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In past rezoning hearings, requests by petitioners to rezone property from an Agricultural I to an Agricultural II district were met with resistance by the Kosciusko County Area Plan Commission.
On July 21 at 1 p.m. in the county courthouse, the plan commission will hold a special meeting on agriculture preservation and the Ag II designation. The board will seek ideas on how to amend or get rid of the Ag II zoning.
All county residents who are concerned about the future of Ag II and the preservation of agricultural land are invited to attend the special meeting.
Ag I districts protect agricultural land from undesirable urban growth and establish a quarter-mile protected zone for livestock operations to protect them from incompatible urban development. Single family residences are permitted in an Ag I district on separate tracts of land if there is no conflict with the subdivision control ordinance and if each tract provides adequate area for sewage and water systems. Permitted Ag I development includes farms, churches, schools, single family dwellings, accessories, public parks, essential uses and greenhouses.
In Ag I districts, property owners are allowed only three sell-offs of tracts of 20 acres or more. If a property owner wants more sell-offs, the property must be rezoned Ag II.
The plan commission doesn't always want to rezone property to Ag II because if the property is sold in the future, the future owner could create a subdivision in an area where a subdivision is incompatible. However, the plan commission also recognizes that one more sell-off is sometimes necessary, said plan commission assistant director Matt Sandy.
The purpose of Ag II is to allow development of some tract of marginal agricultural ground into a low density rural atmosphere residential subdivision allowing a mix of residential and agricultural uses. The tracts in Ag II are developed with the understanding that they are in a rural area and are exposed to agricultural practices.
