WORTHINGTON - The Worthington Planning Commission met Tuesday evening to consider if the city council should rezone Stower Drive from an M-2 to an M-1 zone.
At the Aug. 24 regular city council meeting, Pastor Jose Miranda was denied his application that sought a text amendment to the city’s zone ordinance on Stower Drive.
Miranda hopes to buy the building located at 500 Stower Drive from Lori Klooster and turn the building into a church. Prior to March 2014, the property was designated as an M-1 zone, which would have allowed a church.
The amendment would have allowed institutional and cultural land use in all M-2 districts (general manufacturing zoning district).
Currently, Miranda’s church - Spanish United Pentecostal - worships in the Westminster Presbyterian Church on Clary Street.
Brad Chapulis, the city’s director of community and economic development, asked the planning commission if it believed the actions made in March 2014 were in the best interest of the city or if the issue should be revisited. In a split vote, the commission decided not to revisit the issue.
Commissioners Ken Moser and Kelly Meyer, along with city council representative Diane Graber, voted in favor of the motion not to revisit the rezoning.
“I’m struggling with changing the decision that was made in 2014,” Moser said.
Commissioner Bob Bristow abstained from the vote. Commissioner Amy Woitalewicz voted against the motion, saying that she wasn’t sure the current M-2 zoning fit into that area.
“When I look at the uses across the road from it, it doesn’t feel industrial,” Woitalewicz said. “I realize this is for future planning that we are looking at, but the development that is currently there - I don’t feel (a church) is a conflict with the current traffic.”
Although the planning commission will not revisit the issue, Miranda and Klooster can still request that the city council consider rezoning the Stower Drive property. If that request is denied, the property owners still have the right to apply for an owner-driven request for rezoning. That would involve a $200-plus-$1-per-acre application fee to be shared by all properties affected.
