Findlay planning panel approves amended site plan for Kent Power drop yard with grindings and conditions

The Findlay City Planning Commission on May 8 approved an amended site-plan review for a proposed Kent Power drop yard at 1343 Greenwood Street, allowing asphalt grindings in lieu of full pavement on a portion of the driveway and adding conditions on parking, landscaping, fencing and signage.

CPC staff told the commission the applicant submitted a site plan for "a 230,000 square foot gravel drop yard" zoned I-1 (light industrial) and located between Greenbrier Street and West Lima Avenue; the property abuts an R-3 small-lot residential neighborhood to the south and "is not located in the floodplain." Staff summarized previously approved conditions from April 2024 and said the applicant has completed most items but has struggled to meet the original requirement to pave the entire driveway and employee parking area.

The amended approval replaced the paving requirement for the full driveway with a narrower set of improvements: asphalt pavement for the access from Lima Avenue to the west side of the driveway and for the employee parking area; asphalt grindings for the portion of the gravel driveway west of the Kent Power entrance; gravel for the laydown/storage area; and required landscaping, photometrics, a minimum 6-foot black chain-link fence and route-signage to encourage in/out access via Lima Avenue. The motion passed unanimously.

Why it matters: The site is immediately adjacent to residential properties, and neighbors raised concerns about dust, truck traffic, enforcement and long-term upkeep. CPC members said the revised conditions aim to balance neighborhood impacts with the applicant's claim that…