23 May 2011 Dearborn County Plan Commission Meeting Notes

23 May 2011 Dearborn County Plan Commission Meeting Notes

Present: Mike Hall, Chairman, Dennis Kraus Jr., Russell Beiersdorfer, Mark Lehman, Jeff Hughes, Jake Hoog, and Dan Lansing.
Absent: Ken Nelson and Mike Hornbach.

Also Present: Mark McCormack, Plan Director, and Arnie McGill, Attorney.
Also present: Commissioners Hughes and Orschell, and Bill Ewbank, County Coordinator. Commissioner McHenry wasn’t available.

Meeting began at 6 PM with a presentation of Jeff Hughes’s proposed ordinance previously published on the blog and also available on the county’s official website- main page. This part of the meeting occurred at a table with the commissioners and plan commission. The rest of the government staff and audience sat in the audience area around them. It was not easy to hear as there was a mike on the table serving the recording device- but it didn’t project to the room.

Mike Hall asked Jeff Hughes to present his ordinance.

Hughes said that he thought that if the government does something that harms a citizen they should pay for it. This was just an initial first shot. He said citizens he talked to agreed that people should be compensated if the government makes a decision that harms them. Laws aren’t always about right and wrong. If this is something that is really needed than the society will pay for it. People who liked it asked also for a definition of a nuisance.

Kraus Jr. – said maybe we should tackle the actual ordinances that you think are the problem.
Lansing said- this will be very costly to the county.

Hoog- agreed that ordinances put an economic hardship on the citizens- won’t this put the hardship on all the citizens?

Hughes said- this spreads it out. Hughes said when a landowner is denied a use for his land because neighbors want it to stay fallow land then he should be compensated.

Lehman and Lansing discussed the idea that both the neighbors and the developer can sue either way the decision goes.

Orschell said if Rumpke offered $1million for a dump site and PC denied it, would the county have to compensate him $1million? Hughes- Yes.

Orschell said he thinks we have a system in place- the courts decide.

Hoog said he believes your property is only worth what a consumer will pay for it. It doesn’t matter what a realtor, assessor, banker, etc. says it is worth. The real worth is what someone actually pays for it.

Hughes said when we get to the arbitrary “quality of life” and ”appropriateness” issues that it gets arbitrary.

Orschell said he thought Hughes wanted less government and this is putting another layer of government on people’s lives.

Lehman asked – where does the money come from to pay the entity suing. If the neighbor’s sue- does the developer pay for his property devaluation? Hughes said no. Lehman said- what if the developer brings sewer down and then the neighbors have to pay to hook-up?

Orschell asked again- do the taxpayers pay no matter who is devalued? Hughes -Yes.

Hall said- cost is the biggest issue. He said the attorneys can have two different interpretations of the same law. And when they get to arguing, the clients both will lose something. The law has to be written to protect the county form frivolous lawsuits. He would prefer to attack the parts of the ordinance that cause the problem.

Lehman asked about the state law on impact fees. Are we asking for an account that has to be set up for the 180 days until this all is settled out. Hughes said he didn’t think that would work that well.

Orschell asked for Hughes to give some specific cases where he thinks the person’s property rights were violated. Hughes mentioned the Glenn property- but the PC members noyed that was not a county decision. They couldn’t get utilities. Greendale decided that.

Lansing asked- WHO will decide if they get compensation from the county and how much.
Hughes said that would have to be figured out.

Commissioners don’t have the experience. Council doesn’t. Would we have to hire somebody?

Hughes said that has to be figured out.

The severe weather alert sirens went off at 6:45 PM. Reported tornado touchdown in Penntown area. Warning until 7:15 PM

Hughes said he will get some more ideas together, before it goes further. [NOTE: It appears there are a lot of holes in the ordinance as it stands. There also does not seem to be a clear way to determine who would decide if the plaintiff had a case for compensation or not. And the taxpayers would bear the entire expense. It was UNCLEAR as to what county decisions lead to the perceived need for this ordinance.]

Ten minute break till 7 PM.

OLD BUSINESS TO BE REOPENED:

Request: Vacate a portion of Happy Hollow Road.
Applicant: Rob Seig / Owner: David Lykins
Site Location: Happy Hollow Road
Legal: Sec.5,6,8, T 6, R 2, Map # 05-05,05-06,05-08, Parcel # 008,
008.001, 004, 012, & 001
Township: Jackson & York Size: 5.169 Acres
Zoning: Agricultural (A)

Applicant requested it be tabled till next month. Plan Commission approved tabling.

Administrative:
Financial Guarantee Report- presented to the board and noted that some bonds were renewed.

Fee schedule- Some fees were clarified under the fee schedule, but none were changed. These have been in effect for 6 years.
Some fees for maps etc are lower than the ones that will be charged for some of the GIS ones. He asked if the board wanted to go to the standardized ones or what the current PZ fees are.
He said they could address it next month.

Zoning committee met last week and he also gave them and the PC members the new state law that goes into effect in July. He’s trying to get a person here to train the PC and BZA on this law.

Staff working on grants for about 4 entities this year. The latest is about $40,000 for animal control.

St. Leon Updates- They unanimously accepted it in St. Leon. They are also working on an economic development plan up there also.

July or August will meet with zoning committee meeting. Due to vacations and maternity leave in the office, they did not plan to do this in June.

Meeting adjourned at7:20 PM

Christine Brauer Mueller
Lawrenceburg Township