LEWIS CENTER — The Orange Township Zoning Commission has had a number of meetings in recent months, and here’s an overview of them.
• A continuation of zoning code rewrite discussions took place on March 12. The Orange Township Zoning Resolution in its present form is 303 pages. It has 11 articles, including districts, zones and subdistricts; landscaping, screening and buffering; parking, loading, and drive-throughs; nonconformities; regulations; signage; and use standards.
• There was a Zoning and Land Use Committee meeting on March 5.
• The Feb. 20 meeting was a continuation of the previous meeting, with comments regarding hotels, allowed uses, car washes and business incentives.
• The zoning code rewrite of Articles 1 and 2 were presented on Jan. 23, with questions and comments from each commission member.
• At another work session on Jan. 16, the commission heard another RCOD plan that included “a supermarket, a restaurant and retail building.” Several members of the public had questions and concerns.
• On Dec. 19, 2023, the Zoning Commission held a work session on a development plan application in the Route 23 Corridor Overlay District (RCOD) for Lewis Center Self Storage. “The plan proposed includes a single-story storage facility, a two-story storage facility and a three-story storage facility,” the minutes said. Since it was a work session, the commission didn’t vote but would have a future public hearing. The purpose of the meeting was to provide feedback for the applicant.
• A special meeting on Nov. 14, 2023, was canceled.
The Zoning Commission consists of Chair Christine Trebellas, Vice-Chair Dennis McNulty, Karthik Avadhanula, Rick Beer, Pamela Foster, Mark Freeman, Ciara Harris and Les Pierce. Also attending are Development and Zoning Director Robin Duffee, Senior Zoning Officer Brett Wiemken (later replaced by Eric Gayetsky) and Zoning Inspector Andrew Koenig.
“Zoning regulations establish a framework for land use activity within the township and can be seen in the quality and appearance of the residential, commercial, and industrial development within our boundaries,” said the Orange Township website. “Zoning is among the powers given to the township by the state legislature. Zoning is the classification and limitation of the use of lands and buildings and permits the township to regulate the development of territory and the use of land following development.”
For more information, visit www.orangetwp.org (website); Orange Township, Delaware County, Ohio (Facebook).
Assistant Editor Gary Budzak photographs and reports on stories in eastern Delaware County and surrounding areas.
