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Six petitions were brought before the Kosciusko County Area Plan Commission Wednesday.
All were approved except one which was continued to July per the petitioner's request.
Thomas and Sandra Groninger petitioned to rezone approximately 34 acres from an agricultural district to an industrial II district. The property is on the north side of CR 200N and zero feet east of CR 350W in Prairie Township.
The plan commission approved by a vote of 5 to 2 to recommend to the Kosciusko County Commissioners that the rezoning be approved. The plan commission is only a recommending body to the commissioners on rezonings. The commissioners have the final approval or denial. The commissioners will hear the petition June 17 at 9:30 a.m.
The 34 acres is directly adjacent to the industrial corridor. Previously, the property was part of a larger piece of land that was zoned environmental but it was rezoned to agricultural and then auctioned off. Groninger bought 34 of those acres in the auction. According to Matt Sandy, plan commission assistant planner, if the property wasn't zoned environmental previously, it would have likely already been industrial as the industrial corridor starts at Sofamor Danek and goes west. In a planning sense, he said it makes sense to keep industrial districts together.
Several remonstrators, including neighbors and others who bought pieces of the property during the auction, spoke out against the rezoning. However, the board said it made sense to have CR 350W as a breaking point for the industrial corridor, Sandy said.
Capital 1 Realty petitioned for a preliminary plat approval for a planned unit development plat vacation. The property is on the east side of Harkless Drive and 100 feet north of Maple Grove in Turkey Creek Township.
In the 1980s, the property was platted as a PUD. In April, the property was presented before the Syracuse Board of Zoning Appeals to become a mobile home park again. The Syracuse BZA approved that request on the condition that the PUD plat be vacated, which the county plan commission approved.
The only petition not approved Wednesday was one presented by Doug Hoffert, but that was because he wanted the petition continued to the July meeting. Hoffert is petitioning to rezone 1.23 acres from an agricultural district to a residential district. The property is on the east side of EMS B38 Lane in Tippecanoe Township.
In another petition, Dennis Daughtery petitioned for a preliminary plat approval for an agricultural II district, which was approved. The property is on the north side of CR 125N and zero feet east of CR 875W in Etna Township.
Johnson & Widaman LLC petitioned for a preliminary plat approval for a residential development on 50.57 acres. The property is on the east side of Ferguson Road and 658 feet south of Rozzella Road in Wayne Township. A 61-lot subdivision is planned.
The last petition before the plan commission Wednesday was from Garl Wetters to rezone ground from an agricultural district to a residential district. The property is on the west side of Levi Lee Road in Plain Township. The plan commission unanimously approved recommending to the commissioners to approve the rezoning. The commissioners will hear the petition June 17 at 9:30 a.m.
Members of the plan commission include Vic Virgil, Charlie Haffner, Kelly Easterday, Kevin McSherry, Barb Carwile, Hal Strong, Don Arms, Norm Lovell and Dick Kemper. They meet at 1 p.m. in the county courthouse, Warsaw, on the first Wednesday of every month.
