OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Lake County Plan Commission Meeting - November 19, 2025

County Boards & Commissions — Wednesday, November 19, 2025
BodyLake County, Indiana
SessionCounty Boards & Commissions
DateWednesday, November 19, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
0:06

I'm here as a witness.

0:11

Hey guys, say goodbye.

0:18

Everyone, I'm gonna call this uh this meeting of the uh planning commission to order.

0:22

If we could all stand for the Pledge of Allegiance, please.

0:25

I pledge allegiance to the United States of America under God with liberty and just the following is the emergency exit announcement in case of an emergency.

0:47

Exit the commissioner's courtroom, proceed to the stairs and go to the second floor and exit the building.

0:51

Do not enter an elevator in an emergency.

0:54

Require assist assistance, a plan commission employee will assist or escort you.

0:58

Please silence any cell phones during this meeting.

1:00

If you receive a call during this meeting, please excuse yourself with as little disruption as possible to these proceedings.

1:06

All right, thank you.

1:10

Present.

1:11

Rebecca Phelps.

1:12

Christina Mellon.

1:14

Present.

1:15

Jim Metro.

1:17

Ken Houston.

1:18

Present.

1:19

Paul Pamber.

1:20

Here.

1:21

Frank Cobit is President.

1:23

Jerry T.

1:24

Here.

1:25

Here.

1:26

We have a quorum.

1:27

I think a core with blue shirts.

1:30

All right.

1:31

Oh, you didn't get the memo.

1:32

Yeah, we're the outline.

1:37

It's the same extension.

1:38

It's a it's a weird night.

1:39

Wow.

1:40

Yeah, that is true.

1:42

All right.

1:42

Uh here's uh the one thing we have in our communications is before you should be the projected meeting dates for 2026.

1:50

Um no need to take action tonight.

1:52

Just take those home and we'll be ready to take action on adopting those meeting dates at the December meeting.

2:00

And I'll defer to Mr.

2:01

Kovachevich if there's any other communications to come before you.

2:05

I do have a couple of things.

2:06

The one thing is if you'll if you notice in the emails I sent out to you, I sent you the supply on renewable energy for the power projects and planners.

2:16

I failed.

2:18

It says register here, but you can't use that as a hyperlink off of the PDF I sent you.

2:23

So I started looking at it, wondering, is this really a webinar or what can I do?

2:28

And then I went back to the email, which I'll send you all tomorrow.

2:32

Um from Kyla Wright from Purdue.

2:36

Is she from Purdue?

2:37

I think so.

2:39

And um I'll send that to you in case you're interested.

2:43

It's a it's a webinar about um project, power projects and planning discussion on electricity, large loads, and community preparedness.

2:52

And since we already, since we just recently received an application for a data center that will be in front of you, I hope next month for a study session, but we haven't even the ad hasn't even gone out yet.

3:05

So until we know that the ad goes out and that they return the certificate mailing.

3:12

Certificate of mailing to we know they mailed it to all of the property owners within 500 feet.

3:17

We won't know for sure, but it sure looks like you're gonna be getting uh a data center, uh data center requests.

3:25

That's one of the items.

3:26

The other item I think we could talk about it later, is the report that both um Christian, and I don't know if he wants to talk about it or not, did on the variances of use that we talked about last month, sent that out about a month ago to you, and then Christian responded.

3:43

So that's really about all I have on what you guys said.

3:47

Send a couple of letters to NIPSCO, one regarding the towers that they're constructed because I had a had uh a couple of conversations with people that called in about it, and then another one on the coordination, the coordination of um I don't want to get too involved in this, but for a lot of these data centers, they have to build independent substations.

4:11

So I sent a letter to NIPSCO about the coordination on substation development and permitting, and we'll see if they respond at the easy they're on impotent anyway, so we'll see whether or not they should like respond or not.

4:26

All right.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Comment████████████████████████████28%
Zoning Regulations████████████████16%
Land Use Planning██████████10%
Engineering And Infrastructure██████████10%
Licensing Procedures█████████9%
Procedural██████6%
Pending Litigation█████5%
Agritourism Regulation████4%
Public Safety███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Lake County Plan Commission Meeting - November 19, 2025

The Lake County Plan Commission met on November 19, 2025 at 5:30 PM to consider several agenda items including subdivision extensions, waivers, special exception recommendations to the Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA), and a study session on a rezoning request. The meeting was called to order with a quorum present.

Consent Calendar

  • Minutes: The minutes from the September meeting were approved unanimously.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Orchard Estates Extension (25-XP-01): Patrick Rivers (neighbor) expressed concerns about sewer line construction through his backyard but received assurance from the petitioner that directional boring would be used. No opposition to the extension.
  • Short-Term Rental (25-SE-05): Multiple residents of Emerald Crossing subdivision voiced strong opposition to allowing a non-owner-occupied short-term rental at 15018 W. 104th Avenue. Lauren Hare described a prior incident where a bullet from a long-term renter nearly struck her infant son. Other neighbors cited safety, noise, and property value concerns. Written comments from several residents were also submitted.
  • Agritourism (25-SE-06): Robert Banzer (neighbor) spoke in support of Cross Creek Ranch's agritourism plans, noting prior cattle auctions on the property caused no issues.
  • Solid Fill (25-SE-07): Multiple neighbors (Joe Haddock, Brian Lennock, Rich Miller, Dan Rohley) testified against Aaron Hacker's after-the-fact fill permit, alleging extensive fill dumping (60+ truckloads), drainage damage, and a pattern of non-compliance. Dan Rohley, a 26-year BZA member from Crown Point, called for a comprehensive review.
  • Study Session (25-SS-06): Vern (no last name) spoke against the proposed rezoning for trailer rentals, claiming the applicant operates 50 trailers across two properties and that it constitutes spot zoning harming the veterans memorial.
  • General Public Comment: A resident raised concerns about data center development in Hobart, urging county oversight. Vern also addressed the study session issue.

Discussion Items

  1. 25-XP-01 PC – Orchard Estates Extension: Doug Homeyerworth (engineer) requested a one-year extension of primary plat approval. Staff offered no objection. Public comment was addressed. Approved unanimously.
  2. 25-W-08 PC & 25-PS-06 PC – Purkey Acres Waiver and Primary Plat: Glenn Crockett explained the need for a flag lot to create two equal 5-acre lots from a 10-acre remnant. All agency approvals obtained. No public comment. Both approved unanimously.
  3. 25-SE-04 BZA – Bilka Backyard Cottage: Doug Bredinger requested a special exception for a backyard cottage in an existing pole barn on A-1 land. No public comment. Unanimous favorable recommendation to BZA.
  4. 25-SE-05 BZA – Nedic Short-Term Rental (Non-Owner-Occupied): Kevin Warner (attorney) presented the request. Staff clarified property lacks homestead exemption, and non-owner-occupied short-term rentals require a special exception. After extensive public opposition and discussion of prior incidents, the Commission voted to recommend an unfavorable recommendation to the BZA (motion, seconded, all in favor).
  5. 25-SE-06 BZA – Cross Creek Ranch Agritourism: Tim Kuiper described plans on a 93-acre parcel rezoned to A-1 earlier in 2025. Highway Department recommended a traffic study; petitioner argued it was unnecessary. Public supported. Commission voted 8-1 to recommend favorable to BZA (Commissioner Alverson dissented on traffic grounds).
  6. 25-SE-07 BZA – Hacker Solid Fill: Tim Kuiper presented an after-the-fact special exception request. Staff noted outstanding issues including drainage plan, permits for other structures, and ongoing litigation. Neighbors detailed extensive fill volumes and drainage problems. Commission deferred the matter to the next meeting to allow comprehensive review (unanimous).
  7. 25-SS-06 PC – Pochron Study Session (Rezoning to B-2): Matthew Pochron and his father presented to rezone from A-1 to B-2 for trailer rentals. Attorneys confirmed no alternative exists. Commissioners expressed concerns about spot zoning and undesirable uses; some suggested restrictive conditions and screening. Study session concluded with direction to explore conditions and return with a formal application.

Key Outcomes

  • Approved (unanimous): Orchard Estates extension (25-XP-01), Purkey Acres waiver and primary plat (25-W-08, 25-PS-06), favorable recommendation to BZA for Bilka backyard cottage (25-SE-04).
  • Approved (8-1): Favorable recommendation to BZA for Cross Creek Ranch agritourism (25-SE-06). Commissioner Alverson dissented.
  • Denied (unanimous): Unfavorable recommendation to BZA for Nedic short-term rental (25-SE-05).
  • Deferred (unanimous): Hacker solid fill special exception (25-SE-07) deferred to December 2025 BZA meeting due to unresolved issues.
  • No action: Study session on Pochron rezoning (25-SS-06) – information gathered; applicant to consider conditions before formal application.

Meeting Transcript

I'm here as a witness. Hey guys, say goodbye. Everyone, I'm gonna call this uh this meeting of the uh planning commission to order. If we could all stand for the Pledge of Allegiance, please. I pledge allegiance to the United States of America under God with liberty and just the following is the emergency exit announcement in case of an emergency. Exit the commissioner's courtroom, proceed to the stairs and go to the second floor and exit the building. Do not enter an elevator in an emergency. Require assist assistance, a plan commission employee will assist or escort you. Please silence any cell phones during this meeting. If you receive a call during this meeting, please excuse yourself with as little disruption as possible to these proceedings. All right, thank you. Present. Rebecca Phelps. Christina Mellon. Present. Jim Metro. Ken Houston. Present. Paul Pamber. Here. Frank Cobit is President. Jerry T. Here. Here. We have a quorum. I think a core with blue shirts. All right. Oh, you didn't get the memo. Yeah, we're the outline. It's the same extension. It's a it's a weird night. Wow. Yeah, that is true. All right. Uh here's uh the one thing we have in our communications is before you should be the projected meeting dates for 2026. Um no need to take action tonight. Just take those home and we'll be ready to take action on adopting those meeting dates at the December meeting. And I'll defer to Mr. Kovachevich if there's any other communications to come before you. I do have a couple of things. The one thing is if you'll if you notice in the emails I sent out to you, I sent you the supply on renewable energy for the power projects and planners. I failed. It says register here, but you can't use that as a hyperlink off of the PDF I sent you. So I started looking at it, wondering, is this really a webinar or what can I do? And then I went back to the email, which I'll send you all tomorrow. Um from Kyla Wright from Purdue. Is she from Purdue? I think so. And um I'll send that to you in case you're interested. It's a it's a webinar about um project, power projects and planning discussion on electricity, large loads, and community preparedness.

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