some neighbors fear the larger piece of land also could be developed into commercial space. Staff photo by Mike Pare / A large tract of land for sale at East Brainerd and Bill Jones roads shown here sits across the street from an smaller parcel where Dollar General wants to put up a store in Apison. Some neighbors fear the larger piece of land also could be developed into commercial space.

By Mike Pare 4 min read

A divided Hamilton County planning panel Monday denied rezoning a tract for a proposed Dollar General store in Apison after a long debate over what the fast-growing area’s future may look like.

“The [Chattanooga] City Council has heard a lot from the community in the last two or three months. I think it’s important we listen,” said City Councilman Darrin Ledford, who’s also a member of the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Commission.

Nearly half a dozen Apison area residents spoke to the panel against the proposed Dollar General at 11156 E. Brainerd Road. The body voted 7 to 3 to recommend to the Hamilton County Commission denying rezoning the 1.7-acre vacant parcel from A-1 agricultural to C-2 commercial.

Some residents said they moved to rural Apison to get away from commercial development and traffic problems. Area resident Jason Price said most people moved to Apison to not be around commercial properties.

“People live next door,” he said about the residential homes on each side of the proposed store. “The livability and value of those houses will surely suffer with the building of a Dollar General store.”