Tri-Cities

Kingsport RPC Sets Sept. 17 on Valley Drive R-1 to A-5

Kingsport Regional Planning Commission’s Sept. 17, 2026, 5:30 p.m. agenda includes 664 Valley Drive County Rezoning (REZONE26-0209) from County R-1 to County A-5.

Tracy King

17 Sep 2026 • 5 min read

Sullivan County residential landscape — Valley Drive R-1 to A-5 starts as a Planning Commission recommendation.

Kingsport’s Regional Planning Commission Thursday, September 17, 2026, 5:30 p.m. agenda at City Hall, 415 Broad Street, Boardroom, posts 664 Valley Drive County Rezoning (REZONE26-0209): a recommendation to Sullivan County Commission on a County R-1 to County A-5 request.

For Tri-Cities homeowners near Valley Drive, this is the county zoning dial — not a city annexation. The same new-business stack also carries right-of-way vacations and a Sullivan County text amendment recommendation.

REZONE26-0209: Valley Drive R-1 to A-5

New business item 5 states: 664 Valley Drive County Rezoning (REZONE26-0209). The Commission is requested to review and make a recommendation to the Sullivan County Commission for the County rezoning request from County R-1 to County A-5. (Cooper).

That sentence is the whole underwriting hook. Planning Commission action here is a recommendation upstream to Sullivan County Commission. Sellers should not treat a Sept. 17 RPC vote as the final map change until the county acts.

Field	Sept. 17 RPC agenda
Meeting	Thursday, September 17, 2026 at 5:30 PM — City Hall, 415 Broad Street, Boardroom
Case	664 Valley Drive County Rezoning (REZONE26-0209)
Request	County R-1 to County A-5; recommendation to Sullivan County Commission
ROW item	DB Right-of-Way Abandonment (VACATE25-0049) — Indian Court, Midland Drive, Auditorium Drive
Text amendment	Sullivan County Text Amendment (ZTA26-0235)
Also on new business	Bancroft Hills Phase 1 final plat / letter of credit / bond (PD26-0241); 616 Beaver Lane MINSUB26-0194

Right-of-way abandonments and the county text amendment

Item 6, DB Right-of-Way Abandonment (VACATE25-0049), asks the Commission to send a positive recommendation to the Kingsport Board of Mayor and Aldermen to vacate the public right-of-way for Indian Court, Midland Drive, and Auditorium Drive. (Cooper).

Item 7, Sullivan County Text Amendment (ZTA26-0235), asks the Commission to send a positive recommendation for the proposed county zoning text amendment to the Sullivan County Commission. (Cooper).

Vacating public ROW can change driveway assumptions, utility easements, and how a buyer reads a recorded plat. Text amendments can change use rules across many parcels even when your street is not named on the agenda line. Pair both with the Valley Drive map change instead of reading REZONE26-0209 in isolation.

Other growth files on the same night

Consent carries Brickyard Village Phase 1B Final Amendment (PD25-0170) and The Arbor Phase 2 Final Planned Development Amendment (PD26-0109). New business also lists Bancroft Hills Phase 1 Final Plat (PD26-0241), an irrevocable letter of credit and subdivision bond for the same plat, and 616 Beaver Lane (MINSUB26-0194) final subdivision approval with an irregular lot variance.

Those plats are the inventory side of the same evening: final plats and bonds are how lots become sellable. Valley Drive is the zoning-recommendation side. Homeowners comparing “new houses coming” should ask which case number actually sits next to their fence line.

What Valley Drive sellers and buyers should do

Pull REZONE26-0209 materials from Planning and ask whether A-5 would change minimum lot size, agricultural uses, or accessory structures on 664 Valley Drive and adjoining County R-1 lots. If you are under contract, put the county Commission follow-up date in writing.

Do not quote a buyer a “done deal” after a Planning Commission recommendation alone. Start with a free home valuation that prices calendar risk, or ask about a cash offer if your next purchase cannot wait on Sullivan County’s hearing cycle.

What’s happening in the Tri-Cities this week

Confirm the Sept. 17 RPC recommendation language for REZONE26-0209 once minutes post.
Track VACATE25-0049 to the Board of Mayor and Aldermen if you use Indian Court, Midland Drive, or Auditorium Drive access.
Ask Planning how ZTA26-0235 reads against your county zoning district before you revise a listing remark.
If you follow Bancroft Hills, separate plat/bond PD26-0241 from the Valley Drive county rezoning.

Tri-Cities homeowners who need to sell before they buy should treat county rezoning recommendations as calendar risk. A-5 versus R-1 is not a cosmetic label — it can change how lenders, appraisers, and adjoining owners read accessory structures, animals, and lot yield even when no house is under construction yet. Keep the case number on the listing checklist next to the survey. Bring REZONE26-0209 to staff, then decide whether list price or possession date must move.

When does Kingsport’s Regional Planning Commission meet on Valley Drive?

The agenda is for Thursday, September 17, 2026 at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall, 415 Broad Street, Boardroom.

What is REZONE26-0209?

664 Valley Drive County Rezoning (REZONE26-0209). The Commission is requested to review and make a recommendation to the Sullivan County Commission for the County rezoning request from County R-1 to County A-5.

What right-of-way abandonments are paired on the same agenda?

DB Right-of-Way Abandonment (VACATE25-0049) asks the Commission to send a positive recommendation to the Kingsport Board of Mayor and Aldermen to vacate the public right-of-way for Indian Court, Midland Drive, and Auditorium Drive.

What is ZTA26-0235?

Sullivan County Text Amendment (ZTA26-0235). The Commission is requested to send a positive recommendation for the proposed county zoning text amendment to the Sullivan County Commission.

What should Valley Drive sellers do before quoting a buyer a zoning outcome?

This is a Planning Commission recommendation to Sullivan County Commission, not a final county ordinance on the same night. Ask staff for the REZONE26-0209 exhibits and watch the county hearing calendar before you promise A-5 rights in a listing remark.

Homeowners who need to sell before they buy should treat local government calendars as part of the underwriting file. Bring the exact case number, tax map, or agenda item to staff, then decide whether list price, inspection length, or possession date needs to move. A free home valuation and a cash-offer conversation are tools for that decision — not substitutes for reading the primary packet yourself.

Buyers should put utility, zoning, and transportation contingencies in writing when a live file sits next door. Sellers should disclose what is known, attach the agenda link, and avoid predicting a vote that has not been recorded. That discipline keeps East Tennessee closings on schedule when Council or Board calendars slip a week.

When a packet lists a recommendation rather than a final ordinance, keep your MLS remarks factual: cite the case number, the meeting date, and what staff actually wrote. Do not promise a buyer a completion date that depends on a board that has not yet voted. If your next purchase cannot wait, ask about a cash offer or start with a free home valuation so pricing reflects calendar risk instead of wishful timing.

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