BROWNSTOWN
The sale of a building in Brownstown can now move forward after a rezone request was approved.
Dennis Johnson submitted an application to the town’s plan commissioner, Conner Barnette, to rezone the 0.21-acre property at 419 S. Main St. from R-5 residential to DB downtown business.
Barnette said Johnson plans to open a bakery in the building but is in the early planning stages.
The property currently is owned by Marvin and Carolyn Huffman of Seymour.
“All of those properties right in there are zoned downtown business. I think this one just got missed,” Barnette said of the building that is next to CVS Pharmacy and also has a bank, a surveyor’s office and a dental office nearby.
“It has been an office building. Marvin Huffman has been operating out of there,” Barnette said. “Now, it has been a yard sale for like the last two years out front, so I’m not sure what they have going on.”
The property tax records on file with the county show in 2009, the zoning was changed from commercial to residential and went from a commercial medical office to a rental home.
Barnette said the rezone request unanimously was passed by the town’s plan commission, and no one attended a public hearing to speak in favor of or against the rezone. He said certified letters had been sent to all adjoining property owners.
Then town attorney Travis Thompson drafted an ordinance for the rezoning, which had to go through three readings with the town council.
The first reading passed during the May 20 meeting, and Barnette asked the council about waiving the second reading during its next meeting, which was June 3.
“The sale is pending approval of rezone, so if we could speed it up, I think it would be a good idea,” he said.
During the recent meeting, the council unanimously agreed to waive the second reading to advance the ordinance to the third and final reading. That also was unanimously approved.
