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BZA approves special‑use variance to allow electrical switching substation at Hajin Road after resident objections
Summary
The Richmond Board of Zoning Appeals voted 3–0 on May 13 to allow a 5.5‑acre electrical switching substation on a 124‑acre agricultural parcel at 6155 Hajin Road, after the petitioner and staff described reliability and interconnection needs and a nearby resident raised concerns about property value, noise, lighting and traffic; staff said landscaping commitments will be required in site‑plan review.
The Richmond Board of Zoning Appeals approved a special‑use variance on May 13 to allow an electrical switching substation on 5.5 acres of a 124.344‑acre agricultural parcel at 6155 Hajin Road, near the Indiana–Ohio line.
Lee Pku, an agent with Whiteman Associates representing Gene McCormack Farm Services and American Electric Power, told the board the site was chosen to connect AEP and AES Ohio transmission lines and to improve reliability for Wayne County and cross‑border service. "The proposed station site is 5 and a half acres of the 124 acre parcel located on Hogden Road at the Indiana Ohio border," he said, adding the fenced equipment area would be roughly two acres and the remainder of the farm could still be used for agriculture.
The petitioner described the facility as a switching substation — a remotely operated connection point rather than a power‑generating plant — and said the location avoids taller transmission poles over a nearby railroad and minimizes impacts on other property owners.
At the public hearing, Glenn Browning, who identified his address as 6065 Hajin Road, said he and his wife Angela opposed the project. "We're against it because... it will severely hurt our property value," Browning said, raising additional concerns about noise, security lighting, transformer heights, construction traffic on the narrow road and the lack of a visible landscaping plan.
Planning staff recommended approval and read findings of fact supporting the variance. The staff report noted adjacent property notifications were mailed, called the site "uniquely situated" adjacent to the transmission corridor and cited public‑health guidance: "According to the World Health Organization, there is no causal relationship between electromagnetic field exposure at typical environmental levels and adverse health effects," the staff report said. Staff also said written commitments on landscaping would be included before final approval and that setbacks and other site details would be addressed through county permitting and the site‑plan/ILP process.
A motion to approve the petition passed on a roll call vote with Nathan Sheets, Sherry Oler Hemingway and Josh Imhof recorded as voting in favor. The board noted that, because zoning approval is separate from county construction permits, landscaping, setbacks and engineering details will be resolved in subsequent reviews.
The board’s action authorizes the zoning change required to place the switching substation on the agricultural parcel; construction timing and detailed design remain contingent on county approvals and any required easements with adjacent property owners.
