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Narrative of Rezoning Application Sl to C <br /> Brookton Drive and Ireland Road <br /> I. Comprehensive Plan <br /> City of South Bend Comprehensive Plan (City Plan,2004) <br /> This application is supported by the City of South Bend Comprehensive Plan. <br /> A. The Future Land Use Map (Page 19, Map 3.1) designates the area around Ireland Road, east of Miami <br /> Street, as a "Regional Commercial Node". That node is located directly adjacent to and overlaps <br /> the land designated as "Low Density Residential". This would suggest that the boundary between <br /> those land uses is not fixed and can be varied as needed to respond to the on-going development <br /> of the area. <br /> The subject property is located within this overlap and is part of the "Regional Commercial Node". <br /> B. The map of Areas with Commercial and Corridor Plans (Page 25, Map 3.3) denotes that the properties <br /> on both sides of Ireland Road, from Lafayette Street and Brookton Drive, are located within the "South <br /> Gateway Corridor". According to the Plan, "Corridors are historically areas in a community where <br /> most of the commercial activity began and flourished. Preserving and enhancing the commercial <br /> and mixed-use character of a corridor is often the major goal of corridor plans." (Page 26) <br /> The subject property is located within the "South Gateway Corridor". <br /> C. The City Plan further states the following: <br /> 1. "Commercial activity is primarily concentrated along the major arterial streets." (Page 20) <br /> Ireland Road is major arterial street. <br /> 2. "The Erskine Hills Shopping District (Ireland Road, South Bend) and University Park Mall area (Grape <br /> Road, Mishawaka) serve as regional, commercial nodes or centers." (Page 20) <br /> The subject property is located within the Erskine Hills Shopping District, directly adjacent to high <br /> volume, high turnover commercial uses. <br /> 3. Under Smart Growth Principles, "Strengthen and direct development toward existing built-up <br /> areas and infrastructure." (Page 22) <br /> The subject property is located adjacent to an existing large commercial development complex. <br /> D. Finally, the proposed development of the subject property complies with Policy LU 2.4, "Provide buffer <br /> spaces between noncompatible land uses." (Page 31) <br /> The nature of the proposed development of the subject property is a buffer between non-compatible <br /> uses, as follows: <br /> 1. The activities will occur on the south side of the building, along Ireland Road. The building itself <br /> and the landscaping and fencing along the north side of the building will serve as a buffer from <br /> those activities to the residential land uses. <br /> 2. The proposed land use does not generate the type of traffic that is generated by adjacent high- <br /> volume land uses, such as high-turnover restaurants and gasoline stations. This land use will be a <br /> low-impact development use and very low-volume traffic generator. <br /> 3. The proposed land use is also limited in nature and does not operate in the evenings, overnight, <br /> or weekends. <br /> April 18, 2022 Page 1 of 3 <br />