When a new Dickson subdivision lists 136 homes, how much of the land under them does each buyer actually own?
On land the City of Dickson zones R-1, a standard single-family lot has to be at least 14,500 square feet and 100 feet wide. In a cluster development on the same R-1 land, a lot can be as small as 8,000 square feet and 75 feet wide. At the minimums, that is 6,500 square feet less private yard per home. The neighborhood keeps that land, just not inside your property lines. It turns into common open space, and the plat and covenants decide who holds it and who looks after it.
Several cluster requests are on the City of Dickson Planning Commission's 2026 agendas. Anyone shopping for new construction here should learn the rule now, before the next round of plats turns into listings.
The Density Cap Is the Whole Mechanism
Section 4.120 of the City of Dickson Zoning Ordinance was amended by Ordinance 1573 on October 6, 2025. It describes cluster zoning as an option that allows "flexibility in lot sizes while maintaining the overall permitted density." Everything else in the rule follows from that phrase. A cluster subdivision can't hold more homes than a standard one on the same tract. The ordinance spells out how the count is calculated:
- Start with the total tract area, then subtract transmission line easements, rights-of-way, and land set aside for public streets or private shared drives.
- Divide what's left by the minimum lot size of the base zoning district. That is the regular lot size, not the cluster size.
- Count slopes steeper than 15 percent at half their area.
On R-1 land, the home count is set by dividing by 14,500 square feet whether the developer draws 14,500-square-foot lots or 8,000-square-foot lots. So the cluster option changes how the land gets divided, and the number of homes stays the same. Under Section 4.120's open-space rule, the land that comes off the private lots goes into common open space.
Standard Lot and Cluster Lot Compared
| Zoning district | Standard minimum lot | Standard minimum width | Cluster minimum lot | Cluster minimum width | Minimum tract for a cluster |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R-1 | 14,500 sq ft | 100 ft | 8,000 sq ft | 75 ft | 10 acres |
| R-2 | 8,000 sq ft | 60 ft | 6,000 sq ft | 50 ft for single-family | 5 acres |
The lot is only part of the change. In a cluster development, the city waives maximum lot coverage as long as the Planning Commission finds that each home still gets adequate light, air, and privacy. Homes can sit as close as 15 feet from a new internal street. On a 75-foot-wide lot, the house can take up more of the parcel than it could on a standard lot.
Some of the rules benefit the people who already live next door. A cluster has to keep a 40-foot perimeter setback, and homes along the edge have to match the zoning, scale, setbacks, and massing of the neighborhood beside them. New streets need sidewalks on both sides, and any development with more than 25 units needs at least two separate access points. So the smallest lots usually end up in the interior of the subdivision, and the edges keep the scale of the streets around them.
Where the Subtracted Square Footage Goes
The open-space clause is where the yard becomes shared space. Section 4.120 says common open space "shall generally equal the total area reduced from individual lots," with a minimum of 15 percent and a maximum of 60 percent of the development. Any open-space improvements valued over $10,000 have to be backed by a bond or other financial guarantee.
Here is how that could work on a hypothetical R-1 tract. If 136 homes were all drawn at the 8,000-square-foot minimum, each lot would come in 6,500 square feet below the standard, or 884,000 square feet in total. That is roughly 20 acres that would sit in common open space instead of backyards. Real plats vary lot by lot, so the actual figure depends on the drawings.
The ordinance then hands ownership and maintenance of that land to the Dickson Subdivision Regulations. That document says it was adopted June 17, 2008, and last amended January 18, 2011. Section 2-104.1(8) requires any final plat with open space, recreational facilities, or land in common ownership to come with plans for improving and maintaining that space. If the land will be deeded to a co-owners association, the plat also needs the association's articles of incorporation and bylaws, plus a declaration of covenants and restrictions covering every property in the subdivision. If the developer keeps the open space, covenants have to guarantee it stays in its intended use. The regulations' sample common-area certificate describes those areas as dedicated to the subdivision's homeowners, not to the general public, and it makes the covenants part of the plat.
In practice, part of a cluster buyer's outdoor space is a shared interest in land held under a recorded declaration. The covenants on that land can be just as important to the purchase as the lot lines.
This post is general information, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Before you rely on any covenant, association document, or fee in a specific transaction, confirm it with a real estate attorney or the right professional.
Four Requests on the 2026 Docket
The commission's 2026 agendas show the cluster option being weighed one tract at a time. As of the most recent posted agenda, each of these is a request, not a final approval.
- East Piney Village, Valleywood Drive. Trent Smith's R-1 cluster request was denied in April 2026. A second request, for "cluster and standard R1 development," was deferred from the August 18 meeting, and the commission asked to see an R-1 standard-lot design concept at its September 15, 2026 meeting.
- Crestview Park Drive. Panoply Properties and Crestview Land Company are asking for R-2 cluster approval for 98 single-family homes on 44.4 acres behind a medical office building. A companion item would rezone the land from B3 Highway Commercial and A1 Agriculture to R2.
- Oakmont Drive area. KB2, LLC is asking for an R-1 cluster on 61.41 acres off Oakmont Drive, Blakemore and Laken, and Cedar Hill Road, behind Oakmont School, for 136 single-family homes.
- Villas at Buckner Place, Hwy 70 W. CSDG is asking for an amended R-3 PUD preliminary master plan for 186 townhomes in 14 buildings. That is a planned unit development, a separate tool from the cluster rule, on the same October 20, 2026 agenda.
Standard-lot projects are moving through the same pipeline. Imer Development's Riverbend Subdivision Phase 1 on East Piney Road came up for final plat with a possible 9 lots, and the Preserve at Eno, 38 single-family lots on Eno Road at Edgewood Drive, came up for preliminary plat in September.
The East Piney Village file shows how much room the commission has. Section 4.120 lets it approve a cluster master plan, approve it with modifications, or turn it down, and once approved the plan is binding, with only minor changes allowed. The lot sizes on an approved cluster plat are locked in when the plan is approved, well before a model home opens.
The two big October requests come out to similar gross densities. Crestview works out to about 2.2 homes per acre, and the Oakmont-area request works out to about 2.2 as well. In both, the cluster rule doesn't change how many families the land holds. It changes how much of each acre is private.
Why the Lot Size Matters More in Dickson County
Greater Nashville REALTORS' quarterly county data for Q3 2026, July through September, shows a Dickson County residential median of $384,400 on 224 residential closings. That is the lowest median of the nine counties in the report. The all-county figure was $522,166, Maury County was at $440,000, and Williamson County was at $1,075,000.
Buyers come to Dickson County because of that gap, and a new-build price that lines up with the county median can look like a straightforward discount. Part of the reason a builder can hit that price on a cluster plat is that the same 14,500-square-foot density is spread over smaller private lots, with shared land making up the difference. One home can be priced in line with another while carrying a little over half the private ground. That's a reasonable trade for buyers who want less to mow and a shared green space. It's a poor fit for anyone who pictured a garden, a shop building, or a fenced run for the dogs.
The same price also has to absorb fixed costs that come with new construction. The Water Authority of Dickson County's fee schedule, effective March 1, 2026, sets capacity fees of $2,500 for water and $3,700 for sewer on a standard 5/8-inch service. Dickson County's building-permit instructions list an Adequate Facilities Tax of $1 per square foot of heated and cooled living area. Every cluster site also has to be served by public water and sewer. On a 2,000-square-foot home, those three published charges come to $8,200. With that much fixed cost in each house, smaller lots are one way a builder keeps the total price in line with the county median.
What to Request Before You Write an Offer
- The recorded plat for your specific lot, with the square footage and width. In R-1, anything under 14,500 square feet tells you it's a cluster lot.
- The approved cluster master plan, which shows where the common open space sits relative to your lot.
- The declaration of covenants and restrictions, plus the association's articles and bylaws if the open space is deeded to an association.
- Who holds the open space, whether that's an association or the developer, and what the covenants say about how it can be used.
- The perimeter setback, if your lot backs up to an existing neighborhood or a collector road.
A Short FAQ
Does a cluster subdivision put more homes on the land? No. Section 4.120 caps a cluster at the density allowed in a traditional subdivision, calculated with the base district's standard minimum lot size.
Can the public use the common open space? The sample certificate in Dickson's subdivision regulations dedicates common areas to the subdivision's homeowners, not the general public. Check the covenants recorded for the specific plat.
Where can I follow a specific request? The city posts Planning Commission agendas and documents on its Planning and Zoning page.
If you own an older Dickson home on a full 14,500-square-foot lot, cluster plats are making that kind of private yard less common in new construction, and your pricing should reflect it. Emerald Key Realty can look at your lot alongside the new plats going in around you and give you a clear number. Request a Free Home Valuation to get started.
