La Porte approves variances to redevelop portion of Scott Field into townhomes; park board and police offered conditional support

The La Porte Board of Zoning Appeals on Dec. 18 approved a package of variances to redevelop roughly two-thirds (about 2.35 acres) of the eastern portion of Scott Field into a cluster of townhomes and smaller lots, while preserving about 1 acre for park use.

Craig Phillips and staff described the proposal as a cottage-court design with homes facing an internal green and an encircling alley. Staff recommended reductions including a front-yard setback to 10 feet, side-yard adjustments that allow a 0-foot setback on one side (with a total of 10 feet between paired units), a rear-yard reduction to 5 feet, a minimum lot area change to 4,000 sq. ft. and a lot-width reduction to 40 feet.

Park superintendent Mark Schreiber and park-board member Mitch Pike told the board the park board studied the parcel in the park master plan and had voted to support development of a portion of Scott Field after multi-year vetting. Schreiber said retaining and improving about 1 acre of parkland, plus proposed ADA and amenity upgrades, aligns with park goals.

Assistant Chief Jim Ferguson presented calls-for-service data: the department recorded about 250 calls for service to Scott Field over three years, including suspicious-person and disturbance calls; Ferguson said the park’s current layout (backs of homes facing the site and limited street frontage) makes policing and visibility difficult. He said converting part of the parcel to fronting homes could improve oversight.

Residents raised concerns about loss of open space and whether incidents were concentrated in the green vs. the playground; staff and the police said the reporting system aggregates calls to Scott Field and that incident-level breakdown can be provided on request. The park department said it has applied for UEA funding to add ADA improvements and a new basketball court to the retained portion of the park.

A motion to approve the variance petition for Scott Field was moved, seconded and approved by voice vote. Staff said the requested reductions are intended to match adjacent historic lot patterns and that permit-level engineering and maintenance easements will be part of final conditions.

What happens next: With variances approved, the petitioner must complete subdivision and permit-level reviews, secure any required funding for park improvements and coordinate construction sequencing with the Parks Department.