Commission recommends approval for Allens Lane rezoning despite residents’ traffic and drainage concerns

The Area Plan Commission on Sept. 4 recommended approval to the Vanderburgh County Commissioners of a rezoning request for 2741 and 2761 Allens Lane, changing the parcels from R-3 multi-family residential to M-2 industrial with an amended use-and-development commitment (UDC) that limits many industrial uses and adds buffering. The recommendation passed by a 5–1 vote with one abstention.

Cashwagner Associates, represented by Scott Beetle and attorney Maria Bulkley, presented an amended UDC filed Aug. 19 that eliminates more than 100 uses from the M-2 permissions (Bulkley described a list of roughly 121 uses the applicant agreed to prohibit) and adds a berm and buffer along the south side of the site adjacent to Allen's Lane. Bulkley and Beetle said the applicants also provided a concept plan showing low-profile contractor-shop buildings and a separate lot intended for a trucking/warehouse operation.

County staff materials noted the 2035 future land-use map recommends residential use for the site and said the rezoning request is not supported by the comprehensive plan. Staff and several commissioners raised that policy tension during the hearing.

Neighbors and remonstrators urged caution, citing an Allen's Lane 10-ton weight limit, existing septic systems for nearby homes, the presence of golf-cart traffic from Leisure Living West, and local road-safety concerns. Charles Samples, a neighbor at 2801 Allens Lane, asked about utilities and said his and adjacent properties are on septic. Other residents provided photographs showing road damage and a buried utility post they said had been struck by heavy equipment.

Applicant testimony addressed drainage and utilities: Beetle said an existing 48-inch pipe installed when Leisure Living West was developed drains under Allen's Lane to a sediment pond and that the applicants are exploring working with Iron River Trucking and county engineering offices to route drainage through that existing pipe; they also described plans for a sewer main extension so on-site lots could connect. On traffic, applicant materials estimated about 851 vehicle trips per day if developed as the proposed industrial/commercial uses, versus an estimated more than 2,000 trips per day for a hypothetical 300-unit R-3 apartment scenario that the applicant used for comparison. Beetle said the first four proposed contractor-shop lots would primarily generate box trucks and pickups rather than heavy semis, although Lot 5 was described as a possible trucking hub that could generate occasional tri-axle or semi traffic.

Commissioner questions focused on buffering (the UDC includes a berm on the south side but not an express west-side buffer in the UDC), potential outside storage and opaque fencing, drainage, and legal limitations created by the Allen's Lane weight restriction. Bulkley said the applicants added a 20-foot green space adjacent to residential properties on the west side by plan, though that green-space promise was not included as a UDC item for the west side and therefore could be subject to future variance requests.

On the roll call, Mister Nicks, Mister Petke, Mister Shetler, Mister Walters and Ms. Demons voted yes; Miss Freeman voted no; Mister Gable abstained. The chair announced the motion carried 5 yes, 1 no and 1 abstention. The commission’s recommendation advances the request with the amended UDC to the County Commissioners for a public hearing and final decision.