Planning commission approves conditional use to allow home at 3520 Wilmington Pike

The Kettering Planning Commission voted unanimously on Nov. 3 to grant a conditional-use permit allowing a single-family dwelling at 3520 Wilmington Pike (case PCD-25-013), subject to three staff conditions.

City planner Ryan Holmesy told the commission the structure was built originally as a house, was later used for retail (identified in the staff report as Hedgehog Antiques), and is now vacant. Holmesy said single-family use is permitted in the business zoning district only with a conditional-use approval and recommended granting the application because the proposal meets the city’s conditional-use standards. He read the recommended conditions: vehicular access must be provided from Willamette Road (no new access onto Wilmington Pike), the existing trees used to screen the street-side parking must be retained (and replaced if removed), and the property’s existing sign must be removed if the conditional use is initiated.

Robert Gray, representing the property owners, said the main reason for seeking the conditional use was financing: "If they have a conditional use for residential, then it would pass residential financing," Gray said, explaining that lenders’ zoning underwriting can prevent buyers from obtaining residential loans if the parcel remains classified as commercial.

Neighbor Doug Conan, owner of property immediately north at 3508 Wilmington Pike, said he did not object to the applicants but asked whether converting 3520 Wilmington Pike to residential would compel him to change how he uses his adjacent property. "My concern ... does this impact my use of my property where I now have to comply with the rules for residential being adjacent to my property," Conan said, and asked the city to put any assurance in writing. Holmesy responded that existing nonconforming commercial uses generally do not trigger new requirements so long as they continue unchanged; he offered to email Conan explanatory text from the zoning code about nonconformities and examples of when compliance requirements could be triggered (for example, after a prolonged vacancy or a major addition).

After closing the public hearing, a commissioner moved to approve the conditional use and to adopt staff's findings. The motion, which incorporated the three staff-recommended conditions, was seconded and carried by unanimous roll call of members present.

The commission’s action allows the property owner to market and sell 3520 Wilmington Pike with the option for residential financing, while the conditions aim to preserve street-side screening and prevent new curb cuts onto Wilmington Pike. No exterior changes were proposed as part of the application. The commission noted the city will retain jurisdiction to enforce zoning code requirements if the site’s use or configuration changes in the future.