Developer seeks Palmyra letter of support for tax-credit townhomes; board gives conditional approval

A representative from Blue River Services asked the Palmyra Town Council for a letter of support for a proposed tax-credit townhome development located near Catherine and Avery streets.

The presenter described the project as a townhome development with a community center and resident services and said the development team would apply to county planning and zoning for a planned unit development. "We would need a letter of support from you in order to take that to planning and zoning," the representative said.

Board members focused questions on stormwater and utility capacity. The developer said the site would use a detention basin designed to match pre-development discharge rates for storm events (the two-year, 10-year and 100-year design standards were referenced). The presenter said the basin would drain along the same path that now moves through nearby sinkholes and that detailed construction plans and hydrant counts (estimated three to five hydrants) would be provided during subsequent planning steps.

The board and staff raised procedural items: notification to neighboring properties during the planning-and-zoning process, whether parts of the project area would require annexation or street/ alley vacation, and the need to verify town vs. county mapping and authority. The project team said they would provide full site and construction plans to the town and the county when ready.

After discussion, board members made a motion to move forward with drafting a letter of support similar to one used previously for a zone change, with approval described as pending final details and attorney/county verification. The board asked the developer to provide an emailed draft of the letter and to coordinate with staff on required documentation.

The presentation and conditional motion do not commit the town to a final endorsement; board members explicitly tied the letter to future verification and to the plan-commission and county-commission review process.