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Board continues two large outdoor-storage variance requests after neighbors raise noise, floodway and tree-line concerns
Summary
The Board of Zoning Appeals continued two related variances for 4400 and 4220 North Saint Joseph Avenue after neighbors described truck noise, dust, recent tree clearing and potential floodway conflicts; staff requested clearer civil plans and the owner’s presence before the case returns next month.
The Evansville Board of Zoning Appeals voted on Dec. 19 to continue two linked variance requests for 4400 and 4220 North Saint Joseph Avenue after neighbors and board members raised unresolved concerns about driveway placement, noise, tree removal and possible work in a floodway.
Matt Layman of R. Layman and Son Consulting, representing property owner James McCullough, asked the board to relax requirements for an 8-foot opaque fence around outdoor storage areas, allow gravel in lieu of paved parking, and approve construction within portions of the site so the owner could operate outdoor storage and contractor-related uses. Layman presented a revised civil drawing circulated the same day and described berm-and-fence perimeter protections on parts of the property.
Neighbor Brian Gatewood (4408 N. Saint Joseph Ave.) told the board the recent removal of trees and the presence of heavy trucks near his bedroom window have increased noise, dust and vibration. "They cut the tree line down and now dump trucks come right past my house; it rattles my windows," Gatewood said. He asked for visual screening, a relocated access drive farther from residences and clearer assurances that operations would not push water into adjacent properties.
Board members and staff identified multiple ambiguities in the materials before the board: a gravel overlay that obscured proposed drives on the civil drawing submitted that day; uncertainty whether portions of the site lie in the Locust Creek floodway; inconsistent depiction of where opaque fencing and berms would be installed; and the absence of the property owner at the hearing. Staff noted the plan had not completed site-review and that building or floodplain officials had not yet signed off on work in constrained zones.
Given those unresolved questions and the neighborhood concerns, the board voted 6–0 to continue both VAR-2024-101 (4400 N. Saint Joseph Ave.) and VAR-2024-102 (4220 N. Saint Joseph Ave.) to the Jan. 16, 2025 meeting, waiving the usual continuance fees. The board requested that the petitioner provide a clearer civil/site plan (with layers that do not overwrite each other), confirm whether any work would be proposed in regulated floodway areas, and ensure the property owner or an authorized representative will attend the next hearing. Board members also suggested staff collect recent aerial or site photos (boardmember suggestion included drone or staff photography) and that the petitioner meet the neighbor on-site to review access alignment.
No final variances were granted at the Dec. 19 hearing; the matters remain pending until the petitioner returns with the clarified materials and responses to floodway and perimeter-protection questions.
