One of the four petitions presented to the Warsaw Board of Zoning Appeals Monday was for a special exception for a laboratory on North Detroit Street.
Assistant City Planner Jackson Longenbaugh told the BZA the petitioner, Pat McCleskey, Join Parachute vice president of facilities and construction, “requested a special exception to allow a laboratory in an (Industrial)-2 zoning district. This will be developed as a plasma donation center with the possible option to expand to collect specialty blood products.”
The petitioner is anticipating 30 employees within the next three to five years, which can expand if donor numbers increase, Longenbaugh said. “The petitioner is pursuing this site due to the high traffic on Detroit Street, easy access to U.S. 30 and proximity to businesses on the north side of Warsaw,” he said.
The site is on the east side of Detroit Street, north of Anderson Greenhouse and across from Lassus.
Expected hours of operation are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
“So, a laboratory like this would be permitted in an I-2 zone, especially, the special exception clarifies that any laboratory that has hazardous materials would only be permitted in industrial zones,” Longenbaugh said.
The planning department’s opinion was the special exception to allow a laboratory could be approved.
McCleskey explained blood plasma is a component of a person’s blood.
“Literally, what we do at the plasma donation center is we separate your whole blood from the plasma. Plasma is a protein-rich component in your blood. It literally looks like kind of the wood color here on a lot of this furniture. That’s what we collect from the donor,” he said. “What we then do is we return the person’s whole blood, along with saline and an anticoagulate, and this is to help them recover from the donation process and ensure that they’re healthy.”
Board President Tammy Dalton asked if plasma donations can happen more frequently than blood donations.
McCleskey said a donor can donate up to twice a week, but no more than twice in seven-day period and donations have to be a minimum of about 48 hours apart.
Board member Dave Baumgartner asked if a donor was paid “x” amount of dollars. McCleskey said they are compensated for their time.
With no remonstrators, the board unanimously approved the special exception.
Parkview Health had two petitions before the board for signage. Both were approved.
The first was a variance from development standards to allow a larger-than-permitted monument sign in an Industrial-2 zoning district at 375 E. CR 200N. The sign will be 420 square feet in area and 31 feet tall.
The second petition was a variance from development standards to allow more monument signs (three additional) than permitted in an I-2 zoning district at 375 E. CR 200N.
There were no remonstrators to either petition.
The final petition before the board was from Otto Bonahoom for a use variance to allow a duplex in a Residential-1 zoning district on Lilac Lane.
Longenbaugh said Bonahoom owns the lot across the street from their residence and want to develop it. Residential double family is not permitted in an R-1 zoning district.
“For context, there is a four-unit building up the street to the north and a few double-family units generally in the area,” he said. “Although our city code prohibits this use, the comprehensive plan states that two-family residences could be a permitted land use in urban residential areas, which is what this is classified as, when designed to fit into its surroundings.”
He said the planning department’s opinion was that the request to allow a duplex could be viewed favorably or not.
After hearing the petitioner, a remonstrator, and two people who spoke in favor of the duplex, the board approved the petition on the condition that the duplex be a single story.