Council refers zoning change to committee
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- Published on 24 July 2012
- Written by Jenn Lampila
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The Crete City Council referred a zoning change to the council’s Economic Development Committee for potential compromises to be reached on property at 1830 Grove.
Blaine Spanjer purchased the property and is requesting a zoning change from R-2, two-family residential, to C-3, highway commercial, in order to market the property to commercial buyers.
Spanjer said the zoning change would make the lots more attractive to developers looking for certain square footage. The change would creative a continuous zoning on about 32,000 square feet of land, he said.
The lots are located across Grove, east of Stop N Shop and west of the Crete Police Station.
Dave Hansen, chairperson of the Planning and zoning Commission, said the board recommends a buffer between R-2 and C-3 zones, but chose to forward any action to the council because of the indefinite development plans for the lots and opposition from neighbors.
Council members voted 5-0 (with Dave Bauer absent) to refer the matter to the Economic Development and Legislative committee to work out a possible compromise regarding buffer zones and a potential zoning change to only one half of the proposed lots.
Ourada later updated the council on new estimates for the West 13th bridge replacement. The Nebraska Department of Roads has now assigned the value of the project at $4.3 million, twice the original estimates.
This city and county project will have the two local entities splitting a percentage of the project not covered by government funds. The city had planned on its cost of $150,000 to $200,000. New projections could tally it at about $300,000.
The county has planned on using a portion of soft-match funds. With new estimates, they would be using more than $800,000 in soft-match money, Ourada said. No action was taken at this time.
The council also approved two items, one each for the Crete Police Department and Crete Volunteer Fire Department.
Police Chief Hensel requested the city declare numerous abandoned vehicles, taken in by the city, as surplus property. The department would like to clear space at the shooting range where the vehicles are currently being stored. Some vehicles will be earmarked for fire department training purposes.
New ambulance specifications are estimated at $150,000 and have been approved by the council’s Public Safety Committee and engineer. A bid opening is scheduled for Aug. 24 after advertisements have been made.
Library Director Lisa Olivigni said the Library board would like to start fundraising for a new building after a recent bequest of $50,000 was made toward that purpose.
For more on this story, see the July 25 print or e-editions of The Crete News.