The Area Plan Commission (APC) met on Thursday, September 3, 2026, at 3:25 PM in the Civic Center Complex to consider several rezoning petitions, subdivision plats, sidewalk waivers, and ordinances. Key decisions included recommending approval of a controversial rezoning at 2713 Jeanette Ave (5-3), unanimous approval of a Franklin Street rezone, unanimous denial of a Walmart neighborhood market and gas station proposal on Millersburg Road, and approval of a data center permit deferral ordinance. The meeting included extended public testimony and a birthday recognition.
Re: 2713 Jeanette Ave (REZ-2026-003):
Re: 2453-2457 W. Franklin St (REZ-2026-025):
Re: 4605 Millersburg Rd & adjacent (REZ-2026-026 – Walmart Neighborhood Market):
Continued Rezone – 2713 Jeanette Ave (REZ-2026-003): Petitioner Ronald Strahl sought to rezone from R-1 to M-2 with UDC. Commissioner discussion noted the third unit was built without permits, but the representative claimed it was pre-existing. The applicant argued the third unit is vacant and will be brought into compliance. Commissioner Philip expressed discomfort with illegal construction. Motion to approve passed 5-3 (Nix, Philip, Stevens voted no; Freeman abstained). The recommendation moved to City Council.
Rezone – 2453-2457 W. Franklin St (REZ-2026-025): Unanimous approval (8-0) to rezone from C-1 to R-2 to legalize existing duplexes. Commissioners noted the properties have been duplexes for decades and the rezoning brings them into conformance.
Rezone – 4605 Millersburg Rd & adjacent (REZ-2026-026): Extensive debate. Commissioner Pedtke opposed, citing decades of private and public investment in the residential/agricultural character of the area (subdivisions, sports park, walkway). He argued the intensity of the Walmart proposal would disrupt existing land use. Commissioner Walters noted other C-4 sites exist on Green River Road and questioned why this site was chosen. Commissioner Stevens said she was not opposed to something else there but not this. Commissioner Green normally supports revenue-generating projects but felt the location was inappropriate. Commissioner Hooper stated they should listen to the suburban neighborhood. Motion to approve (by Walters) and second resulted in unanimous denial (8-0). The recommendation for denial goes to the County Commissioners (meeting September 29, 2026, at 9:30 AM).
Subdivisions & Sidewalk Waivers:
Ordinance – Data Center Permit Deferral: Approved unanimously (8-0) as a recommendation to City Council. The ordinance establishes a 180-day deferral period for data center permits, starting upon city council approval, to allow evaluation of impacts.
Ordinance – County Parking Ordinance (CO.05-26-011): The APC had previously recommended approval; the County Commissioners rejected it. The APC then voted 8-0 to accept the rejection. A revised ordinance will be drafted and brought back in October for a new vote.
2027 Application Deadline & Meeting Schedule: Approved unanimously (8-0).
Say thank you. Thank you. Did you have were you remonstrated? Did you have your hand up? Yeah, come on up. Please state your name and address for the record. Hi. Right Jarbo, 822 East Powell. One of I think it kind of ties in with what you had asked also. Our cities being on the older sewer plan, our section of the city. Using that alley where primarily our sewers go through. I think that increased traffic may, and it's entirely possible that that section of alley is not on running sewer, but I do have concerns, and people in the neighborhood had concerns about the increased traffic on the alley. I know four cars when we have dump trucks going through, it doesn't seem to matter much, but once you get that repeated traffic going over those old sewers, it is a concern for some of the citizens in the neighborhood. Thank you, Mr. Jarbo. Any questions for Mr. Jarbo? Okay, were there any other remonstrators? Oh, come on up. State your name and address for the record. And I know you'll add something that we haven't already heard. Yeah. Good afternoon, Stephanie Gibson, 831 East Powell Avenue, Evansville, past president of the neighborhood association. My concern is that this property owner does not seem to be concerned or respectful of the fact that we're a historically designated area. And while this is on the rear of the area, it is still within the area. The commercial property that's there was there before the designation, and it's not necessarily compromising any of the things with the historical neighborhood. However, the flagrancy of not doing anything up to code just sort of spits in the face of everything we do as far as maintaining historical documentation that things in this neighborhood try to stay a status quo as is possible. We're not as finite as First Avenue, and for that reason we can have siding on our homes and those other things that regular working people can afford. So I would just like to put that into perspective that yes, there are people who need homes. But the reality of it is that neighborhood is not zoned for that many people as he would like to put in. Yes, the city did build homes farther down the block. We had no knowledge ahead of time, or you can bet we'd have been down here. So I would just like to put another little feather in the cap of all those things that are not pleasing. Okay, thank you so much. All right, any questions? Okay. Any other remonstrators? Okay, Mr. Lehman, if you want to give your summation. So in response uh to the um this owner has owned the property for I believe almost two years. Uh the current property manager um took the property over, I believe it I believe you said the end of May of last year of uh 2025. So we are in the process of they're not currently violating um any city uh any city code right now. Like I said, the basement, the third unit is not being occupied. So just because there's a unit there doesn't mean that's a violation. Um they are in the process of trying to go through and get all of this stuff taken care of uh to make it legal to make it compliant, which is why I'm here. Um the site will be uh improved throughout this this process. Um and regarding the on-street parking, I drive a 22-foot super duty, and the two times that I've been by the property, I've was able to pull up right in front of the house with no issues whatsoever. I'm not saying that there's always open spots on the street. I'm just saying uh one was about 8 30 at night and the other one was about four in the afternoon. Um I didn't have any issues parking myself.