Pulaski County Plan Commission offers grace period for property owners to file for rezoning

The Pulaski County Commissioners established the Plan Commission in 2007. The first task of the Commission was to develop and implement a Comprehensive Plan. In April and May of 2008, a series of public meetings was held to receive input on a Comprehensive Plan, which included first-draft zoning maps. In addition to the meetings, surveys were distributed to all local libraries and via local newspapers. The completed Comprehensive Plan was approved by the Pulaski County Commissioners in April 2009.

Throughout the process of developing the Comprehensive Plan, the Plan Commission also met regularly to draft ordinances to support the Plan. Drafts were prepared and distributed, and a public hearing was held in August 2009. Changes were made to the ordinances based on citizen input at that meeting.

The focus then shifted to the completion of zoning maps, the initial drafts having been included in the Comprehensive Plan. These maps are necessary to support the ordinances and the Comprehensive Plan. The proposed maps were presented in draft form at a public meeting held in June 2011. Property owners were invited to review the maps and to make comments and suggestions to the Plan Commission. Following that meeting, changes were made based on citizen input.

Following the completion of the maps, the proposed ordinances and maps were presented to the Pulaski County Commissioners in October 2011 and were approved at that time.

Many property owners are still unaware that the Comprehensive Plan, supporting ordinances, and maps have been approved. Some property owners may be using their property for a purpose not supported by current zoning. Current owners will not have to change the use, but it is possible that future owners would need to request a zoning change or change the use of the property. To accommodate those owners, the Commission is offering a final opportunity to review the maps and to apply for rezoning if property owners believe the current use should be allowed to continue if their land is sold.

The following stipulations apply:

The property owner must submit a written explanation why the parcel should have been zoned for future use as well as present use.
The property owner must make application to have their property rezoned. This application carries a $350 fee.
The property owner will be responsible for payment of advertising fees and will also be responsible for notifying neighbors of the property in question. These costs are in addition to the application fee. Some economies of scale may be available if advertising and/or notification can be combined in advance of a public hearing.
If the Plan Commission agrees that the property should be zoned for future use, the $350 application fee will be waived and/or refunded. If not, the property owner will be responsible for the application fee.
Following this grace period, beginning on Nov. 2, 2012, all applications for rezoning will require payment of the fee.

The Plan Commission is advisory only. While the Commission may agree with the property owner, the Commission is only able to make a recommendation to the Pulaski County Commissioners, who hold final approval.

Property owners are invited to contact Dave Dare, Plan Administrator (574-946-7858, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) to view the maps and to make application.