Plan Commission Continues Rezoning Request For Concrete Mixing Plant
January 9, 2020 at 12:47 a.m.
By David [email protected]
The petitioner – John Ward – seeks to rezone 6.818 acres from an Industrial 2 District to an Industrial 3 District. The property is on the east side of Ind. 15 and just to the north of the railroad in Van Buren Township. Plan Director Dan Richard said it’s just south of the county line with Elkhart County to the north. He said there’s “quite a bit” of I-3 zoning to the east of the tract of ground in question, including Tru Pointe.
If the property is rezoned, a concrete mixing plant would be established on the property.
The building now on the property was formerly a hog building. There’s a wetlands on the southern portion of the property, and it’s next to the railroad.
Richard listed the differences between I-2 and I-3 districts for the Plan Commission, including minimum standards for the two districts.
Showing the board a video of the property, Richard pointed out it already had concrete mixing materials on-site. He said the petitioner thought concreting mixing was a permitted use in the zoning and had already started operations.
“We had to stop them and unfortunately it took a filing in court to get his attention to get it stopped,” Richard said.
“Concrete was added without a permit, which was a violation of the ordinance, which is more of the reason we did feel it was necessary to get his attention through the courts to stop him,” he also said, noting there was also refuse of lumber, asphalt and concrete chunks on the property.
Richard said a different angle to the petition was that the property also was in the Northern Industrial Corridor and on that corridor the technical committee/Overlay District committee are given “special” input. “Any development that goes into this Overlay District is subject to our ordinances there. If it is rezoned and if there is a concrete plant, there still is another step before the technical review committee that has an opportunity to put individual conditions, approvals” on it.
On rezonings, the Plan Commission is only a recommending body to the County Commissioners.
Attorney Steve Snyder, representing the petitioner, said the building is older and has been partially rehabilitated. It has new roof, siding and some new windows. At this time, he said there is no operations going on. He agreed with Richard that Ward thought concrete mixing was a permitted use but it’s not. Snyder said Ward has stopped doing anything on the property until the issues are resolved.
Snyder said Ward’s engineers prepared a site plan and they were under the impression that the site plan had to be submitted at the time the rezoning was submitted “or this probably would have been submitted for rezoning three months ago instead of today.”
He said what was crucial to the Plan Commission’s decision was what was surrounding the property.
“Not an awful lot of I-3 zoning in the county, and there was some lengthy hearings on whether there should be I-3 zonings in this particular area,” Snyder said. “The Beer family owned roughly 240 acres south of the railroad, and it’s been 10-12 years ago that that rezoning took place because it was a logical place along the railroad for I-3 development.”
Tru Pointe later came in because it needed rail access and I-3 zoning. Purina also is in the area.
“We have to look at what’s compatible in this district,” Snyder said, adding that the concreting mixing was very compatible with I-3 zoning.
Plan Commission member and Milford Town Council member Doug Ruch asked about the exit/entrance to the property that’s on state right of way property. He asked what could happen if the state decided to use that right of way and shut off the exit/entrance. Snyder said without condemnation proceedings through imminent domain, the state can’t. The property was given access over the existing right of way.
Ruch and Richard expressed some concern about setbacks and easements being encroached upon and the need for buffering. Richard also said aesthetically the property wouldn’t be pleasing to anyone coming to Kosciusko County from Elkhart County.
Snyder pointed out that the last thing anyone coming from Elkhart County would see is about 30-40 acres of rusting tractors.
Plan Commission Chair Dr. Lee Harman asked if there would be any new job opportunities with the concrete mixing plant.
“There has to be some,” Snyder said, but he didn’t have figures on how many.
Ruch asked if the petition could be tabled until they saw a site plan. Snyder responded, “We’re not here to approve a site plan. We’re here to determine if I-3 is appropriate and if, ultimately, the tech committee or the Board of Zoning Appeals says this is what a site plan has to have, then that’s when it will be done. But now it’s just a question of whether the tract is going to be I-2 or I-3.”
Ruch wondered if a site plan with boundaries would help to determine for the Plan Commission whether to make it I-2 or I-3.
“The problem with doing that is, it becomes conditional zoning, which you can’t do,” Snyder said.
Harman eventually made a motion to approve the petition, but it failed by a vote of 4-3, with Harman, County Surveyor Mike Kissinger and board members Mandy Espinoza and Kevin McSherry voting for it. Voting against it were board member and County Councilman Jon Garber, Ruch and board member Charles Haffner.
It takes a majority of the board – five of the nine-member board – to make a recommendation to the county commissioners.
Espinoza then made a motion to continue it and that was approved 7-0. The petition will be heard again by the Plan Commission at 1 p.m. Feb. 5. Snyder said he will not be available for that meeting, but another attorney from his law firm will be present.
In one piece of other business, the commission voted to keep its officers the same for 2020 as 2019. Those are Harman, chair; McSherry, vice chair; and Kissinger, secretary.
The petitioner – John Ward – seeks to rezone 6.818 acres from an Industrial 2 District to an Industrial 3 District. The property is on the east side of Ind. 15 and just to the north of the railroad in Van Buren Township. Plan Director Dan Richard said it’s just south of the county line with Elkhart County to the north. He said there’s “quite a bit” of I-3 zoning to the east of the tract of ground in question, including Tru Pointe.
If the property is rezoned, a concrete mixing plant would be established on the property.
The building now on the property was formerly a hog building. There’s a wetlands on the southern portion of the property, and it’s next to the railroad.
Richard listed the differences between I-2 and I-3 districts for the Plan Commission, including minimum standards for the two districts.
Showing the board a video of the property, Richard pointed out it already had concrete mixing materials on-site. He said the petitioner thought concreting mixing was a permitted use in the zoning and had already started operations.
“We had to stop them and unfortunately it took a filing in court to get his attention to get it stopped,” Richard said.
“Concrete was added without a permit, which was a violation of the ordinance, which is more of the reason we did feel it was necessary to get his attention through the courts to stop him,” he also said, noting there was also refuse of lumber, asphalt and concrete chunks on the property.
Richard said a different angle to the petition was that the property also was in the Northern Industrial Corridor and on that corridor the technical committee/Overlay District committee are given “special” input. “Any development that goes into this Overlay District is subject to our ordinances there. If it is rezoned and if there is a concrete plant, there still is another step before the technical review committee that has an opportunity to put individual conditions, approvals” on it.
On rezonings, the Plan Commission is only a recommending body to the County Commissioners.
Attorney Steve Snyder, representing the petitioner, said the building is older and has been partially rehabilitated. It has new roof, siding and some new windows. At this time, he said there is no operations going on. He agreed with Richard that Ward thought concrete mixing was a permitted use but it’s not. Snyder said Ward has stopped doing anything on the property until the issues are resolved.
Snyder said Ward’s engineers prepared a site plan and they were under the impression that the site plan had to be submitted at the time the rezoning was submitted “or this probably would have been submitted for rezoning three months ago instead of today.”
He said what was crucial to the Plan Commission’s decision was what was surrounding the property.
“Not an awful lot of I-3 zoning in the county, and there was some lengthy hearings on whether there should be I-3 zonings in this particular area,” Snyder said. “The Beer family owned roughly 240 acres south of the railroad, and it’s been 10-12 years ago that that rezoning took place because it was a logical place along the railroad for I-3 development.”
Tru Pointe later came in because it needed rail access and I-3 zoning. Purina also is in the area.
“We have to look at what’s compatible in this district,” Snyder said, adding that the concreting mixing was very compatible with I-3 zoning.
Plan Commission member and Milford Town Council member Doug Ruch asked about the exit/entrance to the property that’s on state right of way property. He asked what could happen if the state decided to use that right of way and shut off the exit/entrance. Snyder said without condemnation proceedings through imminent domain, the state can’t. The property was given access over the existing right of way.
Ruch and Richard expressed some concern about setbacks and easements being encroached upon and the need for buffering. Richard also said aesthetically the property wouldn’t be pleasing to anyone coming to Kosciusko County from Elkhart County.
Snyder pointed out that the last thing anyone coming from Elkhart County would see is about 30-40 acres of rusting tractors.
Plan Commission Chair Dr. Lee Harman asked if there would be any new job opportunities with the concrete mixing plant.
“There has to be some,” Snyder said, but he didn’t have figures on how many.
Ruch asked if the petition could be tabled until they saw a site plan. Snyder responded, “We’re not here to approve a site plan. We’re here to determine if I-3 is appropriate and if, ultimately, the tech committee or the Board of Zoning Appeals says this is what a site plan has to have, then that’s when it will be done. But now it’s just a question of whether the tract is going to be I-2 or I-3.”
Ruch wondered if a site plan with boundaries would help to determine for the Plan Commission whether to make it I-2 or I-3.
“The problem with doing that is, it becomes conditional zoning, which you can’t do,” Snyder said.
Harman eventually made a motion to approve the petition, but it failed by a vote of 4-3, with Harman, County Surveyor Mike Kissinger and board members Mandy Espinoza and Kevin McSherry voting for it. Voting against it were board member and County Councilman Jon Garber, Ruch and board member Charles Haffner.
It takes a majority of the board – five of the nine-member board – to make a recommendation to the county commissioners.
Espinoza then made a motion to continue it and that was approved 7-0. The petition will be heard again by the Plan Commission at 1 p.m. Feb. 5. Snyder said he will not be available for that meeting, but another attorney from his law firm will be present.
In one piece of other business, the commission voted to keep its officers the same for 2020 as 2019. Those are Harman, chair; McSherry, vice chair; and Kissinger, secretary.
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