Kokomo City Council approves first reading of rezoning for drive‑through at 501 James Drive despite neighbor opposition

The Kokomo City Council voted to pass Ordinance 71‑86 on first and second reading, a rezoning petition for 501 James Drive to allow a drive‑through convenience store, after a lengthy public discussion and comments from residents and project representatives.

The ordinance, introduced as a petition of LFM 95 LLC to change the property from R‑3 medium‑density single‑family residential to C‑1 small‑to‑medium general commercial, passed on voice votes. Council members were repeatedly reminded that the council’s action at this meeting concerned zoning only and that site‑plan review and engineering approvals will follow before construction would be permitted.

Neighbors and speakers at the meeting urged the council to reject or delay the rezoning because of traffic safety, lack of sidewalks, drainage and lighting concerns. “I am here today to express my opposition to the proposed rezoning of this property for the construction of a drive thru convenience store,” said Casey Harrington, who identified herself as the adjacent property owner at 505 James Drive, citing the narrowness of James Drive, the absence of sidewalks and children walking to Maple Crest Elementary School.

Resident Rick Wilson said James Drive historically had “never had ingress and egress ever,” and described difficulty pulling out of the neighborhood when nearby traffic is heavy. “If you get 4 cars at that stoplight, you cannot pull out on James Drive onto Webster,” Wilson said, adding that the neighborhood previously experienced little traffic when the site housed other uses.

Project representatives responded to concerns about screening, access and drainage. “If on the drawing you can see that there’s gonna be a fence between the building and the residential property, a privacy fence,” said Torque Tripp of Tripp Engineering and Consulting, who identified the proposed landscaping and a privacy fence between the new building and nearby houses. John Veatchy, the project architect identified as owner of Mar Design, described the preliminary site layout and building elevation and said the owner plans to combine three parcels to create a single lot.

On drainage, a project representative said they had spoken with city staff and that an inlet had been added and pipes replaced in the area. “There aren’t any drainage issues,” the representative said, adding that Don Cree with the city had reviewed the drainage work; later in the meeting the speaker said they had an email from Don Cree showing the lines were replaced and that drainage calculations will be confirmed during site‑plan approval.

Council members asked questions about possible access points and whether the James Drive entrance would remain. Tripp said the developer and staff would address whether the James Drive entrance would be kept or closed during site‑plan development. The council was told John Pike (city staff) had indicated sidewalks would be required for the commercial development, and that engineering would verify drainage calculations as part of site‑plan review.

Councilman Grecke moved to pass Ordinance 71‑86 on first and second reading; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote. The council president and staff reiterated that a second reading is scheduled for April 14 and that technical matters such as curb cuts, ingress/egress, drainage pipe replacement and sidewalk construction will be addressed during site‑plan and engineering review.

The council’s action was strictly a zoning decision; no building permits or final approvals were granted at the meeting.