Plan commission recommends rezoning near I-69 off-ramp to expand self-storage

The Angola City Plan Commission on Sept. 8 forwarded a positive recommendation to the common council to rezone a roughly 1.61-acre parcel just south of U.S. 20 at the I-69 off-ramp from Highway Commercial to Low Intensity Industrial (I-1) to allow an existing self-storage business to expand.

Staff presented case 2025PC09003 and noted the parcel is split-zoned in places; the staff recommendation was to make the entire parcel industrial so it matches the zoning of the adjacent storage facility to the south. The legal notice ran in the Herald Republican on Aug. 29; eight nearby property owners were mailed notice on Aug. 28. No public input was received at the meeting.

Art Cockcroft, identifying himself as representing 69 And 20 LLC (the recent purchaser), told the commission the owner intends to combine the two parcels and then pursue a site plan and redevelopment to add two to three climate-controlled storage buildings and an additional conventional storage building. Cockcroft said the developer typically expects a small number of customer visits per day and described preliminary building sizes: two or three buildings including a 50-by-40 and a 60-by-40 single-story footprint. "We're looking right now at putting in, 2 to 3 climate control buildings," Cockcroft said.

Staff framed the rezoning request as consistent with the comprehensive plan objective to redevelop underutilized properties and to support expansion of an existing local business. After questions from commissioners about entrances and parking, and confirmation that the plan commission was only making a recommendation to the common council, the commission voted to forward a positive recommendation.

The rezoning recommendation proceeds to the common council for a final decision; if approved, the applicant will return with a development plan and any required site improvements for plan-review review and permitting.