St. Joseph County APC recommends rezoning of State Road 23 property; denies gravel-parking and one screening variance

The St. Joseph County Area Planning Commission on May 20 voted to send a favorable recommendation to the St. Joseph County Council to rezone a property at 14212 State Road 23 in Granger from the R (single-family) district to OB (office buffer) while denying two requested variances for an unpaved gravel driveway/parking area and for screening; the commission approved a third variance for lot width with staff-recommended conditions.

Ariel Sharif, Area Plan Commission staff, told the commission the petitioner — identified in the notice as REIT Solutions LLC — sought rezoning and three variances: to allow a gravel driveway/parking area where a hard surface is required; to substitute a six-foot fence and existing vegetation for required Type 1 landscaping along the east lot line; and to allow a lot width below the OB district minimum. Sharif said staff recommended an unfavorable rezoning and recommended denial of the gravel-parking variance while supporting the landscaping and lot-width variances.

The recommendation matters because the property sits in the middle of a mostly residential block of State Road 23 in the Granger area and staff said permitting an office use there could conflict with the comprehensive plan objective to discourage leapfrog development and to keep growth contiguous to existing infrastructure.

At the hearing, Angela Smith of Dan Charter Associates, representing the petitioner, said the owners have held the lot about five years and had difficulty renting it for residential use because of the highway expansion. Smith said the petitioner proposes to use the existing house as a small administrative office — “one, maybe two individuals” doing back-office invoicing — with no customers visiting the site, no outdoor storage and no overnight parking. Smith said the proposed use fits the OB office-buffer district and that the change would keep the building residential in character.

Ariel Sharif noted other agency comments: the health department requires a change-of-use review and a state septic inspection prior to occupancy, and county engineering “is not in support of a variance for an unpaved gravel drive and parking area.” Sharif said paving would prevent maintenance issues affecting adjacent lots and that staff found no practical difficulty that would prevent paving.

Neighbor John Stoffer, who lives at 14228 State Road 23, opposed the petition. Stoffer said the application lacked a detailed site plan with dimensions, expressed concerns about dust from an unpaved driveway, said a 10-by-20 shed on the property was not shown in submittals, and asked whether petroleum or other chemicals might be stored on site. He also said an earlier proposal for a beauty salon at a nearby address had been denied and warned rezoning “will be leapfrogging” into the residential block.

Commissioners questioned the petitioner and staff about traffic, drainage and the feasibility and cost of paving. Smith said drainage and engineering could be arranged if paving were required, but that costs depend on several variables; she reiterated the petitioner’s intent to keep the structure’s residential character. Staff and the county engineer noted that any hard-surface parking above 2,500 square feet would require a designed drainage system and full engineering review.

On motions, Commissioner DJ Tavernier moved and the commission voted to forward a favorable recommendation for the rezoning (APC 3065-25) to the County Council. The commission then voted to deny Variance 1 (gravel driveway/parking) and Variance 2 (the proposed substitute screening along the east lot line). The commission approved Variance 3 (reduced lot width) subject to the conditions recommended in the staff report.

Staff also recorded technical details and constraints on the record: Sharif described the lot as generally narrower than OB minimums (staff cited about 87 feet width), while the petitioner said measured frontage along State Road 23 is about 99.67 feet and that the lot is 475.94 feet deep. The health department indicated a six-month timing constraint that could affect when new plantings could be installed in relation to septic work, the transcript shows.

The rezoning decision by the APC is advisory; final action on the zoning change will be by the St. Joseph County Council, and the building and health departments must approve any change of use and septic work before occupancy. The petitioners have indicated they will pursue required building- and health-department steps if the rezoning proceeds.