PLYMOUTH — A proposed housing project on Plymouth’s west side cleared a hurdle of having the property re-zoned on Monday when the Plymouth Common Council voted to change the property from an I (Heavy Industrial) zone to an R4 (Multi-Family residential).
Sarah Ford, representing Wallick Communities, an Ohio-based company, appeared before the Council to ask for them to rezone the property in order for the company to build a 50-unit housing development. The proposal was sent to the Council with no recommendation from the Plymouth Plan Commission, who had two separate motions fail with only five votes of the needed six votes to pass the 11-person board, one to table, one to deny. Two members were absent during the hearing in the Plan Commission.
Ford outlined the proposed project for the Council, which would be a 50-unit apartment complex for which the company is seeking a grant from the state of Indiana to help with construction. That grant would allow the company to have equity in the project and allow them to offer rents at a lower rate; however, the rents would be at the market rate. Residents would be responsible for their rent, and approval for residency would be income-based without a government subsidy.
Ford said that Wallick had chosen Plymouth for the building since it was “highly incentivized” by the state agency, since studies had shown that 20 percent of the population is “rent burdened”, meaning they spend more than 30 percent of their income toward housing. The tenants considered would have 80 percent of the median income for the area, or around $75,000. Rents for the properties would range from $620 to $1400, depending on a market study.
She said that if the project continued, the site would be subject to ongoing inspections from state agencies and their lenders to ensure the property was properly maintained.
Wallick would maintain and manage the property for a minimum of 15-30 years with full-time staff on site for maintenance and management.
Several residents of the area came forward to speak against the project, citing studies that showed an increased crime rate in areas of population density, along with increased traffic and decreased property values. Several brought up a large number of complaints against Wallick at their other projects.
Plan Director Ty Adley and Plymouth City Attorney Jeff Houin advised the board that the only decision before them was whether they felt that a multi-family residential zoning was more compatible with the neighborhood than its current zoning, which could allow any sort of heavy industrial development without having to come before city government for approval.
The Council voted 6-1 to approve the rezoning, with Kayla Krathwohl voting no.
