Newton planning commission tells City Council: do not change downtown zoning to allow group-living facilities

The Newton City Planning and Zoning Commission voted to recommend to the City Council that the downtown Central Business District (CCBD) not be rezoned to allow group living facilities as an outright permitted use.

Nick Alexander, City Planner, told the commission that the proposed zoning text amendment (ZOA 26-1) would permit a short-term, community-based residential stabilization use across all properties mapped CCBD and described a two-phase proposal from applicant Focus, Inc.: Phase 1, a 23-hour crisis observation center with eight chairs for youth; Phase 2, an eight-bed extended-stay (three to seven days) for short-term residential care. Alexander said staff does not recommend adding the use as a permitted right in the CCBD and suggested that, if the Commission is amenable, the use would be more appropriate as a conditional use subject to Zoning Board of Adjustment review.

Darnell Lopeman, representing Focus, Inc., told the commission the organization already operates a 23-hour observation service and seeks the ability to hold youth longer locally to avoid transporting families out of the area for continued care. “We want them to choose who they’re comfortable going to,” Lopeman said, describing on-site therapists, a nurse on duty and a mobile-crisis team that would be available around the clock. He said the expanded stay would ease strain on families and first responders and help stabilize youth in crisis.

Opposition at the hearing came primarily from downtown business owners and representatives of the local Main Street organization. Lonnie Portner, whose State Farm office is next door to the proposed site, said he supports mental-health services but asked the commission to require a detailed site and operations plan if the use were to proceed, including parking, drop-off procedures, staffing ratios, security measures and an emergency-response plan. “If those details can’t mitigate impacts, I ask that the zoning request be denied or relocated,” Portner said.

Joel Mills, a City Council member at large, said he had visited the applicant’s Des Moines facility and supports the goal of serving youth, but urged the commission to adhere to the zoning map’s intent for a commercial downtown and to deny a permitted-use change while encouraging the applicant to seek appropriately zoned vacant buildings elsewhere. Erin Yeager, Executive Director of Newton Main Street, said downtown revitalization efforts focus on bringing businesses, second-story housing and events to the core, and warned that rezoning CCBD could “stall our progress.”

Commissioners spent their discussion emphasizing their role to judge district-wide compatibility rather than the merits of a single applicant or building. Several members noted that conditional-use review by the Zoning Board of Adjustment could allow for operational conditions (hours, landscaping, security, parking) and public vetting, while a permitted-use change would allow an applicant to proceed administratively without that additional review. Several commissioners also pointed to existing vacant properties in residential or mixed-use zones that could accommodate longer-term services.

After debate, Commissioner Jane (Speaker 7) moved to recommend to the City Council that the Commission not change the CCBD permitted uses to allow group living facilities; Commissioner Dana (Speaker 9) seconded. The motion passed on a roll-call vote with the commissioners present recorded as voting in favor. The Commission closed the meeting after taking the vote.

What happens next: The Commission’s formal recommendation will be included in the staff report to the City Council, which has final authority over the zoning code. The applicant may pursue either a conditional-use permit through the Zoning Board of Adjustment or seek a site in a zoning district where multi-night residential care is already allowed.

Votes at a glance: The Planning and Zoning Commission voted to recommend that City Council not change permitted CCBD uses to allow group living facilities (motion moved by Commissioner Jane, seconded by Commissioner Dana; recorded roll-call vote: yes — all commissioners present).