Agenda - Planning Commission - 02/07/1995

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Page 8 --January 15, 1995 Z.B. , Zoning Change -- County Council Rezones Land for Quarry Operation Brown v. Lowell Mining Co. Inc., 636 N.E. 2d 154 (Indiana) 1994 Lowell Mining Co. Inc., owned land in an unincorporated area of Lake County, Ind. The land was rich in mineral deposits, and had been a dolomite quarrying operation years before. Brown owned a single-family home near Lowell's property. Lowell asked the county's Plan Commission to rezone the quarry property from an agricultural to a conditional development district, which was the only type of zone in which a quarry could operate. After holding a public hearing, the commission recommended the rezoning. It forwarded the recommendation to the county council, which failed to act on the recommended ordinance for 90 days. Under the law, the ordinance automatically became effective because of this delay. Brown and other neighboring residents sued Lowell, the commission, and the council. They asked the court to review the commission's and the council's actions, and to declare the quarry operation a nuisance. The homeowners ar- gued that the commission and the council illegally took away the Zoning Board of Appeals' powers when they adopted the zoning change. According to Brown, the commission and council did not rezone the land, but really granted Lowell a conditional use -- something only the board of appeals could do. Lowell argued that a state law prohibited ordinances which prevented the use of mineral resources outside urban areas. Lowell claimed since its property was in an unincorporated area, it was not in an urban area and could not be prevented from using the land for a quarry. Therefore, the county's ordinance which did not allow quarries in agricultural zones did not apply. Both sides asked the court for judgment without a trial. The court granted judgment without a trial to Lowell, the plan commission, and the county coun- cil. Brown and the other homeowners appealed. DECISION: Reversed in part and returned to the lower court. The lower court correctly granted Lowell, the commission, and the council judgment without a trial on the council's alleged infringement on the board's authority. However, there was still a dispute about whether the property was in an urban area, so the lower court had to hold further proceedings to decide this issue. Lowell asked for rezoning, not a conditional use permit. The council prop- erly rezoned the property, and followed all the procedural requirements for doing so. The county council had authority to rezone the property, and did not infringe on the board's authority. The lower court had to determine how much of the quarry land fell within "urban areas" that were subject to county regulation. The state's definition of urban areas included land used for residential purposes with at least eight houses within any quarter mile square area. The lower court had to describe which quarter-mile areas would be the relevant urban areas, and decide whether some or all of the quarry property fell within them. ]Iq Board of Co~ntnissioners v. King, 310 N.E.2d 560 (1974).