By DAVE SCHULTZ
The first of a series of local comprehensive plans, put together by each of the municipalities in Wells County, is due for a review next month.
The Wells County Area Plan Commission will review Zanesville’s comprehensive plan at the APC’s Nov. 3 meeting. It is tentatively scheduled for a town hall meeting that would be part of a Zanesville Town Council meeting Nov. 15.
Barbara O’Connor, a member of the Zanesville Town Council, was present at the APC’s meeting Thursday night at the Wells Carnegie Government Annex. She said the Nov. 15 meeting has not yet been confirmed.
That was one of several quick-fire items the APC discussed at its monthly meeting Thursday night. It fit in with a report from Michael Lautzenheiser, the APC’s executive director, that progress is being made on getting Vision 2035 — the update of the Wells County comprehensive plan — ratified by all of the APC’s stakeholder units of government before the end of the year.
Other matters discussed during the APC’s meeting Thursday included:
• A violation placed against property owned by Denny and Aimee Foss, 6010 S. Ind. 1, will require no more action from the APC. Lautzenheiser said a structure will soon house a vehicle at the site, bringing the need for violation enforcement to an end.
• In terms of revitalization, Saturday night will be the final event at the Parlor City Plaza for 2020. A Chili Walk will also be held Saturday night and the band Roustabout will perform on the plaza. Also, Lautzenheiser said the Downtown Pathways project will apply for a Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative grant for funding.
• Reporting on trails, Lautzenheiser reported on a meeting earlier this week regarding a plan to build a trail along Ind. 124 between Main Street/Ind. 124 and Elm Grove Road. He also said two or three engineering students at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology will come to Bluffton and do design work to connect the Interurban Trail to the area of the Old Bluffton Cemetery.
• Lautzenheiser said 18 home permits have been taken out for the Parlor Bluffs housing development. “Things are moving very quickly out there,” he said. “We expected that to happen.”
• The APC members agreed to the proposed schedule of meetings for the APC, the Wells County Board of Zoning Appeals, and the Plat Committee. The APC meets on the first Thursday of each month and the BZA meets the fourth Tuesday of each month, with the Plat Committee meeting the first and third Thursday mornings of the month. The only change from that rotation is in December, when the BZA will meet on Dec. 19 rather than the day after Christmas, Dec. 26.
Seven members of the APC — Harry Baumgartner Jr., Tyson Brooks, Jarrod Hahn, Bill Horan, Josh Hunt, Jerome Markley, and Tim Rohr — attended Thursday night’s meeting in person, while Melissa Woodworth attended remotely. Cory Elzey, John Schuhmacher, and Becky Stone-Smith were not present.
daves@news-banner.com
