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Redevelopment commission urges overhaul of comp plan, pushes '80/20 by 2030' economic vision for Bargersville
Summary
A Bargersville Redevelopment Commission member urged a joint review of the town’s comprehensive plan and development code to pursue a strategy the commission described as ‘‘80/20 by 2030’’ — shifting assessed value toward commercial and industrial projects to reduce the residential tax burden.
A member of the Bargersville Redevelopment Commission urged the Planning Commission on Jan. 21 to work with the Town Council and the Redevelopment Commission to reshape the town’s comprehensive planning and zoning approach with an economic-first strategy that would increase commercial and industrial assessed value and reduce pressure on residential taxpayers.
The commission member, speaking at length, said the Redevelopment Commission proposes a goal of shifting the town’s assessed value balance toward an ‘‘80/20 by 2030’’ split (80 percent taxed at the 3% commercial/industrial rate, 20 percent residential at lower capped rates) and suggested a later target of roughly 70/30 by 2035–2040. He cited large projects as examples of value density, noting an Amazon distribution building assessed at roughly $85,000,000 and reporting that an Oracle data center opportunity of about $200,000,000 was being pursued in the region.
‘‘Do we want an Amazon distribution facility?’’ the commission member asked rhetorically during the meeting, and later said, ‘‘We are the only incorporated community that touches I‑69 south of Marion County. Boom. We're the keeper of the corridor.’’ The speaker argued that concentrating higher-assessed uses on small footprints — high-quality mixed-use or industrial development, TIF districts and targeted infrastructure investment — can widen the base and reduce the residential tax burden.
The discussion moved to specific planning tools and next steps. Staff said the town has solicited proposals from engineering firms including Lochmueller and GAI to prepare a townwide thoroughfare master plan; a planning timeline of about eight months was cited for such a plan. The thoroughfare plan, the speaker said, would inform long-term cross-sections, identify priority corridors (including the 135/144/Smoky Road area and the rail corridor), and guide grant applications — for example, an application to the Federal Highway Administration’s Rural program (referred to in the meeting as Rural Group 4 FHWA funds) to upgrade State Road 144.
The Redevelopment Commission member proposed joint work sessions of council, RDC and the planning commission to refine the comprehensive plan and the town’s Unified Development Code so the town can pursue higher-assessed projects, use TIF effectively and prioritize infrastructure investments. The member also raised annexation and utility-service policy as constraints, suggested the town consider surcharges for out-of-town utility customers, and urged preservation efforts for notable local properties such as the Annie Greeno/deer farm property through conservation or land-trust mechanisms.
No formal vote was taken on the Redevelopment Commission recommendations at the Jan. 21 planning commission meeting. Commissioners agreed the topics warranted follow-up, and staff said proposals and consultant scopes for the thoroughfare master plan would be brought to the council and commission soon.
