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Home My WebLink About04-27-2026 Zoning and Annexation Committee MinutesOFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK BIANCA L. T IRADO, CITY CLERK ZONING AND ANNEXATION Committee Members Present: Committee Members Absent: Other Council Present: Others Present: Presenters: Agenda: APRIL 27, 2026, 5:15 P.M. Karen L. White, Troy Warner, Stacey Odom, Rachel Tomas Morgan, Dr. Oliver Davis None Canneth Lee, Ophelia Gooden-Rodgers Bianca L. Tirado, Matthew Neal, Jasmine Jackson, Veronica Pitt-Payne, Bob Palmer Tim Staub, Brian Killen, Michael Divita, Mark Dellostritto Bill No. 19-26 -Amending the Zoning Ordinance for the Unaddressed Parcels at the Southern Terminus of South Glen Street and South Dorothy Street Bill No. 21-26 -Amendment 7.5 -Amending Chapters 3, 4, 6, 13, 14, and 17 of the South Bend Municipal Code to Align With Zoning Chapter 21 Bill No. 22-26 -Amendment 8 -Amending Chapter 21 of the South Bend Municipal Code to Make Miscellaneous Changes for Clarification and Consistency to Simplify Development Process and to Achieve Higher Quality Development Members marked with an asterisk(*) are in virtual attendance. Please note the attached link for the meeting recording: https://docs.southbendin.gov/WebLink/browse.aspx?dbid=0,0,0,0,0,0&mediaid=408139 Jasmine Jackson CHIEF D i-:PLTY CnY CLERK; C:H11-:1' OF Sr \FF INTEGRITY I SERVICE I ACCESSI BILITY Matthew Neal D EPLTY CnY CLERK / DIIU'CTOR OF POI.ICY Veronica Pitt-Payne DIIU~CTOR OF SPECL\L PROJECT~ EXCELLENCE I ACCOUNTABILITY I INNOVATION I INCLUSION I EMPOWERMENT 300 City Hall I215 S. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. I South Bend, Indiana 46601 Ip. 574.235.9221 If. 574.235.91731 www.southbendin.gov ® CITY OF SOlITH BEND I OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK Committee Chair Dr. Oliver Davis called to order the Zoning and Annexation Committee meeting at 5:15 P.M. Bill No. 19-26 -Amending the Zoning Ordinance for the Unaddressed Parcels at the Southern Terminus of South Glen Street and South Dorothy Street Tim Staub, Zoning Specialist, with offices on the fifth (5th) floor of City Hall, South Bend, IN 46601 , said the petitioner has requested to table the bill until May 18, 2026. Committee Member Karen L White moved to table Bill No. 19-26 until May 18, 2026, which was seconded by Committee Member Troy Warner and carried by a vote of five (5) ayes. Committee Chair Dr. Oliver Davis -Aye Committee Vice Chair Rachel Tomas Morgan -Aye Committee Member Troy Warner -Aye Committee Member Karen L. White -Aye Citizen Member Stacey Odom -Aye Bill No. 21-26 -Amendment 7.5 -Amending Chapters 3, 4, 6, 13, 14, and 17 of the South Bend Municipal Code to Align With Zoning Chapter 21 Brian Killen, Zoning Administrator, with offices on the fifth (5th ) floor of City Hall, South Bend, IN 46601, presented the bill. He said the bill updates outdated zoning references in chapters three (3), four (4), six (6), thirteen (13), fourteen (14), and seventeen (17) of the City of South Bend Municipal Code. References to defunct zoning districts were removed and duplicated zoning language was replaced with cross reference citations to chapter twenty-one (21 ). Committee Chair Dr. Davis held the public hearing, and nobody spoke. Committee Vice Chair Rachel Tomas Morgan moved to send Bill No. 21-26 to the Committee of the Whole with a favorable recommendation, which was seconded by Committee Member Warner and carried by a vote of five (5) ayes. Committee Chair Dr. Oliver Davis -Aye Committee Vice Chair Rachel Tomas Morgan -Aye Committee Member Troy Warner -Aye Committee Member Karen L. White -Aye Citizen Member Stacey Odom -Aye Bill No. 22-26-Amendment 8 -Amending Chapter 21 of the South Bend Municipal Code to Make Miscellaneous Changes for Clarification and Consistency to Simplify Development Process and to Achieve Higher Quality Development Mark Dellostritto, Zoning Specialist, with offices on the fifth (5 th) floor of City Hall, South Bend, IN 46601 , presented the bill. He said the zoning team intends to update the zoning ordinance twice per year to give developers more flexibility, reduce unnecessary variances, modernize the ordinance, and fix clerical errors. This bill is the spring 2026 update package. He explained the changes that were made to the substitute bill, including the removal of by-right restaurants under two thousand (2,000) square feet in urban flex (UF) zoning districts, and reducing the maximum distance for accessory parking lots from two-hundred-fifty (250) feet to one-hundred-fifty (150) feet. Michael Divita, Assistant Director of Planning, with offices on the fifth (5th) floor of City Hall, EXCELLENCE \ ACCOUNTAB ILITY \ INNOVATION \ INCLUSION \ EMPOWERMENT 300 City Hall I215 S. Or. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. I South Bend, Indiana 46601 Ip. 574.235.9221 If. 574.235.9173 1 www.southbendin.gov @ CrIY OF SOUfH BEND I OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK South Bend, IN 46601, continued the presentation. He spoke about the more complex changes in the update package, including removing the requirement for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) to be shorter than the primary structure. He explained that the current requirement restricts single- story homeowners from building a carriage house above a detached garage. He said this promotes fairness between single-story homeowners and multi-story homeowners while allowing for development of more housing units. The maximum building height and maximum ADU square footage rules will not change. The frontage requirement was also removed for ADUs that are not street-facing. He elaborated on other changes in the bill, stating that the maximum number of stories for apartment houses in urban neighborhood two (U2) zoning districts was increased from two-and-a-half (2 ½) to three (3) to allow for full utilization of the third (3rd) floor in these buildings. Maximum building width rules were also adjusted for certain building types. Mid-rise tower buildings with setback hallway connectors will no longer be considered a single building when measuring building width; each segment of the building will be considered independently. In neighborhood center (NC) and downtown (DT) zoning districts, large buildings that appear to be multiple buildings will not be subject to maximum building width rules. Each architecturally distinct segment with a frontage will be considered independently. Committee Chair Dr. Davis asked about requirements for shared elevators in connected buildings. Mark Dellostritto said the placement and number of elevators in connected buildings will still be subject to building code and accessibility requirements. Committee Member Karen L. White asked about the changes for small restaurants. Mark Dellostritto said they deleted those changes from the update, and the rules for small restaurants will remain as they are. Mark Dellostritto finished the presentation by highlighting some of the smaller changes. He said multi-story galleries will no longer require a variance, and the building types that can have rooftop amenity space are explicitly defined. Committee Vice Chair Tomas Morgan asked about the circumstances for allowing large vans to park in non-special districts. Mark Dellostritto said the exception for large van parking in non-special districts is only allowed for group residential care facilities and similar healthcare facilities. Committee Vice Chair Tomas Morgan spoke about the relaxed restrictions on ADU's. She said the changes make sense as an issue of fairness. Committee Chair Dr. Davis held the public hearing, and nobody spoke. Committee Member Warner thanked the zoning staff for their work on the ordinance updates. He said he was initially concerned about some of the proposed changes, but after viewing the zoning map and understanding where they would specifically apply, he thinks they make sense. Council President Canneth Lee thanked the presenters. EXCELLENCE I ACCOUNTABILITY I INNOVATION I INCLUSION I EMPOWERM ENT 300 City Hall I215 S. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. I South Bend, Indiana 46601 Ip. 574.235.9221 If. 574.235.9173 1 www.southbendin.gov @ CITY OF SOlITH BEND I OFFICE OF THE CITY CLERK Committee Member Warner moved to send Bill No. 22-26 to the Committee of the Whole with a favorable recommendation, which was seconded by Committee Vice Chair Tomas Morgan and carried by a vote of five (5) ayes. Committee Chair Dr. Oliver Davis -Aye Committee Vice Chair Rachel Tomas Morgan -Aye Committee Member Troy Warner -Aye Committee Member Karen L. White -Aye Citizen Member Stacey Odom -Aye , Committee Chair Dr. Davis adjourned the Zoning and Annexation 8P.M. 1ver Davis, Comm~ EXCELLENC E I ACCOUNTABILITY I INNOVATION I INCLUSION I EMPOWERMENT 300 City Hall I 215 S. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. I South Bend, Indiana 46601 Ip. 574.235.9221 If. 574.235.9173 ! www.southbendin.gov