The public hearing for the updated zoning code will be at 5:15 p.m., and the hearing on the updated zoning map will start at 7 p.m. Both hearings will be at the Warren County Administration Building, 406 Justice Drive, in Lebanon.
Zoning officials said the code was established in 1959. It was adopted in 1972 and amended in 2003.
Mike Yetter, county zoning officer, said the feedback and suggestions were addressed and incorporated into the proposed code following public information meetings held around the county earlier this year.
He said a major challenge was getting residents to understand why the code needed updating.
“Once it was explained to them, they seemed to understand,” he said. “I’m not sure if everyone is 100 percent satisfied, but we heard all of the concerns.”
The changes were the result of complaints about zoning issues and past violations, he said.
Some changes include more flexible provisions for home businesses; updating landscaping and lighting standards; adding overlay districts along the Interstate 71 and 75 corridors; making the planned unit development provisions easier to understand; conservation design options to help preserve farmland and other open and recreational space; and mixed use zones that permit residential, business and commercial uses.
Terry Banker, a Turtlecreek Twp. resident, is concerned about mixed use zones.
“I think the main role of government is not to create or pretend to create jobs through mixed use zoning,” she said. “We have a lot of unsold, unleased and foreclosed commercial real estate property that’s crushing the taxpayers of Warren County.”
After the public hearings, the county commissioners will decide whether to adopt the proposed code. If approved, the new code would take effect 30 days later.
The proposed zoning code and map can be found at www.co.warren.oh.us/draftcodeandmap.htm.
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