Plan Commission Approves Continued Rezoning
February 6, 2020 at 10:20 p.m.
By Teresa Carrano-
The property is on the east side of Ind. 15, 670 feet north of CR 1350N in Van Buren Township. On the west side is a railroad track, and to the north is a state-owned parcel allowing access into the property.
Ward, Federoff said, plans to manufacture concrete on the site.
Questions arose about slow moving vehicles entering or crossing Ind. 15, the wetlands on the south end of the property and the only access across another property.
Federoff produced an Army Corps of Engineers letter indicating the low-lying area wasn’t a designated wetlands and suggested that the access lane had been in existence for years and Ward would work that out with the state.
The commissioners voted 7-1 for the rezoning, with Chuck Haffner casting the nay vote.
The county commissioners will give final approval at their Feb. 18 meeting.
Scott Anderson’s petition to rezone his property from an Agricultural district to Agricultural II was continued to March. The property is on the south side of CR 700N, at 2701 E. 700N, Leesburg, 1,375 feet west of CR 300E, west of the entrance to Patona Bay Marina in Plain Township.
Anderson indicated he wanted to divide the 4.84-acre property in two, building a house-barn structure with a shop attached. The other two acres would be sold to another individual.
He maintains a couple of acres around the house and said no one wanted to farm the small remaining field.
Anderson’s neighbor to the east, Pat Fulweider, spoke against the division. She said she’s recently added 10 acres of land from the Robert and Sandra Allen Trust to her parcel and understood there were to be no more splits. She said she’s not had a problem finding a farmer to lease her ground.
The Allens are Steven Pylant’s in-laws and Pylant and his wife, Kay, own 5.48 acres west of Anderson. He’s against the division and leases his extra land to a local farmer who probably would be interested in Anderson’s tract, too.
With the original farm ground already parceled off three times in 2013, the commissioners weren’t inclined to add another split.
However, Larry Coplen said when Amish community members request such parcel splits, the commissioners usually allow the action. Chairman Lee Harman reminded Coplen the local neighbors are generally in favor of the division. In Anderson’s case, 13 neighbors signed a petition against the rezoning.
Plan Director Dan Richard said the commissioners generally look at the whole area in such cases and Anderson’s property is surrounded by farmground. He said there may come a time when more parcel splits are necessary as the population grows, however, in this particular location, such an action wasn’t in keeping with the surrounding property use.
The petition was tabled until the March 4 meeting.
The board approved a petition for preliminary plat approval to replat lot 7 in White Manor Estates in Wayne Township, as requested by FFS Lift. White Manor Estates consists of a parcel at the corner of Pierceton Road and CR 350 E; five parcels along CR 350E and one lot east of the corner lot, Lot 7, along Pierceton Road.
FSS Lift, of Munster, is requesting a replating and renaming of lot 7 to lot 1 and outlot A. Outlot A, on the east side of the parcel, would become a utility easement because a buyer wants to build on the smaller lot 1 according to surveyor Chris McCarthy. McCarthy said Daniel Fussel will buy outlot A, which would widen his access to Pierceton Road.
White Manor Estate property owner Timothy Bower said the property at 3631 E. Pierceton Road, owned by Fussel, is changing from a horse farm to what looks like business use. The properties are zoned agricultural. Bower said one of the horse barns now has a cement floor and a gravel road is circling around the property to run parallel to the cement drive to the house. The new road would run through outlot A. Bower said Fussel is known to build car lifts and speculated that some industry might be developed on the property.
Joyce Shepherd, who lives south of Fussel, said Fussel has indicated he would be planting a screen of trees between their properties. She said there’s a county drain there where water tends to stand after a heavy rain.
Richard said Fussel could build a new road if he wanted to, but he should contact the planning department if he plans any business operation or plans to plant 200 trees over a drainage tile.
The plan commission approved the replat of the lot, adding they wanted to hear from Fussel about the road extension, location where trees would be planted and any plans regarding business activities.
Other petitions approved were:
• A request by Doug Dickerhoff to rezone ground from a Commercial District to Agricultural on the west side of Franklin Street and south of Walnut Street in Franklin Township on the southwest side of Mentone.
Dickerhoff said he has a buyer for the property, which includes a house, but the bank doesn’t want to make a commercial loan.
• Paul Reith’s petition for a preliminary plat to replat lot 49 in the Deeds Creek Manor residential subdivision in Wayne Township. A redrawing to make the drainage easement smaller, allowing for a bigger building site, was specifically asked and approved.
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The property is on the east side of Ind. 15, 670 feet north of CR 1350N in Van Buren Township. On the west side is a railroad track, and to the north is a state-owned parcel allowing access into the property.
Ward, Federoff said, plans to manufacture concrete on the site.
Questions arose about slow moving vehicles entering or crossing Ind. 15, the wetlands on the south end of the property and the only access across another property.
Federoff produced an Army Corps of Engineers letter indicating the low-lying area wasn’t a designated wetlands and suggested that the access lane had been in existence for years and Ward would work that out with the state.
The commissioners voted 7-1 for the rezoning, with Chuck Haffner casting the nay vote.
The county commissioners will give final approval at their Feb. 18 meeting.
Scott Anderson’s petition to rezone his property from an Agricultural district to Agricultural II was continued to March. The property is on the south side of CR 700N, at 2701 E. 700N, Leesburg, 1,375 feet west of CR 300E, west of the entrance to Patona Bay Marina in Plain Township.
Anderson indicated he wanted to divide the 4.84-acre property in two, building a house-barn structure with a shop attached. The other two acres would be sold to another individual.
He maintains a couple of acres around the house and said no one wanted to farm the small remaining field.
Anderson’s neighbor to the east, Pat Fulweider, spoke against the division. She said she’s recently added 10 acres of land from the Robert and Sandra Allen Trust to her parcel and understood there were to be no more splits. She said she’s not had a problem finding a farmer to lease her ground.
The Allens are Steven Pylant’s in-laws and Pylant and his wife, Kay, own 5.48 acres west of Anderson. He’s against the division and leases his extra land to a local farmer who probably would be interested in Anderson’s tract, too.
With the original farm ground already parceled off three times in 2013, the commissioners weren’t inclined to add another split.
However, Larry Coplen said when Amish community members request such parcel splits, the commissioners usually allow the action. Chairman Lee Harman reminded Coplen the local neighbors are generally in favor of the division. In Anderson’s case, 13 neighbors signed a petition against the rezoning.
Plan Director Dan Richard said the commissioners generally look at the whole area in such cases and Anderson’s property is surrounded by farmground. He said there may come a time when more parcel splits are necessary as the population grows, however, in this particular location, such an action wasn’t in keeping with the surrounding property use.
The petition was tabled until the March 4 meeting.
The board approved a petition for preliminary plat approval to replat lot 7 in White Manor Estates in Wayne Township, as requested by FFS Lift. White Manor Estates consists of a parcel at the corner of Pierceton Road and CR 350 E; five parcels along CR 350E and one lot east of the corner lot, Lot 7, along Pierceton Road.
FSS Lift, of Munster, is requesting a replating and renaming of lot 7 to lot 1 and outlot A. Outlot A, on the east side of the parcel, would become a utility easement because a buyer wants to build on the smaller lot 1 according to surveyor Chris McCarthy. McCarthy said Daniel Fussel will buy outlot A, which would widen his access to Pierceton Road.
White Manor Estate property owner Timothy Bower said the property at 3631 E. Pierceton Road, owned by Fussel, is changing from a horse farm to what looks like business use. The properties are zoned agricultural. Bower said one of the horse barns now has a cement floor and a gravel road is circling around the property to run parallel to the cement drive to the house. The new road would run through outlot A. Bower said Fussel is known to build car lifts and speculated that some industry might be developed on the property.
Joyce Shepherd, who lives south of Fussel, said Fussel has indicated he would be planting a screen of trees between their properties. She said there’s a county drain there where water tends to stand after a heavy rain.
Richard said Fussel could build a new road if he wanted to, but he should contact the planning department if he plans any business operation or plans to plant 200 trees over a drainage tile.
The plan commission approved the replat of the lot, adding they wanted to hear from Fussel about the road extension, location where trees would be planted and any plans regarding business activities.
Other petitions approved were:
• A request by Doug Dickerhoff to rezone ground from a Commercial District to Agricultural on the west side of Franklin Street and south of Walnut Street in Franklin Township on the southwest side of Mentone.
Dickerhoff said he has a buyer for the property, which includes a house, but the bank doesn’t want to make a commercial loan.
• Paul Reith’s petition for a preliminary plat to replat lot 49 in the Deeds Creek Manor residential subdivision in Wayne Township. A redrawing to make the drainage easement smaller, allowing for a bigger building site, was specifically asked and approved.
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