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The Altoona Planning Commission this week discussed the proposed rezoning of 10 properties on the north side of Kettle Street between Grant and Baltzell avenues without formally recommending which way City Council should rule on the matter.
"(Still), no hard objections," said commission Chairman Dave Albright, when asked afterward to sum up the discussion about the proposal, which would change the properties from residential to mixed use.
The proposal originated with a request from Randy Beers of Beers Plumbing, Heating & Cooling, so that he can run his business there by "right" -- even though he'd already obtained a variance that enables him to operate.
Beers' proposal has appealed to council members, not only because it would align the zoning of Beers' and two other business parcels with their current uses, but also because it would make that stretch of Kettle more uniform and more consistent with neighboring properties.
The change would also "ease the burden" for business owners when there is a change of ownership or use, which generally would require them to petition the Zoning Hearing Board, said Codes Director Rebecca Brown.
Based on a provision in the planning code for "pre-existing non-conforming uses," those properties could become ineligible to continue in their current uses if there would be a lapse of a year or more, said Sabrina Appel-McMillen, the city's GIS and land use coordinator.
Commissioners expressed reservations about the necessity for the change.
There's nothing to prevent the current business owners from continuing undisturbed, Albright said.
It's not as though non-conforming property uses slip away easily, said Dick Haines, former Blair County planning director.
Caution is warranted in rezoning the properties, given what uses the proposed new zoning would allow, said Commissioner Michael Haire.
One brake on potentially objectionable uses if the change is made is the small size of the lots and the unlikelihood of anyone being able to amass enough of them to establish a hotel, for example, one commissioner said.
Rezoning the stretch would ease restrictions on the current businesses in case of ownership or usage changes, said Zoning Hearing Board solicitor Bill Stokan in a phone interview.
Each variance is based on a Zoning Board decision, which often includes conditions -- including ending the variance when there is a use or ownership change, Stokan said.
Even variances that don't include conditions are nevertheless tied to particular uses of properties, and a significant change in use that adds to the "intensity" of what goes on may be prohibited, zoning officials have said.
Conversely, rezoning the stretch on Kettle could create concern for the owners of the residential properties behind them, because of the potential uses that the new zoning would allow, Stokan said.
Council will hold a hearing on the proposed rezoning ordinance before considering it for adoption.
The city is likely to revisit its entire zoning scheme in the aftermath of a new comprehensive plan that a consultant is starting soon, Brown said.
Mirror Staff Writer William Kibler is at 814-949-7038.