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REGULAR MEETING FEBRUARY 13, 2017
<br />by this issue, not the City. I believe that if you people lived in the County, and you were going to
<br />be affected by this issue, you would be very disheartened, frustrated, disgusted that people who
<br />don't even live in the County, that won't even be affected by this issue, are going to simply raise
<br />their hand and go, "Well, we've decided we're going to change your livelihood out here. You're
<br />not going to be able to ride bikes anymore, and your kids aren't going to be able to ride bikes
<br />anymore, because there are going to be trucks rolling down the road, now." These people want a
<br />voice. They have no voice. Mr. Frank asked the Council if they would allow residents of German
<br />Township who were present to raise their hands if they were against the issue, such that the
<br />Council could see how many there were. He then asked for those residents of German Township
<br />who voted any of the Councilmembers into office to raise their hands. Seeing none, he stated,
<br />Nobody voted for you. You don't represent anybody. I think that anybody that is sitting up here,
<br />that understands the process at all, would say that this is totally unfair and that the only way that
<br />you can resolve this issue fairly is to ask the people that are being affected. Why don't we bring
<br />our decision - making process into the 21 sc Century?
<br />Carol Hitchman, 51719 Mayflower Road, South Bend, IN, stated, Since the industrial park has
<br />gone in that area, our crime rate has gone up. In the last five (5) months, there have been major
<br />break -ins throughout our area and in the immediate area adjacent to the industrial park. She
<br />stated that those in her community valued peace, quiet, and nature highly. She stated, The area
<br />out there does not support the type of traffic that's being asked of it. She stated that the few
<br />trucks going in and out of the building would not bother her so much as the several hundred cars
<br />going in and out of the building. She stated that the development is slated to have three - hundred
<br />(300) parking spots. Ms. Hitchman pointed out that if two- hundred (200) cars show up per shift,
<br />that would mean that at some point there would be four- hundred (400) cars at a particular point
<br />of the day, with one - hundred (100) of them unable to park. She asked, Where are the additional
<br />hundred (100) cars going to go? There are no streets for them to park on. Ms. Hitchman paused
<br />as if awaiting a response, then stated, If you don't have an answer for it, how are we supposed to
<br />figure out where we are supposed to be? If you have not taken into account all of the impacts of
<br />this project, I don't see how you can possibly approve something like this.
<br />Will Davis, 23267 Adams Road, South Bend, IN, pointed to the displayed site plan provided by
<br />the petitioner to show to the Council and public where he lives in relation to the proposed
<br />development. Mr. Davis stated that he and his fiancee love their home, explaining that he
<br />researched the area before they made their home purchase. He stated that everything about the
<br />zoning of the site looked good to him when he decided to move into the neighborhood. He stated
<br />that what he saw in the site was a giant area that could be renovated into something like a park or
<br />a golf course, and the area behind his house, on the east side of Mayflower Road, could be
<br />another neighborhood. He stated that there would be a big problem with traffic flow and that
<br />there would be a lot of condensed semi - trucks, and that people trying to get to work on the east
<br />or west side of Adams Road would be inhibited. He stated that he had proposed to the petitioner
<br />that they offer those residing in a particular quadrant —which he pointed out for the Council and
<br />public —be offered a buy -out so that they would not have to see the facility every day, arguing
<br />that the proposed landscaping measures would not sufficiently obscure it. Mr. Davis concluded
<br />by reiterating his preference for a park or golf course and asking, Why not increase property
<br />values over here by doing something nice for people who live in this area already?
<br />Randall Chrobot, 24554 Rolling Oak Drive, South Bend, IN, stated that he had, on the previous
<br />Thursday, sent each member of the Council an email outlining his objections regarding the
<br />negative effects of the proposed rezoning. Mr. Chrobot stated, I'm not going to take the time to
<br />reiterate those concerns, but I would like to make a few additional comments. He stated that he
<br />objected to the rezoning of the property to Light Industrial, arguing that rezoning it as such
<br />would compound the traffic problem. He called to question the notion that this site is only visited
<br />daily by four (4) or five (5) trucks, stating that it struck him as illogical that this is the only site
<br />with four (4) or five (5) trucks that has access to the bypass. He brought up the study on Adams
<br />Road, referenced by Mr. Smoke in his earlier exchange with Councilmember Davis, stating that
<br />the study was done west of Orange Road and had no relevancy to the area in question. He stated
<br />that notices were sent from the City to residents within three - hundred (300) feet of the proposed
<br />rezoning, but that German Township residents were not aware of any developments until the last
<br />minute. He stated, There has been discussion about the meetings that German Township and
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