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Despite letters, petitions and a standing-room-only crowd of remonstrators, the Warsaw Board of Zoning Appeals Monday approved an industrial use on property zoned residential.
Approximately 100 residents of Rolling Hills subdivision packed the city council chambers Monday to voice their objections to the proposed use variance. Attorneys for both sides argued, residents spoke and in the end the board voted four to one in favor of LRC Products Inc., a distributor of laminated rafters.
The board members didn't debate whether to grant the petition as much as they discussed conditions and restrictions to be placed on the industrial use.
"Other businesses in the corridor are industrial even if they're zoned commercial," said board member Bruce Woodward. "I believe the buffer will enhance" the residential property.
The buffer Woodward mentioned was proposed by LRC to separate their property from the residential lots in Rolling Hills. LRC plans to store wooden rafters on the property.
According to LRC's attorney Steve Snyder, of Syracuse, the company plans to plant two rows of 6-foot-high pines atop a 4-foot-high earthen mound around the perimeter of much of the property that will be used for outdoor storage and warehousing.
The property being discussed is behind LRC and Gilliam Lanes and between Gilliam Drive and Center Lake.
LRC bought the tract at auction and will use 1.4 acres, or lots one through three, Snyder said. The additional 8.107 acres will not be used for industrial purposes, he said, and the wetlands by law will not be touched.
While Snyder admitted the pine tree buffer will not be dense for 10 to 15 years, he said LRC's use of the property would not have a negative effect on the values of adjacent property.
He also said the buffer will enhance what the Rolling Hills residents see from their property and that because of the way the variance is designed, nothing will be seen from Gilliam Drive.
Snyder's statements were disputed by Warsaw attorney Paul Refior, who represented the Rolling Hills Property Owners' Association. There are 66 homes in the subdivision.
LRC was gambling that they could buy the property and then get the BZA to grant their variance request, Refior said.
He also said the board should keep in mind the impact of their decision "if the city of Warsaw doesn't protect R-1 zoning.
"It will be a deterrent to people wanting to live within the city limits" if they think an industrial use could be located next door, he said.
Refior quoted realtors who said the variance would have a negative impact on the adjacent property values and that the properties would be more difficult to sell.
"What you have is the power, and I would suggest the duty, to stop this non-conforming use from expanding," he said. "We're asking you to please protect the citizens of this area."
He also said much of Warsaw's water supply comes from Center Lake and any runoff from the outdoor storage would go through the wetlands to Center Lake.
"That's an issue because Center Lake is where we all get our drinking water," he said.
The BZA members focused on the additional restrictions they would impose if the variance were approved.
"I would approve the request with the additional restriction that (lots) four through seven be used for R-1," Richard Keeven said, and Dan Hampton agreed.
Woodward said he thought the proposed buffer was a good idea, and board chairman Alan Clingan said, "And this provides a way larger buffer."
Leigh Ann Denlinger was the lone voice of opposition on the BZA and the only vote against the variance.
"If the business was truly concerned with the neighborhood, where's the buffer been for the last 30 years?" she said.
She also said, "If people see anyone can come to the BZA and get the zoning changed, are they going to buy residential?"
Dan Hampton moved that the variance be approved, with restrictions on the hours trucks can be loaded and unloaded (6 a.m. to 9 p.m.), on lighting and loudspeaker systems and on the minimum height of the trees in the buffer. The approval also specifies that LRC agrees not to build an access road off Gilliam Drive.
The BZA's decision did not sit well with the residents present, and Refior said after the meeting that he believed the homeowners' association had grounds for appeal.
"This has been a political decision and those legal criteria will mean something to a court," he said.
The members of the board of zoning appeals are Alan Clingan, Bruce Woodward, Leigh Ann Denlinger, Richard Keeven and Dan Hampton. Trish Brown is the non-voting city council liaison.
