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City of Carmel - Department of Community Services
MEMORANDUM
Date: January 21, 2021
To: Carmel City Council
From: Mike Hollibaugh, Department of Community Services
Subject: Z-664-20 Midtown - Monon Boulevard C2 Rezone
I am forwarding you this information on the Rezone subject above, forwarded by the Plan
Commission via an 8-1 favorable recommendation.
This rezone will be an item on your February 1, 2021 meeting agenda.
Ordinance Z-664-20 (Docket No. PZ-2020-00177 Z): Midtown – Monon Boulevard C2 Rezone
The City is seeking to rezone one parcel from the R-2/Residential District in the Old Town Overlay
to the C-2/Mixed Use District. The property is the site of the Historic Monon Depot and Historical
Society’s storage annex located at 211 1st Street SW. Filed by the Department of Community
Services on behalf of the Carmel Plan Commission.
Rezone Explanation:
This supporting material for the proposed Rezone of 211 1st Street SW, includes a written
description of the rezone proposal, an aerial location map and a zoning map of the property in
context with nearby properties.
The current zoning of the property is R-2 Residential within the Old Town Overlay (Character
Sub-area). The City is proposing to rezone the property to C-2 Mixed Use in order to align the
zoning of the real estate with the property’s current and future use.
The subject property is located at Monon Boulevard and 1st Street SW, and is surrounded by a
mixture of commercial and residential uses with a mix of R-2, C-2 zoning and PUD (Midtown).
The property abuts the former Bub’s Café property, now the GOAT tavern, to the south; the
subject of Use Variance petition to be heard by the BZA on February 22, 2021.
The Historic Monon Depot and archive building are located on this lot. The Depot is listed on
the National Register of Historic Places and operates as our local history museum. The museum
which has been located on the parcel since 1980, is not a legal use in the R-2 District. The City
considers the use legal non-conforming and compatible with the location and surrounding
context. The City is aware of interest by the Carmel Historical Society to demolish the archive
building located adjacent to the Depot and replace it with a multipurpose building that would
include expanded area for display and storage of historic records, offices and meeting space.
Under the current residential zoning, significant alteration of the existing buildings on the
property, or, it’s current use as a museum is not allowed per UDO provisions found in Article 8.
The Department is appreciative of what a new museum structure can contribute to our City and
is generally supportive of those improvements and investment to the property, subject to site
and design approval.
It is understood that the Historic Depot will remain unaffected and left in its current location.
The Carmel Historic Preservation Commission has communicated their support for demolition
of the archive building to DOCS, in anticipation of the planned Carmel Historical Society
building.
Historic Monon Depot Museum
Historical Society archive building
This rezoning is consistent with previous planning and zoning actions made by the Plan
Commission and the City Council – actions and votes which supports the development of the
Monon Greenway in this part of our city into a vibrant mixed-use area comprised of three
distinct districts: Arts and Design, Midtown and City Center.
This rezone is also in line with previous planning efforts including the Speck Midtown plan
(2012), the Monon Overlay (2007, Urban Section), and with the applicable policies in our C3
Comprehensive Plan.
The standards for the C2 District are found in Article 2 of the Carmel Unified Development
Ordinance. You may view the Unified Development Ordinance in its entirety online by clicking
on Codes & Ordinances in the Department of Community Services’ website:
www.carmeldocs.com.
Plan Commission Overview:
The Department presented a location map highlighting the subject parcel (Parcel) and explained
the goals of the rezone, consistent with the above Rezone Explanation.
The Department received public input via email, most of which was written regarding the
adjacent parcel (former Bub’s Café) which was originally included with this proposal but
subsequently withdrawn and no longer subject of this request. The public concerns for the
subject property were summarized by Plan Commission President Grabow:
1. The impact on nearby residential, especially related to building height.
2. The impact on traffic and parking from future changes.
Plan Commission concerns were primarily related to the adjacent parcel including impacts on the
Historic Depot, impacts on the adjacent parcel and what plans are for the property.
It was requested by Council Rider that more details of the Historical Society plans be brought to
the Council.
The Plan Commission vote was 8-1 Favorable.
Site Aerial Map
SITE
Zoning Map
Zone District Comparison
District max ht. min ht. front setback side yard lot coverage
R2 35’ na 35’ 5’ 35%
Old Town align with
Overlay 35’ na adjacent buildings 5’ 45%
PUD 5 stories 2 stories 0’ min/ 10’ max na 100%
(Midtown)
C2 75’ na 0’ 0’ 80%
35’ (adj to R2)
Proposed C2 Rezone