Churchill County staff propose three-tier industrial zoning, new design-review process

At a joint Planning Commission and Board of County Commissioners meeting, Churchill County planning staff presented a proposal to split the county's single industrial zoning district into three tiers and to create a clearer design-review process for industrial development.

Planning Department staff member Randy said the county currently has "a single industrial zone that encapsulates vastly differing locations of use" and that the proposal aims to provide "clarity in our industrial uses, and ensuring compliance with public welfare." Randy said the county now requires individual special-use-permit review for most industrial activities because the single industrial category covers downtown businesses, airport-adjacent parcels and large, remote test and manufacturing sites.

The proposal would establish three industrial zones: light industrial (I-1), medium industrial (I-2) and heavy industrial (I-3). According to staff, I-1 would allow indoor warehousing and light manufacturing near town with heavier uses allowed only by special-use permit; I-2 would allow most industrial uses but exclude the heaviest, hazardous operations; and I-3 would be for remote sites and would permit most industrial…