Site plans submitted by Sam Issa for a development he wants to do at the intersection of East Brainerd Road and Ooltewah-Ringgold Road.OTHER DEVELOPMENTS• Developer Bassam Issa’s proposal to replace the tennis courts and pools at the YMCA on Shallowford Road with retail and office spaces was recommended for approval by the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Commission Monday. The Chattanooga City Council will also have to vote to approve the project before it can go forward.• The commission voted to defer a proposal to build a multifamily complex on now-vacant industrial land at 950 Riverside Drive for 30 days during Monday’s meeting to the developer a chance to meet with Lincoln Park residents.
A local developer who hopes to build a 240-unit apartment complex and shopping center on East Brainerd Road met heavy opposition from neighbors at Monday’s Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Commission meeting and will have to delay his plans for at least 30 days.
Developer Bassam Issa wants to build both an apartment complex and several retail buildings on about 50 acres of now-vacant land at 9700 East Brainerd Road. The commission voted to defer a decision on the case during Monday’s meeting so Issa could spend more time meeting with neighbors, who are vehemently opposed to the development.
The Regional Planning Agency staff recommended that the commission vote to approve the plan because the development integrated open green space, landscaping, pedestrian access and parking lots that do not dominate the site. The staff put 15 conditions on the development that ranged from limiting the largest commercial building to 40,000 square feet to limiting the number of times the development opens to East Brainerd Road.
The planning staff also noted that Issa was willing to follow all the conditions and that the development fits with the comprehensive plan for the neighborhood.