New Tennessee State Laws--Comments? (Knoxville, Oak Ridge: how much, house, live in)

[happyappy]

Originally Posted by Tressa

As an outsider looking in I don't understand why they had to post a law that makes it illegal to have sex with an animal, hmmm

Well, on the 10-scale of unreasonableness, I'd have to give that form of bestiality a 12.

[TreeFarm]

Originally Posted by happyappy

Well, on the 10-scale of unreasonableness, I'd have to give that form of bestiality a 12.

There's another form of bestiality?

[happyappy]

Originally Posted by TreeFarm

There's another form of bestiality?

Yep:

1. brutish or beastly character or behavior; beastliness.
2. indulgence in beastlike appetites, instincts, impulses, etc.
3. an instance of bestial character or behavior.
4. sexual relations between a person and an animal; sodomy.

[TreeFarm]

Well, I will have to admit seeing 1 through 3 a time or two in my life -- especially number 2 at the all-you-can-eat buffet early bird special down in Florida -- just didn't know those were forms of bestiality, although the animals at the buffet should have given me a clue.

[happyappy]

Originally Posted by TreeFarm

Well, I will have to admit seeing 1 through 3 a time or two in my life -- especially number 2 at the all-you-can-eat buffet early bird special down in Florida -- just didn't know those were forms of bestiality, although the animals at the buffet should have given me a clue.

I witnessed a grotesque example of "1." at the opening day of the sale of a new kids toy a few years ago. We were across the street from the store eating at a restaurant. It certainly ruined my appetite--and that's difficult to do!

[TreeFarm]

Here's another dumb law being dumped on us. Mediation is now required in ALL divorce proceedings, apparently without exception.

Imagine subjecting a domestic abuse victim to "mediation" once she finally gets the nerve up to try and leave the SOB. How about mediation when one spouse has been cheating on the other and finally got caught.

This smells like someone's religious agenda.

What the hell is happening to this state?

[LauraC]

Originally Posted by Tressa

As an outsider looking in I don't understand why they had to post a law that makes it illegal to have sex with an animal, hmmm

I know this answer. It was apparently on the books for a long time but somehow when they updated the laws the last time, it fell off the books, so they put it back on this time just to correct the clerical error. I read that on some website today.

[LauraC]

Originally Posted by jguillot

LauraC

Thank you so much for your post. It is great to learn about HB0753 (Percolation Tests). This is a big relief for me as my wife and I will be looking for property in Tennessee in August.

Yours posts are always so helpful. Thanks again and best wishes.

You are very welcome.

The only one that baffles me is the scenic highway/tall building one. I smell a hotel agenda.

[happyappy]

Originally Posted by LauraC

The only one that baffles me is the scenic highway/tall building one. I smell a hotel agenda.

Thanks, LauraC, for the valuable link and the notification of these various pieces of legislation.

The site you linked to makes it easy to look up the bill numbers for both House and Senate. Here’s a summary of Senate Bill 124 (for look-up use SB0124) covering the change in height restrictions:

“Bill Summary for *SB0124 / HB2186

ON APRIL 25, 2007, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED SENATE BILL 124, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 rewrites this bill and adds to the present law exemption from the building height and sign restrictions for certain scenic highways in Knox County property that is zone "C-6."

ON MAY 31, 2007, THE HOUSE SUBSTITUTED SENATE BILL 124 FOR HOUSE BILL 2186, ADOPTED AMENDMENT #2, AND PASSED SENATE BILL 124, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #2 removes the exception from height restrictions and sign restrictions along scenic highways for property zoned C-6 along the Pellissippi Parkway within Knox County and located between Kingston Pike and Interstate 75/40.

This amendment also limits the exception from building height restrictions for certain property along a portion of Northshore Drive in Knox County designated a scenic highway. This bill provided an exception for all property zoned C-6 along the designated scenic highway; this amendment limits the exception for property zoned C-6 to property located from the east right of way line of Keller Bend Road at Northshore to the east right of way line of Pellissippi Parkway.”

[Also of interest because of the above subject matter, is SB1027 that takes effect 7-1-07: Senate Bill 1027, AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 12-2-112, relative to disposal of surplus interests in real property. This includes, but is not limited to ". . . easements and rights-of-way . . . " (emphasis mine).]

As I’m new to Tennessee I’m not familiar with the area specified in SB0124 as “Pellissippi Parkway within Knox County and located between Kingston Pike and Interstate 75/40,” but, if I’m understanding the language of the bill properly, this area, because of SB0124 Amendment #2, is now subject to height and sign limitations whereas previously it was NOT because it is zoned C-6. That’s sounds like good news for that particular area.

However, “for all [other] property zoned C-6 along the designated scenic highway” it appears that the restrictions are lifted—so the sky’s the limit, literally.

Zone C-6 covers General Commercial Park District. The code for Knox County specifies “[a]ny permitted use in the C-3 General Commercial District . . .” and zone C-3 does indeed permit, in Article 4, Section 9, B.8., “Hotels, motels, rooming and boarding houses.”

An aside: I’ve noticed that both House and Senate bills end with “Section [numeral]. This act shall take effect on [date], the public welfare requiring it” (emphasis mine). We elect these people to represent us, but too many of them appear to assume such positions allow carte blanche actions not subject to public scrutiny irrespective of their potential for long-term negative effects.

[jimj]

It seems the only long term effect they care about is financial to them. I see it also allows signs, be prepared to see a highway litterd (mispelled on purpose) with billboards and now with the invent of lighted signs, well you can just imagine