Attorney General Opinions 
Relating to County Government

2010 Planning & Zoning

• No state statutes or regulations appear to permit a county legislative body to apply for a special use exception on behalf of a private property owner; the property owner is generally considered to be the proper party to apply for a special use exception. In order to have standing to appeal the board’s denial of a private property owner’s application for a special use exemption statutes, the local governing body would be required to demonstrate some cognizable interest being affected by the board’s denial of the application.  Opinion No. 10-108 (October 28, 2010).

• A sport shooting range that fails to meet the specific requirements of T.C.A. 39-17-316 becomes subject to land use and zoning restrictions that apply to its location, except that the statute still guarantees the right of the shooting range to operate if it is in compliance with all noise control requirements of local government that applied to the shooting range at the time it began operating.  Opinion No. 10-50 (April 14, 2010).

• Whether a special school district may be required to pay building permit and plan review fees for construction or renovation of a school, and whether it must conform to local planning and zoning regulations,  depends on the provisions of the private act and the local planning and zoning regulations.   Opinion No. 10-27 (March 8, 2010).