A petition to rezone property located at South Hwy 99 and West Elm Street in Stroud from Agriculture to Commercial Highway was denied on Sep. 8 at a public hearing of the Planning Commission and Board of Adjustment.
Four members voted against the rezoning, while one abstained.
The motion had overwhelming opposition from residents who live in nearby neighborhoods and showed up in force, packing the council room.
Many were concerned about the rezoning itself, which could open up the property to be used for just about anything other than a storage facility in the future.
Others were concerned about the safety of Elm Street with the introduction of a commercial business and increased traffic.
Additional worries mentioned at the hearing were light and noise pollution.
Overall, those against the rezoning were so out of efforts to preserve the beauty and calm of the neighborhood around the property.
In addition to the residents who attended the hearing, two petitions against the rezoning were submitted to the planning commission.
Michael Boyles, who submitted the petition along with Jennifer Hinman, also attended the hearing, thanking the residents for bringing their concerns.
Before the vote was taken, he said that he would consider other locations in Stroud for the facility. He plans to build a climatecontrolled storage facility.
Chairperson Kent Clovis said after the motion failed that he hopes City Manager Bob Pearman and the planning committee can work with Boyles to find another location that would be a better fit for his business.
He said from his standpoint, it wasn’t a matter of what Boyles wanted to do with the property, but rather what could happen to it in the future after being rezoned.
“Being on this committee for 32 years now, I’ve had people come in, they promised to do something. It didn’t work out for them.
“And the next thing you know, something’s on that property since it’s rezoned Commercial Highway that’s really offensive,” he said.
“And that’s the reason I could not in good conscience, go from Ag to Commercial Highway.”