Area Plan Commission approves rezoning requests and creates small allocation area for proposed hotel

At its February meeting the Vigo County Area Plan Commission approved multiple rezoning requests and a resolution amendment to create a small tax-allocation area intended to support a proposed hotel, the commission said.

The approvals move forward a mix of commercial and community uses: a storage-yard rezoning at 1519 Washington Avenue, a volunteer fire department site at 3862 Hotel Street, two child-care-related rezoning requests on West and East Spring Hill Drive and a small, separate allocation area carved out of the city's 2020 consolidated economic development area to underwrite incentives for a hotel project.

Why it matters: The votes change the underlying zoning that governs future uses, site improvements and permitting for the properties. One rezoning (the volunteer fire department) and two rezoning requests relating to child-care operations were presented as efforts to regularize legally nonconforming uses and to enable expanded service at existing child-care providers; the allocation-area change was presented as a financing tool to enable an incentive package for a single hotel project without affecting pledges tied to the larger 2020 consolidated allocation area.

City rezoning, 1519 Washington Avenue The commission approved city rezoning docket No. 92, special ordinance No. 43 (2024), to change 1519 Washington Avenue from C-6 (strip business) to M-1 (light industrial) to allow use as a storage yard, the staff report said. The owner is Jared Smith; attorney Eddie Felling of Linden Felling Law Firm appeared on Smith’s behalf and described proposed…