CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Clarksville's planning commission has deferred plans to build more than 150 homes in the Hickory Wild neighborhood, following pushback from residents who say the spring 2025 floods are reason enough to pump the brakes on new development.
Hickory Wild homeowner Camille Jones said the proposal caught her off guard.
"My heart dropped. My friend sent me a text message of the letter they sent out. My heart dropped. I got sick to my stomach."
Jones said more than 600 of her neighbors signed a petition against the development. She said the timing of the proposal — coming on the heels of the spring floods — made it especially hard to accept.
"20 lots is one thing. 151 lots in the middle of what we just… There are still people trying to build their houses back, so the timing was shocking to me."
Planning Director Jeff Tyndall said the commission deferred the plans for several reasons, including questions about drainage and a property line issue involving the neighborhood's clubhouse.
"One of the questions right now is drainage, and one of our rules is, buildings can't be across property lines, and the clubhouse is across property lines, so we want to see how the applicant, the engineer, and the neighborhood plan to work that out."
Jones said residents are already fighting the developers in court over the proposed development and the water concerns it raises.
She said her biggest worry is that if the plans are eventually approved, future homeowners could face the same flooding heartache the current neighborhood has endured.
"These are my friends, neighbors, and we're a community, and I just don't want them to be hurt."
The land targeted for development is zoned residential. Developers still have the ability to revise their plans and return before the planning commission.
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