Applicant seeks upzoning on Highway 329 for contractor shop; agencies flag water, parking and drainage requirements

An applicant presenting for TRC26-014 told the Oldham County Technical Review Committee on July 15 that the plan calls for upzoning a Highway 329 parcel to accommodate a contractor shop and custom cabinetry/millwork operations while converting existing retail space into limited office and meeting space.

"So, our proposal relates to a, upzoning for the current property, located on Highway 329," said Sean Spalding, who gave his name and address for the record. He described a rear-located millwork shop, a new rear parking lot, and reconfigured front parking with fewer ingress and egress points onto Highway 329 and an adjacent street.

Why it matters: This meeting was a technical pre-review; the committee does not make final decisions. Planners and multiple agencies use TRC review to identify items the applicant must resolve before the case goes to the Oldham County Planning Commission.

Key technical requests and agency flags

John Hine (Planner I) asked the applicant to add or clarify multiple items on the plan: the location and size of water mains and water-line symbology in the legend; existing easements; soil types and a note if the site is served by septic; wetlands or a statement that none are present; areas of slope greater than 30 percent; and the location and elevation of the 100-year floodplain. He also requested a landscape and lighting plan with screening and corrections to adjacent-owner listings.

Hine noted a discrepancy in the parking count between the plan and the narrative: the plan shows between 28 and 29 spaces while the zoning maximum cited is 27, meaning the applicant may need a parking waiver.

State and utility comments

Hine summarized KYTC District 5 comments that additional right-of-way across the frontage may be required to meet local development code and that any proposals to alter drainage that affect the state right-of-way must include a complete drainage survey and hydrologic analysis, including comparisons for 25- and 100-year storms. Louisville Water stated infrastructure is nearby but clarified that its letter does not constitute approval for service or a determination that a main extension will not be required. MSD (sewer) requested a downstream facility capacity request if the project intends to connect to sanitary sewer; the applicant had not confirmed whether the proposal was on sewer or septic.

County engineering and permits

Jim Sullivan, Oldham County engineer, said that because the plan disturbs more than one acre the applicant must obtain a KYR-10 permit from the Kentucky Division of Water and county stormwater quality/erosion control permits; final construction plans and detention calculations covering applicable storm events will be required. Sullivan asked the applicant to confirm that the submitted stormwater calculations already account for the added impervious surface and recommended entrance radii meet KYTC standards where possible.

Public input and next steps

An adjoining property owner, Garnet Parish, said they had "no concerns" about the operation, described it as a "good family operation," and welcomed the project as a neighbor, while noting potential ventilation/noise near a bedroom window and suggesting operational hours and exhaust orientation could help.

No decisions were made; staff will provide written comments and the applicant was asked to update the plan to address agency comments before filing for a zoning map amendment and development plan with the Oldham County Planning Commission.

The TRC meeting is a technical pre-review only; any formal waivers, approvals or rezoning would be decided later by the Planning Commission.