Zoning focus of Troy Council meeting

By Pat Pratt

ppratt@timestribunenews.com

Zoning issues topped the Tuesday meeting of the Troy City Council, with members voting to approve one previously contentious rezoning and denying another after several residents voiced opposition. 

Debated since originally proposed at a Dec. 8 meeting of the Troy Planning Commission, city council members on Tuesday approved a zoning change from residential to light industrial at 2466 Formosa Drive. 

At that site, Jim Malecek plans to build a storage facility which will accommodate recreational vehicles and boats. He originally sought a zoning change from residential – the default descriptor following a city annexation of the property in October – to commercial. 

Residents of a 55-plus living community that adjoins the property had opposed the plan, citing increased traffic and other quality-of-life concerns. 

Following the first meeting, Malecek changed a preliminary design layout to include an approximately 100-foot buffer between the business and the neighborhood, which contains a fence, trees and a green space. 

No residents who previously opposed the plan spoke during the public comment portion of the Tuesday council meeting. The resolution to make the zoning change was passed, with the addition of language that the change was contingent on the purchase of the property. 

In the second zoning issue Tuesday which had faced opposition, council members denied a zoning change from single-family residential to two-family residential at 416-418 Franklin Ave.  

Hometown Family Properties requested the change to construct a new duplex at the site. That change was also recommended to pass by the planning commission at the recent Jan. 12 meeting. 

At both meetings, several residents who live in the neighborhood opposed the change. Among their concerns were, first and foremost, water drainage. Many said flooding was already a problem and feared new construction would exacerbate the issue. Neighbors were also concerned with noise from construction, traffic issues and other concerns.

Also property related, council members approved a preliminary plat application for Carrington Farms, a development anticipated for 118 single family lots and 100 two-family villas on two separate 50-acre properties west of Formosa Road. 

Another preliminary plat was approved for Troy Town Center First Addition. The plat anticipated 40 single family residences and 10 commercial lots on about 20 acres north of Troy Town Center on Edwardsville Road, according to the ordinance. 

The preliminary plat approvals determine that the plans conform to regulations of the city and will be followed by a final plat approval. 

A final plat approval was approved for Stonebriar Manors Phase Two, which consists of 16 residential lots on 19 areas north of Ellington Drive. The preliminary plat for that subdivision was approved in June 2021, according to meeting documents. 

A property tax abatement, which freezes the tax assessment on 90 % of improvements for ten years, was approved for Creative Blow Mold Tooling. 

The company is considering construction of a 24,000 square-foot industrial building for light manufacturing in the 7600 block of Commercial Drive. Meeting documents show the cost of construction and other improvements to be about $3 million. 

In the final vote of the meeting, council members approved a contract for engineering services with Oates Associates in the amount of $195,225 for the Clay Street reconstruction project. The project, which runs from Main Street to Dewey Street, will resurface the street and add new concrete curbs and sidewalks to both sides. 

The next meeting of the Troy City Council will be held at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 6 at the Troy Municipal Building, 116 E. Market.