Meeting Minutes JOINT MEETING OF THE BZA, PLAN COMMISSION AND REDEVELOPMENT COMMISSION AUGUST 9, 2006 The Joint Meeting of the Highland BZA, Plan Commission and Redevelopment Commission began at 8:20 PM on August 9, 2006 at the Municipal Building of the Town of Highland, 3333 Ridge Road. Member present from the BZA and Plan Commission included Judith Mayer, David Jones, Dallas Taylor, Tom Agler, Joseph Wszolek, and Daniel Buksa. Members present from the Redevelopment Commission were Rex Burton, Adam Gawlikowski, Dominic Noce, and Brice Johnson. Staff members present included Ken Mika, Director of Building and Inspection and Cecile Petro, Director of Redevelopment. Redevelopment Director Petro introduced the two speakers for the evening, Dr. Roy Evans, Purdue Calumet Professor, and Mr. Frank Mosko, the Redevelopment and Economic Development Director from Crown Point, IN. Dr. Roy Evans gave an overview of and the theory behind Overlay Districts and stressed the need for public review and scrutiny. He stressed that the process of developing an Overly District deals with private property and that government needs to keep this in mind as it strives for a vision for the district. An Overlay District, he continued, does not remove the existing zoning, it superimposes a set of design standards which must be decided upon by the Redevelopment Commission, reviewed through a public hearing, and approved by the Plan Commission. Mr. Frank Mosko provided practical day to day examples of the benefits of an Overlay District. He stated that in his experience successful communities use this method. Crown Point has five Overlay Districts. He credits the excellent working relationship among departmental staff with the success of this process. In Crown Point, staff from all departments meets to review an application. The Plan Commission receives only those applications which pass this departmental review and recommendation. Mr. Mosko also made a distinction between the need for zoning changes in a defined area (such as set-back requirements) and design standards imposed by an Overlay District for such things as building color and style, types of siding, roofs, and etc. Council President Joseph Wszolek gave a power point presentation on the proposed concept plan for the new Town Hall and Police Station. The meeting ended at approximately 9:30 PM. BACK TO MAIN MENU