Jerome Township officials on Tuesday night approved a rezoning that will allow for the development of Coughlin Kia on the southwest corner of Hyland-Croy Road and Weldon Road. The dealership, illustrated in the rendering above, will have frontage on U.S. 33.
(Graphic submitted)
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The land at the corner of Hyland-Croy Road and Weldon Road, commonly known as Hall’s Corner, will soon have a car dealership. The Jerome Township Trustees approved the rezoning of nearly 22 acres on the western portion of the site with frontage along U.S. 33, illustrated at left, that will pave the way for Coughlin Kia. The additional subareas to the east were not rezoned and are slated to become commercial uses. The dots throughout the map indicate where signs will be located.
(Graphic submitted)
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Jerome Township will soon be home to one of the area’s newest car dealerships.
The Board of Trustees approved on Tuesday a rezoning that will allow Coughlin Kia to locate on U.S. 33, at the southwest corner of Hyland-Croy Road and Weldon Road.
The rezoning includes 21.73 acres in the Wirchanski property commonly known as Hall’s Corner. The land is part of a larger tract that includes 54.51 acres, which was zoned as a Planned Development District in 2007.
While the land was rezoned to another Planned Development District (PD), David Hodge, an attorney for the applicant, said the new classification “narrows” the permitted uses from the previous “big box” retail uses that were permitted.
The additional acreage to the east of the Kia dealership is divided into two subareas that will be designated for “general commercial uses,” Hodge said. The rezoning application discussed Tuesday does not affect this area.
Zoning Inspector Eric Snowden called PDs the “choose your own adventure of zoning,” through which a regulation text is created that sets the standards for that area.
Snowden said the zoning standards for the proposed development are “very similar” to the township’s standard commercial district.
Still, Trustee Barry Adler raised several concerns with specific details proposed in the preliminary development plan.
He questioned whether the setbacks would be adequate, as he said it appeared the dealership’s parking lot would be directly along U.S. 33.
Snowden said the development’s regulation text requires the parking lot to be a minimum of 30 feet from the right of way. He said the Ohio Department of Transportation would not allow any developer to construct in the right of way.
Adler also referenced a review of the zoning application by the Logan-Union-Champaign Regional Planning Commission (LUC), which indicated LUC “staff does not recommend the signage proposed.”
LUC’s report added that “the number and size… seem out of character when compared to nearby developments like Dublin Green.”
At specific issue for Adler was a proposed 40-foot sign.
“I don’t think we have anything in the township quite that high,” he said.
Snowden said there are other signs of that height but he did not specify which.
Joe Smiley, a representative of the applicant, said the height of the sign was determined based on recommendations from Kia that accounted for the speed of traffic and distance from U.S. 33.
Smiley noted that the original application called for a sign height between 60 and 80 feet, as well as a greater overall square footage.
Both Trustees Wezlynn Davis and Joe Craft said they took no issue with the 40-foot sign.
“I think it’s appropriate,” Davis said, noting the proximity to U.S. 33.
Ultimately, Hodge said he feels rezoning the property comes down to deciding whether the new classification would be better than the alternative.
“Is what you’re requesting better than what is currently existing? In this case, yes,” he said.
Hodge emphasized that he feels a car dealership is a “less intense” use than a large retailer like Target or Best Buy, which is the type of development the 2007 zoning allowed.
He added that the developers “committed to write a check to Union County” for $550,000 to be used for necessary road improvements due to developing Hall’s Corner.
Although Adler reiterated his hesitation regarding setbacks and sign heights, he joined his fellow trustees in voting in favor of the rezoning.
A final development plan must come before the township’s Planning and Zoning Commission for review.
In other business:
– The board continued a public hearing regarding the rezoning of 108.84 acres at the northeast corner of Industrial Parkway and Beecher-Gamble Road from Rural Residential District (RU) to Commercial District (COM).
Snowden noted that the applicant, Walbonns, LLC, requested a continuance over the weekend.
The public hearing was initially opened on Feb. 6 and continued until Tuesday night.
On Feb. 6, residents expressed concern because the applicant did not identify a specific land use for the site.
Instead, Glenn Dugger, attorney for the applicant, said the rezoning to COM will facilitate the marketing and sale of the property, which has been listed for sale since 2015.
The trustees asked the applicant to work with adjacent property owners to work toward “Good Neighbor” agreements in reference to potential buffering options.
The hearing will be reopened during the trustees meeting on March 5 at 7 p.m.