Subdivision Regulations

The Metro Planning Commission adopted expanded Subdivision Regulations on March 9, 2006. Those regulations were amended in 2006, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, and 2016, 2017 and most recently in January 2021.

Special Note

The most recent amendments to the Subdivision Regulations adopted in January 2021 affect Section 3-5.3 of the Subdivision Regulations and included an approved effective date. The amended regulations will go into effect for applications filed for the March 10, 2021 filing deadline and thereafter. This means any subdivision application submitted after noon on Wednesday, February 24 will be reviewed against the amended regulations. Applications submitted and under review prior to that date will proceed under the regulations in place at the time they were filed.

To assist applicants during the transition period, both the previous and newly amended versions of the regulations are linked below.

For applications filed prior to noon on February 24, 2021, please reference:

• Subdivision Regulations – Complete Document (prior to 2/24/2021)
• Chapter 3 (prior to 2/24/2021)

For applications filed or to be filed after noon on February 24, 2021, please reference:

• Subdivision Regulations – Complete Document (filed after 2/24/2021)
• Chapter 3 (filed after 2/24/2021)

Additional Information About Subdivisions

A Subdivision is any land, vacant or improved, which is divided or proposed to be divided into two (2) or more lots or parcels of less than five (5) acres in size. It includes resubdivision which means a change of any approved or recorded subdivision.

The Land Development Division reviews subdivision applications as a technical review against the adopted Subdivision Regulations. The Regulations provide for the division of land under the existing zoning entitlements. Subdivision of land does not alter or increase the allowances that a property owner has under the existing zoning.

Per Tennessee Code Annotated, the Planning Commission is charged with the adoption of Subdivision Regulations to provide for harmonious development. The Community Character Manual identifies the envisioned character of an area. That area, called a transect, includes general patterns of the built environment such as rural, suburban, urban, or downtown. The transect determines which section of the Subdivision Regulations applies to a specific application. Community Character Manual policies are not otherwise referenced during subdivision review.

The Subdivision Regulations apply throughout Nashville and Davidson County, except in the cities of Belle Meade, Berry Hill, Forest Hills, Goodlettsville, and Oak Hill.

Subdivision Documentation

Applications and Fees

Pre-application Meeting Request Form

The Subdivision Application and Subdivision Checklist covers all requests below, unless otherwise attached.

Please include the Subdivision Application Addendum with all subdivision applications (not including amendments and house moves).

• Concept Plan: $3,000
  A preliminary concept of a proposed subdivision of land which may include future construction of public infrastructure.
• Final Site Plan: $2,500

Final Plats

The Final Plat Recording Checklist applies to the following:

• Final Plat: $1,000
  A final plan showing exactly how land will be divided, including the location and dimensions of public infrastructure easements and improvements.
• Final Plat (Consolidation): $800
  Same as final plat, except consolidating properties anywhere in the county and creating fewer parcels than initially existed.

Subdivision Amendment

Subdivision Amendment: $500
A method to reduce a setback shown on a recorded plat, to remove a reserve status of a parcel shown on a recorded plat, and to delete septic fields shown on a recorded plat which are no longer used since property has connected to public sewer.

Subdivision House Move

Subdivision House Move Application: $1,000
Public Chapter No. 246, amending TCA, Title 13, Chapter 3, requires the Metro Planning Commission to review any single-family home being moved within Davidson County into a developed single-family subdivision.

Critical Lot Plan

Critical Lot Plan Application: $250
A review of a plan for residential properties in the floodplain or with steep topography showing the proposed house (including garage) and grading contours.