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include some provision for this practice, but the level of
<br />development near airports makes it cost-prohibitive to buy all
<br />adversely affected land. As an alternative, airports may buy
<br />avigational rights--the right to fly over a property without risk
<br />of the property owners suing for damages from noise impacts.
<br /> Soundproofing. In addition to buyouts, most airports include
<br />soundproofing programs in their budgets. Land uses unduly
<br />affected by airport noise c~n qualify to be soundproofed under
<br />several FAA programs. This helps but does not address the
<br />source of the noise, nor is it financially feasible for the airport to
<br />soundproof everybody who wants help. The airport, under FAA
<br />guidelines, establishes criteria that define which properties are
<br />eligible for buyout or soundproofing.
<br /> New technology. WyleLaboratories of Arlington, Virginia,
<br />has achieved moderate early success with a noise cancellation
<br />technique it is testing under contract with the U.S. Air Force. It
<br />picks up the noise through a microphone and feeds it through a
<br />microprocessor that reproduces the noise and plays it back at
<br />the source. The effect is to cancel the noise from the source. In
<br />this exacting science, miscalculations can result in the noise not
<br />being canceled out entirely or, possibly, getting louder if the
<br />sound waves combine in a certain way. But this effort offers
<br />great promise by not requiring a tremendous investment by
<br />airports and airlines in new airplane technology.
<br />
<br />The Blooming of
<br />Spring Hill
<br />
<br />Spring Hill, Tennessee, the town that attracted the GMC
<br />Saturn auto plant and headquarters in 1985, is facing major
<br />issues of growth even as employment at the facility itself has
<br />leveled off. This small rural town 45 miles south of Nashville is
<br />simply filling up with suburbanites seeking to live the American
<br />Dream. Not everyone, however, is pleased with the results.
<br /> According to a special census conducted last year, Spring
<br />Hill's population had grown 110 percent since 1990, to 3,302
<br />residents. In 199 I, the town issued 24 building permits; last
<br />year it issued 325. The city even annexed land in neighboring
<br />Williamson County to accommodate the growth. At the current
<br />rate, Spring Hill's population will approach 10,000 by 2000.
<br /> The agreement that brought Saturn to Spring Hill is partially
<br />responsible for the continuing growth. The state built Route
<br />
<br />Zoning News is a monthly newsletter published by the American Planning
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<br />Frank S. So, Executive Director; '~illiam R. Klein, Director of Research.
<br />Zoning News is produced at APA. Jim Schwab, Editor; Fay Dolnick, Scott Dvorak,
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<br />Copyright ©1996 by American Planning Association, 122 S. Michigan Ave., Suite
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<br /> 396, linking the plant site with Interstate 65, a straight route
<br /> north to Nashville, thus reducing travel times. Commuters had
<br /> preferred to live in Franklin because it was closer to Nashville,
<br /> but Franklin's roads are packed with stoplights and motorists.
<br /> Commuting times from Spring Hill to Nashville are now
<br /> virtually'equal to those from Franklin.
<br /> Cheaper housing is another lure. An acre of land costs only
<br /> $10,000 to $12,000, and houses generally sell for $10,000 less
<br /> than in Franklin. In addition, many families move to the
<br /> Williamson County side of Spring Hill specifically because their
<br /> school system is among the best in the state.
<br /> For the most part, the growth pleases local officials.
<br />According to city administrator Elwyn Bembry, the population
<br />reached the "critical mass" necessary to support retail late last
<br />year. A McDonald's restaurant, a dry cleaner, and a shopping
<br />mall are under construction, and the increased tax revenue is
<br />allowing the city to grow without incurring more debt. Bembry
<br />says the city hopes to pay offall outstanding bonds within the
<br />next few years and operate debt-free.
<br /> In Bembry's opinion: "Nothing can stop Spring Hill's
<br />evolution from village to city. We will now concentrate on
<br />ensuring that development (pays its own way) through a
<br />package of fees." Fees associated with an average new home now
<br />total about $4,500, paying for needed infrastructure such as a
<br />new fire station. The city must also complete a new $3 to $5
<br />million sewage treatment plant by December 31, 1999.
<br />Development fees will secure more than half of the needed
<br />capital.
<br /> Nonetheless, a recent survey showed that most residents, new
<br />and old, would like to see population remain below 5,000. The
<br />planning commission, which does not want to enact a growth
<br />cap, has adopted regulations that require that houses be built 20
<br />feet apart instead of 12. The commission also voted to increase
<br />the minimum lot size of 10,000 square feet in an R-1 zone and
<br />15,000 square feet in an R-2 zone, but has not yet established
<br />new minimums.
<br /> But many residents also worry about growth's effect on their
<br />heritage and sense of community. As a result, some formed the
<br />Spring Hill Battlefield Preservation Committee. Its main goal
<br />was to raise community awareness about a local farm that was
<br />the site of a lesser-known Civil War blunder, in which the
<br />advancing Union army was able to detour around an enCamped
<br />southern unit that overslept. Zoned for apartments, the land
<br />faced certain development by the end of this year. The
<br />committee saved the site with the help of The Countryside
<br />Institute (TCI) and the Civil War Trust, both based in
<br />Washington, D.C. The site will become the new headquarters
<br />for the Tennessee Antebellum Trail. Later this year, the
<br />Association for the Preservation of Civil War Sites plans to hold
<br />its annual conference there.
<br /> TCI also helped research ways to improve Spring Hill's
<br />overall development patterns. It suggested scenarios to help
<br />reduce the typical suburban reliance on cars and create a
<br />sense of community. TCI representative Linda Harper
<br />recommended implementing techniques suggested by
<br />Randall Arendt in Rural by Design (Chicago: Planners Press,
<br />1994). Bembry says the planning commission is seriously
<br />considering the suggestions but is content with the town's
<br />current growth patterns.
<br /> Martin Roupe
<br />
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