Commissioners approve Hard Truth Hills rezoning
The Brown County Commissioners voted unanimously to approve the rezoning of land for Hard Truth Hills Sept. 6.
In August, the Area Plan Commission’s also voted unanimously to rezone land for the Hard Truth Hills project, a new tourist attraction next to the fairgrounds owned by the Big Woods Brewing Co. family of companies.
The request was to change about 27 acres of a 231-acre plot from residential to general business zoning. The company needed that change so it can put employee parking on the land it bought earlier this summer.
There’s a request pending before the Nashville Town Council for the 231-acre plot to be annexed into town. But since the town council has yet to vote on adding this land to the 94-acre parcel it annexed last year, the county commissioners were responsible for the zoning decision.
Commissioner Diana Biddle motioned to forgo hearing Planning Director Chris Ritzmann’s staff report before taking a vote.
No one spoke in support or opposition of the project. The vote took less than five minutes, and occurred after almost two hours of discussion from a packed audience about rezoning of land for the proposed Maple Leaf Performing Arts Center. That rezoning request also was approved unanimously by the commissioners.
Since the Hard Truth Hills zoning change was upheld, the entrance to the complex can be put at Old State Road 46 and Snyder Road. That is where road building and site preparations have been taking place since early summer.
Group collecting community improvement ideas
Brown County Redevelopment Commission members are looking to other area communities to find ideas for possible projects here.
Three members of the RDC — which is in charge of spurring economic development throughout the county and redevelopment of blighted sites — visited with Columbus Community Development Programs Coordinator Robin Hilber a few days ago to talk about the city’s blight elimination program.
Brown County RDC President Dave Redding said his board is interested in looking into what grants might be available to do a similar thing here: purchase properties voluntarily from the owners, clean them up and sell them.
Hilber told The Republic (Columbus) in August that with the blighted homes being torn down, the city hopes to reduce crime and to increase the value of homes in a particular neighborhood. The site can also be potentially redeveloped for new housing as well, she said.
The RDC has been attempting to pilot a similar program in Helmsburg, using the county’s “sock factory” money. Helmsburg residents have asked for help demolishing properties that are public health or safety problems.
Redding also mentioned an interest in Columbus’ “family neighborhood co-ops,” which offer a gathering place and services for neighborhood residents. “It might be appropriate to have a Helmsburg community family center, or the next community we help,” he said.
“Not that we have to go do that, but we’re just out looking for ideas that might be transplanted.”
Meanwhile, Helmsburg residents have been organizing cleanup events in their community. The next will start at 9 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 23, and all are welcome to bring weed-eaters and other equipment to help cut and haul brush, RDC member Jim Kemp said.
Plans are also in the works to get Helmsburg signs made for State Road 45 and Helmsburg Road, he said.
County hits mark for planning grant opportunity
Brown County has proven its poverty level enough to qualify for an economic development planning grant opportunity.
Tim Clark announced at the Sept. 14 Brown County Redevelopment Commission meeting that recently completed income surveys showed 53.1 percent of randomly selected Brown Countians are in the “low- to moderate-income” range. The county needed to show at least 51 percent of residents falling in that range to be able to apply for grants.
The RDC is planning to apply for $40,000 economic development planning grant from the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs. It would pull together information a potential investor would need to know about Brown County when deciding whether or not to choose this community, such as the county’s economic base, strengths and weaknesses, infrastructure, labor force, “community values,” economic opportunities, recommendations and the “action plan” to move forward.
