 |
 |
 |
Earlier this month, the St. Joseph County Council approved two rezoning requests for parcels in the Indiana Enterprise Center Development (IEC) area near New Carlisle. The two requests to rezone to industrial were supported by the Chamber and were ultimately approved by a 7-2 council vote.
This rezoning was not without its opponents. To better understand this important action by the council, chamber sat down with Chamber President and CEO Jeff Rea for a closer look at the action taken and its potential impacts on the community. Excerpts from that conversation follow:
 |
Why has the New Carlisle area been tapped for this type of development? |
 |
For decades, there have been industrial uses in this Indiana Enterprise Center area, largely anchored by the IN-TEK/KOTE investment that happened there almost 50 years ago. The infrastructure built to service that plant and future growth opportunities have made this area the logical place to look when prospects have interest in large tracts of land, want to be close to a highway, and with existing infrastructure available. Dozens of other companies have followed suit and made major investments in this area.
|
|
Couldn’t these types of development go somewhere else? |
|
At the present time, I can’t think of any other parcels in the entire county as well suited for development opportunities like this. The existing infrastructure, the history of development, the availability of land, the access to the highway, all make this area desirable for development interests.
|
|
Why these two parcels? |
|
|
In this case, the simple answer is that there are two farmers interested in selling their property. This is a willing seller situation. The county is not buying this property nor forcing the owners to sell. The property owners made a compelling case to the county council as to their interest in selling their property and why the property should be rezoned. The county council approved.
|
|
Is the plan to remove all of the farmland in favor of industrial uses? |
|
The Indiana Enterprise Center planning effort is aimed at finding the right mix of development that complements the agricultural uses in the area. There is no plan to eliminate all of the farmland. Some parcels lend themselves better to development opportunities, others are well suited to continue with the existing uses. Decisions here could largely be driven by characteristics of individual properties and the desires of the individual property owners. The county planning effort will ensure that undesirable uses, like the Mega Shredder that many find objectionable, don’t happen again. The county council took great care in reducing the overall range of uses that would be allowed in this area.
|
|
Is there a prospect/project we should be excited about? |
|
At the present time, no specific project, but there is a fair amount of interest in the area now that the zoning is in place. Many have inquired over the years, but too much uncertainty existed about whether the zoning could be obtained. I wouldn’t be surprised to see more specific development interests in the near future.
|
|
Why not wait until there is a project proposed for the site? |
|
This is the eternal chicken/egg question. Though that sounds ideal, it’s not practical. Developers are regularly seeking parcels that have low risk and have some certainty. The uncertainty about whether a zoning would be approved or not has ruled us out of most opportunities that had interest in our area. This action now helps with the potential timeframe on a project should one move forward.
|
|
Will the proposed zoning allow uses undesirable to neighbors? |
|
The county has significantly scaled back the number of permitted uses allowed on these parcels, and the landowners concurred with those limitations. Ultimately, in all the meetings I’ve been involved in with county and town officials, there has been great care in trying to balance the needs to grow the economy and provide for new jobs and capital investment with the needs of the neighbors. That is why the larger planning area has been identified, to take in a wider range of interests. Many neighbors are concerned about “smoke stacks” and other undesirable uses. I think if we had a detailed planning effort like this decades ago, this area would look a lot different today, and there would be less concern because great care would have gone into the types of uses allowed in the area.
|
|
Some opponents claim they haven’t been listened to. |
|
That is a frequent complaint of those that are opposed, but in my opinion, that is not the case. In fact, I think its quite the opposite. The county has a lot of information on the area posted on its website, has sought feedback, conducted meetings, and in the end, that input influenced the final decision made by the council. The range of uses permitted on these two parcels is now more restricted than any other industrial zoned parcels in this area or in the entire county. Though some prefer no development, I’m confident that if development happens here, it will happen in a manner complementary to the area and will only enhance the value of all the land in this part of the county.
|
