Norton BZA approves variance for lot split at 1760 Wadsworth Road with 73-foot access requirement

The City of Norton Board of Zoning and Building Appeals on Dec. 17 approved BZA application A16-2024, filed by Ion State Station Properties Inc., permitting a lot split at 1760 Wadsworth Road and attaching a requirement that the western lot maintain a 73-foot perpetual opening for access.

The variance, requested to permit frontage narrower than the I-1 district minimum, clears the way for the applicant to purchase the adjacent building sometimes referred to in the record as the Trinity Broadcasting property and to reserve acreage for future warehouse expansion, the applicant said. A board vote recorded five yeses and no negatives; the board moved to approve the variance with the 73-foot condition and to require that the 73-foot opening be maintained if the land changes hands.

The request was presented by William Blake Gibbs, who identified himself as the applicant and as the owner/operator of businesses at the Wadsworth Road site. Gibbs told the board the split is needed so his company can buy the adjacent building for commercial use and to secure acreage behind a cliff for a potential future warehouse. “We’re purchasing the building, to be used for our commercial use,” Gibbs said. He told the board his firm intends to build another warehouse “in the next 2 years.”

Zoning administrator Bill Bridal summarized the procedural background and noted that public notice had been sent in accordance with local charter requirements. Bridal also told the board that longtime member Mr. Gaynor is stepping down, creating an open seat.

The board and applicant discussed physical constraints on the site: a cell-phone tower and its guy wires, wetlands, an existing gravel driveway held by an easement, an on-site billboard and a gas main, and several oil wells. Gibbs said the parcel containing the tower and wetlands cannot be developed and that Ion State Station Properties does not want that portion of the land. He described shared driveway access with a neighboring property and said the company has used the adjacent Trinity building for several years but seeks ownership to increase operational flexibility.

The board’s motion approving the variance included language maintaining a minimum 73-foot opening on the far west side of proposed Lot 3 so the city or future owners would have sufficient room for a road or access to the tower if needed. The board’s recorded vote on the motion was: Mr. Gaynor — yes; Mr. Mullins — yes; Mr. Piekarek — yes; Mr. Smith — yes; Miss Fletcher — yes. The motion’s mover and seconder are not identified in the transcript. The board instructed city staff to coordinate with the applicant’s surveyor to complete the required paperwork.

The applicant and several board members described the split as necessary to separate the non-buildable tower/wetland parcel from the parcel containing the building and developable acreage. Gibbs said the buildable area includes existing warehouse space his business purchased in 2012 and a recently completed rear warehouse; he told the board the Trinity building has limited warehouse loading and may be converted depending on whether the purchase proceeds.

The hearing record shows the variance was requested under a cited local code provision described in the record as “section 1280.04, section B,” and that notice was sent “as provided in section 603 of the charter of the city of Norton, Ohio.” The board’s approval was recorded as a formal motion on agenda item A16-2024.

The decision is limited to the variance and the recorded condition; no rezoning was proposed or approved at the hearing. The board also approved minutes from its Nov. 19 meeting as routine business before adjourning.