It was standing room only at the Troy Township Trustees meeting Oct. 18, with amendments to the township zoning resolution on the table.
It was standing room only at the Troy Township Trustees meeting Oct. 18, with amendments to the township zoning resolution on the table.
A few dozen residents and businesspeople sat in silence as trustees worked their way through the agenda until it came time for public comment.
Trustee Len Barcikoski opened the session by announcing a hearing on proposed zoning amendments will be held at 6 p.m. Nov. 7 at the town hall, but participation was welcome at the Oct. 18 meeting.
After a few questions were answered, he reassured the crowd the trustees will not vote on the amendments until after the public has a chance to speak and Trustee Sharon Simms said the time and date for the hearing have been published.
The three amendments were proposed by the Troy Township Zoning Commission and sent to the Geauga County Planning Commission for suggestions.
Two have minor verbiage changes made to update the document, but the third is the subject of some concern among businesspeople, Trustee Donn Breckenridge said during an interview Oct. 31, adding the planning commission did not approve the third one, but also did not suggest any changes.
The planning commission does not have authority in the matter, he said.
Article I, Section 403.0 has a number of sentences and paragraphs crossed out with changes and additions recorded in red.
It included a handful of new permitted uses, such as physical fitness facilities, restaurants, licensed daycare facilities and licensed residential care facilities.
Gas service stations would be limited to the sale of motor fuels and buffer zones between residential properties and commercial properties would be increased to 150 feet and include screening by landscaping or mounds.
If the amendment is passed, the resolution would not apply to wind farms, amateur radio station antenna, biodiesel, biomass or electric for heat production, or limited methane gas production on agricultural property, the document shows. Agra-tourism also is not regulated by the amendment.
Breckenridge said the purpose of the amendment to the township zoning resolution is to maintain the rural character of the community and keep traffic along U.S. Highway 422 from getting worse.
U.S. 422 is primarily four lanes wide, but narrows to two lanes through the township’s commercial district, creating a traffic bottleneck at certain times of the day, he said.
Traffic along the highway was a top priority in a residential survey done in 2020, Breckenridge said, adding he is particularly concerned with the growing number of trucking and transportation businesses that have set up in Troy in the last few years.
“It went from two to six since 2020,” he said.
In 2020, trustees added trucking and transportation to the list of 14 service establishments allowed in the township. The amendment deletes it from the list.
“I’m not just picking on trucks — its traffic, total — but trucks are a big problem,” Breckenridge said.
In December, Forever Land LLC of Twinsburg purchased the Mulligan Pub and Putting Range at 13768 Main Market Road. Breckenridge said the company has submitted a site plan for a truck depot with 50 parking spaces for trucks.
While more businesses can mean more tax dollars, commercial and industrial growth in the township means more fire and police protection may be needed, and water quality and wastewater disposal could become a problem, he said.
Troy has about 18 businesses along Main Market Road and fewer than 1,000 homes, the trustee said.
Breckenridge said he is not against growth. He pointed to the Great Lakes Industrial Park as an example of good growth.
“We’re trying to make it conducive for residents, the township and businesses. We’re looking to the future,” he said. “The desire is to protect and preserve the character of our community while providing for orderly growth with responsible development that protects the public health and safety of the township, its businesses and its residents now and into the future.”
