Solon council schedules public hearing on proposed winery zoning at 37500 Aurora Road

The Solon City Council voted unanimously to schedule a public hearing at its next meeting on an application from TMMC Ohio LLC to rezone permanent parcel 95619001 at 37500 Aurora Road from R1D (single-family residential) to a proposed W1 (Winery) zoning district.

The planning commission recommended forwarding the application to council for public hearings; Councilman Mackie Bentley moved to schedule the hearing and Councilmember Zellwein seconded. The motion passed on a roll call vote with all members voting yes.

The rezoning would limit permitted uses on the parcel to winery operations under the proposed W1 classification and, if council advances it through three readings, will be placed on the November ballot as a referendum. ‘‘This is a referendum ballot that will be on the ballot in November,’’ Councilman Mackie Bentley said, adding that Ward 1 residents would have the ability to veto the measure for the ward: ‘‘If Ward 1 ... votes no, then it will be vetoed and it will not be passed.’’

The council record shows the application was referred to the planning commission on March 17 and that the planning commission has provided its recommendation to council. The item was described on the agenda as the rezoning request by TMMC Ohio LLC for the parcel at 37500 Aurora Road.

Residents who spoke during the public-comment portion pressed council for more study and suggested alternatives. Mark Yaks of 36755 Pettibone Road said some neighbors oppose siting a winery inside a residential area because of concerns about traffic and the project’s scale. ‘‘I’m on the perimeter of this winery ... they’re not too excited about having 300 parking spaces,’’ Yaks said. He suggested the city consider making city-owned land near the Signature Solon golf course available to the applicant as an alternative site, arguing it would offer better access and less residential impact.

An unnamed resident also urged environmentally focused practices, suggesting the vineyard be managed organically to ‘‘reduce the carbon footprint dramatically.’’

What happens next: the council will hold the scheduled public hearing, and the item will return for further readings. If council adopts the rezoning ordinance after the three readings, the ordinance will be placed on the November ballot for a citywide referendum; council members noted the ward-level veto rule described by Bentley will apply if the ward vote fails.

Details in the record: the rezoning application references parcel 95619001 at 37500 Aurora Road and was referred to the planning commission on 03/17; the council scheduled the public hearing at the next regular meeting and voted unanimously on the motion to do so.

Council and staff did not adopt final zoning changes at the meeting; the scheduled public hearing is the next formal step.