By JONATHAN SNYDER
The Board of Zoning Appeals approved a variance to reduce the 25-foot requirement for road frontage for Bob Meyer’s property on South Main Street.
Meyer requested a variance to reduce the requirement for road frontage on his property to 12.5 feet. This will not require any changes to the road itself, but rather the 25 feet of asphalt will be split between a building owned by ANS Enterprises, and Meyer’s property.
Meyer plans on building a new indoor pickleball court facility with the property next to the ANS building. Meyer stated that there are a group of people in Bluffton who are avid players and the only indoor pickleball courts they can use are in the YMCA. Meyer’s new project hopes to reduce the headaches caused by the YMCA’s multi-purpose courts that pickleball is played on.
Meyer stated that the new facility should allow people to play on their schedule with their friends. After paying a monthly fee for facility maintenance, players will be able to declare their intentions to play at specific times on a smartphone application. Players will then be sent a passcode to unlock the building at that time and the lights will automatically turn on for them. The facility is also meant to be attendant-free, so costs can be kept as minimal as possible.
After the present board members — Tim Rohr, Tyson Brooks and Bill Dowty — voted to approve the variance, they expressed their excitement over the potential of the new facility. Tracy Gentis and Jerry Petzel were absent.
“That’ll be exciting,” said Brooks. “That’s cool.”
jonathan@news-banner.com
