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MEDINA, Ohio – The finance committee voted not to rezone two parcels on West Liberty Street northwest of Yorktown Drive but are instead opting for a text amendment to the current zoning which will still allow for a proposed development on the property.
Last month Community Development Director Andrew Dutton presented finance committee with a proposed zoning map amendment for the two parcels in the area. The parcels are currently zoned C1 and the proposed amendment would have changed the zoning to C3 which permits a wider variety of uses.
Applicant Kayleigh Keller has said she wants to develop the parcel to relocate and expand Keller Market and Café which is currently located in the Farmers Exchange building on South Court Street. The proposed plan would include a café, a retail market and a seasonal farm stand.
Council President John Coyne said he was supportive of the project, but was concerned about changing the zoning, especially if ownership of the land changed hands in the future. He said he didn’t want to open the door to a more intense type of development in that space.
During a Jan. 26 finance committee meeting, Dutton said another option would be a text amendment to the city’s C1 zoning that would allow businesses such as the café and retail market as a conditional use on land zoned C1.
“That would open these types of projects up as conditional uses on any of our other C1 properties,” Dutton said. “Currently we have 19 properties in four areas that are zoned C1, but the only one that is undeveloped is on Lafayette Road. It is 5.4 acres and is owned by the mobile home park.”
Coyne said he thought the text amendment to the C1 was the best option.
“The neighbors in this area have already agreed to the proposed use of the property, but this gives them some protection,” he said. “Since the property will remain C1 instead of C3 they don’t have to worry about more intensive projects going in there. Also, I don’t think we are putting ourselves in a box by causing problems in other places because this is a conditional use of C1 and not automatically permitted. A developer would still have to get approval from planning commission, and they would have to review the proposed projects to see what kind of impact it will have.”
Since finance committee voted against the motion to rezone the property, Dutton said the proposed text amendment will go before planning commission for review Feb. 12. If planning commission recommends approval, the matter will come back before the finance committee.