Status updated on properties facing Erie Street
LEE ZION, EDITOR
Harrison County Times-Reporter
People living along Erie Street will have an easier time if they wish to start a business. And the change won’t affect their taxes.
The Planning and Zoning Commission met at 7 a.m. Monday voted unanimously on an administrative change in how the town of Missouri Valley looks at properties. The commission is only an advisory board, and this vote must be passed on to the City Council.
The proposed rezoning change affects properties that face Erie Street, as well as adjoining properties, from the railroad tracks to about half a block north of Erie. The change is a way for the town to address its future needs, said planning commission member John Harrison.
The change affects 58 properties, he said at the Monday meeting.
These properties are residential, in area that is zoned as business. These will remain residential, Harrison said.
What changes is future use. So residents can rebuild if the building gets damaged, and the future buyers have the option of putting a business there, he said.
“We’re basically trying to be proactive for when the bypass does actually exist, and this becomes our main thoroughfare. And just open it up to where we can grow our city and grow our potentials,” said Minnie Fisher.
Also at the meeting, the town discussed several vacant city-owned properties. The city currently maintains them, but wants to get out of the business of maintaining the land. Instead, they would like to sell the property.
For example, 313 West Michigan Street, behind Foodland, could be suitable for an apartment building, Harrison said.
Some of the properties cannot be sold because they are in the floodplain, or because they are too small to build on, or are in the path of the proposed bypass. Harrison cited 315 S. Second St., which could be turned into a community garden.
Also at the meeting, the planning and zoning commission voted to move all future meetings to 7 a.m. at the Rand Community Center.
