Sun Feb 12 2012
by Laura Freeman
Reporter
Hudson -- Zoning changes that would allow a greater variety of businesses in downtown could be restricted to an area near the railroad tracks if Council approves.
Previously, Council members did not want changes to the zoning code to apply to all of District 5 -- the historic and commercial center of the city, which includes Main Street and First & Main.
Community Development Director Tom King said some of the conditional uses, if allowed, were not appropriate for a shopping district.
King on March 9 proposed restricting the zoning change to an area 300 feet on each side of the railroad tracks in the area where tracks cross South Main, East Streetsboro and Owen Brown streets and that branches off toward Milford Road.
The zoning change was requested by Inez Butcher, who owns a partially vacant building at 137 Owen Brown St. and was seeking a zoning change to help her fill the 11,200-square-foot facility.
The planning commission on Feb. 8 recommended to Council to allow research laboratories, enclosed storage facilities, and workshops and custom small industry uses as conditional uses for buildings in the entire District 5 area.
Council members said they did not want the new conditional uses near shopping centers.
King said under his proposal, the rezoned area would be away from the shopping area.
Butcher will address Council at the public hearing scheduled for March 17 to ask the city to also allow warehousing, distribution and storage functions in the area.
King said the property owner would like Council to consider the additional request since the changes would be limited to a specific area.
"Since the area is targeted, they would like warehouse and distribution storage as uses," King said.
King said he was not in favor of the warehousing, distribution and storage uses because in most instances it involves large truck delivery and large storage spaces.
"The planning commission had a smaller vision with enclosed storage so it sends the wrong message to run counter to [their] opinion," King said.
Council will wait until after the public hearing to make any changes.
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