Aldermen send shelter-care zoning change to Planning and Zoning for public hearing

Aldermen voted to send a proposed zoning text amendment to the Planning and Zoning Board that would reclassify shelter care facilities in I-1 and I-2 industrial zones from a permitted use to a conditional use. The ordinance committee approved sending the amendment for a public hearing, with the earliest available Planning and Zoning meeting noted as Aug. 19.

The change was introduced by Alderman Marzak and discussed with City Planner Melissa King, who said she reviewed historical zoning tables and found the current allowance has been in place for several years. King told the committee that the East Court Street location used by Harbor House is zoned commercial and had obtained a conditional use permit, and that treating shelter care facilities as conditional uses in industrial zones would align those industrial zones with the city’s other districts. "The one that they have on East Court Street is zoned, commercial, and they just received a conditional use permit," King said.

Supporters at the meeting said a conditional-use requirement would allow review of location-specific factors such as hours of operation and proximity to residences or other commercial uses. Committee members noted the change would not affect facilities already permitted in commercial zones or group-home–style properties that fall under different definitions. The committee clarified that text amendments follow routine procedure and would proceed to Planning and Zoning for a public hearing; the committee confirmed the amendment could appear on the Planning and Zoning agenda as early as Aug. 19.

No regulatory or statutory citations were presented at the meeting; the action requested is a text amendment to the city zoning code and would require the Planning and Zoning Board public hearing process before returning to the council for final action. The committee recorded a roll-call vote approving the referral; multiple members voted in favor and the motion was approved without executive session.

Background: Under the city’s existing zoning table, shelter care facilities are a conditional use in commercial (C) districts and a permitted use in I-1 and I-2 industrial districts. The proposed text amendment would change those industrial allowances so that shelter care facilities would require a conditional use permit in I-1 and I-2, matching the treatment in other zones.