Planning commission approves 17‑bed group home at 2950 Grama Road

The Stow City Planning Commission on a unanimous roll call approved PC2025‑028, a conditional‑use permit for a group home at 2950 Grama Road that applicants said will contain 17 beds.

Planning staff Zach told the commission the property is about "1.5 or 1.6 acres" with an existing 6,500‑square‑foot building and that the proposed use meets the code's supplemental regulations on bed density, fire‑code compliance and minimum separation from other group homes.

Zach said the code limits such facilities to no more than 12 beds per acre and that "based on 1.58 acres, they can have up to 19 beds," so the proposal meets the density standard. He also said fire‑code verification would occur during the building‑permit review.

Applicant representatives described how the home would operate. Chandra Gasmir, who identified herself as a resident of Stow and said she works for the property owner, said residents will be referrals from Summit County Developmental Disabilities (Summit DD). "It depends on the contract. It could be from 1 year to 5 years," Gasmir said when asked how long residents typically reside at the facility, adding that in some cases contracts can be longer.

Ahmed Bania, who said he is part of the initiative, explained the agency‑referral process and the range of contract lengths. He said many referred residents have developmental disabilities and sometimes dual diagnoses and that these are not typically short‑term rehab placements. "Because they have developmental disabilities, they've been with Summit DD for years," Bania said.

Commissioners and neighbors asked about operations and safety. Applicants said at least one caregiver will be on site at all times, staffing may range with clients' needs (applicants estimated a range of roughly 15–45 employees across shifts for the building), and daytime transport will use vans. Chandra Gasmir said meals would be delivered from another location and residents would have only refrigerators and microwaves on site. The applicants also said they plan to install cameras, control visitor hours and work with a security contractor (identified in the meeting as Silicon Fire and Security).

Neighbors asked whether the property would remain residential in zoning and were told it would not be rezoned; the conditional use is required by the code and the property would remain in its residential district. Zach noted the property had most recently been approved as an eight‑unit apartment conversion in 2020 and was previously used as an assisted‑living facility.

A motion to approve PC2025‑028 was made and seconded; the planning commission recorded votes of yes from Mrs. Clancy, Mr. Wagner, Mrs. Treptow and Mr. Basic, and the motion carried.

The commission approved the conditional use; building permit review and fire‑code verification remain required before occupancy.