Meijer Request Tabled Again

July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.

By LAURA SLOOP, Times-Union Staff Writer-

Meijer's request to rezone 41.65 acres to special commercial (C5) to build a store at 900 Husky Trail, along Patterson Road, was tabled for the second time by the Warsaw City Council Monday.

The Warsaw Plan Commission unanimously recommended April 10 that the council deny the petition.

"Last night at the meeting it got continued," council president Jerry Patterson said today. "There really wasn't any action taken (on the Meijer proposal)."

"We had indicated to the city council that we didn't want to come back (to the council until June 19th with a revision of the original plan)," Meijer attorney Steve Snyder said.

The reason for the delay, Snyder said, was "because that's the amount of time we need to make the modifications" requested by the city council at last month's meeting.

Modifications include a revised traffic study and a less intensive site plan.

The traffic study, conducted by Ted Andrews, representative for Woolpert, Indianapolis, and hired by Meijer, was presented at the April 10 plan commission meeting.

"We have tried our very best to accommodate the Meijer traffic," Andrews said at the earlier meeting.

But the traffic study was not the only concern for council members.

Plan commission president and city council member Joe Thallemer said at last month's meeting that the business is too large. Council member Jeff Grose agreed.

"It's not a Meijer store," Grose said. "It's a complex."

Both Thallemer and Grose requested that Meijer "go back to the drawing board and present something not as intensive."

Snyder is currently working with Meijer on the requested revisions. At last month's meeting, he said Meijer will "take a look at the comments made by the city council and see if they can incorporate those (comments) into a plan."

Snyder also said they will look at "what type of additional buffer they can establish on the east and north" sides of the property and "see what outlets they can eliminate."

The request will come before council members June 19. An alternate plan also may be discussed at this time.

Snyder said the alternate plan consists of constructing Meijer on the current commercially zoned 19 acres without the rezoning request for the additional land. But, Snyder said, this plan does not include the traffic study.

"We simply are stuck with the situation that exists," Snyder said at last month's meeting.

In other business, the council approved rezoning for the Wal-Mart property on Ind. 15N and U.S. 30 at the 2500 block of North Detroit Street.

The property, owned by Petro Family LLC, is approximately 56 acres.

'This ground is where Wal-Mart is proposing to locate," city planner Jeff Noffsinger said earlier.

Bob Petro filed the request to rezone the land south of his dealership from C3 (arterial, commercial and single family residency) to C5 (special commercial zoning).

The Warsaw City Council includes: Mayor Ernie Wiggins, president Jerry Patterson, Joe Thallemer, Trish Brown, Jeff Grose, Charlie Smith, Paul Siebenmorgen and Bill Rhoades. [[In-content Ad]]

Meijer's request to rezone 41.65 acres to special commercial (C5) to build a store at 900 Husky Trail, along Patterson Road, was tabled for the second time by the Warsaw City Council Monday.

The Warsaw Plan Commission unanimously recommended April 10 that the council deny the petition.

"Last night at the meeting it got continued," council president Jerry Patterson said today. "There really wasn't any action taken (on the Meijer proposal)."

"We had indicated to the city council that we didn't want to come back (to the council until June 19th with a revision of the original plan)," Meijer attorney Steve Snyder said.

The reason for the delay, Snyder said, was "because that's the amount of time we need to make the modifications" requested by the city council at last month's meeting.

Modifications include a revised traffic study and a less intensive site plan.

The traffic study, conducted by Ted Andrews, representative for Woolpert, Indianapolis, and hired by Meijer, was presented at the April 10 plan commission meeting.

"We have tried our very best to accommodate the Meijer traffic," Andrews said at the earlier meeting.

But the traffic study was not the only concern for council members.

Plan commission president and city council member Joe Thallemer said at last month's meeting that the business is too large. Council member Jeff Grose agreed.

"It's not a Meijer store," Grose said. "It's a complex."

Both Thallemer and Grose requested that Meijer "go back to the drawing board and present something not as intensive."

Snyder is currently working with Meijer on the requested revisions. At last month's meeting, he said Meijer will "take a look at the comments made by the city council and see if they can incorporate those (comments) into a plan."

Snyder also said they will look at "what type of additional buffer they can establish on the east and north" sides of the property and "see what outlets they can eliminate."

The request will come before council members June 19. An alternate plan also may be discussed at this time.

Snyder said the alternate plan consists of constructing Meijer on the current commercially zoned 19 acres without the rezoning request for the additional land. But, Snyder said, this plan does not include the traffic study.

"We simply are stuck with the situation that exists," Snyder said at last month's meeting.

In other business, the council approved rezoning for the Wal-Mart property on Ind. 15N and U.S. 30 at the 2500 block of North Detroit Street.

The property, owned by Petro Family LLC, is approximately 56 acres.

'This ground is where Wal-Mart is proposing to locate," city planner Jeff Noffsinger said earlier.

Bob Petro filed the request to rezone the land south of his dealership from C3 (arterial, commercial and single family residency) to C5 (special commercial zoning).

The Warsaw City Council includes: Mayor Ernie Wiggins, president Jerry Patterson, Joe Thallemer, Trish Brown, Jeff Grose, Charlie Smith, Paul Siebenmorgen and Bill Rhoades. [[In-content Ad]]

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