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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCorrespondence Page 1 of2 Tingley, Connie 5 From: Hollibaugh, Mike P Sent: Wednesday, November 26, 2008 1 :52 PM To: Tingley, Connie S; Holmes, Christine B Subject: FW: docket No. 308090017 DP/ADLS Fyi. Might be worth sharing this with the Board. Thanks _ Mike from: Don & Judy Birt [mailto:djbirt@sbcglobal.net] Sent: Wednesday, November 26,20087:36 AM To: Hollibaugh, Mike P Subject: docket No. 308090017 DP/ADLS Dear Mr. Hollibaugh, I, as most residents of Woodhaven, are extremely disappointed and uncomfortable in the zoning decision to accept that a crematory is compatible with residential property use and proceed with putting the crematory on the proposed location, particularly with the stipulation that cremation is supposed to be limited on Mr. Nelson's word, to not subcontract -- with rights to appeal this in the future. No one addressed what would happen if he deCided that he did not want to abide by this and sold out to another operator? Would the new operator have to answer to Carmel as well? Or does the restriction only apply to Mr. Nelson? Could Mr. Nelson "seli out" on paper to another operator and then buy back his business and then have no restrictions? What provisions will Carmel set up to enforce monitoring of corpse volume? The zoning board said they did not want this to become a 24 hour operation, but then did not have the foresight to thoroughly think this through. Since public comment was closed, we were not allowed to address this. . In essence, the residents have been left unprotected. Mr. Nelson clearly objected to staying within the realm of cremating only the bodies in his own business and limiting his sign - and he will make further appeals and find other ways around this as anyone wanting to start and build a crematory business would. He does not currently have a crematory. This is all very disturbing to the neighborhood residents as we now face driving in and out of the neighborhood looking at a mortuary/crematory sign and especially to our family as'we also must deal with the atrocity of the chimney stack facing our back yard since, it is to be placed on the back side of the mortuary. We have lost several large trees in the back yard over the past 5 years so this property is quite visible in late fall, winter, and early spring. This property is the first thing viewed from our front door entrance which faces our large great room windows. The entire back of the house is windows. In your future planning meetings, would you please consider making Mr. Nelson flip his site plan so that the building ison the far south side of the property with the chimney on the non-residential side so that we have at least a little more distance from the constant visual reminder of what is going on in our static view of the chimney and it's emission described as "clear haze" burning? Also, if Mr. Nelson plans to replace the overgrown shrubs at the edge of our adjacent properties, could you please require an astringent plan with large full plants to buffer between the.properties from the start ( Le. not that will take 10 years to fill. in)? Furthermore, we ask that you please stand firm on allowing Mr. Nelson or any other business owner at that location to have any type of sign variance than whatis now permitted. The board told him that if his intent was really to just do his own cremations, then he should not need a larger sign to advertise or need to put cremation services wording on the sign- it was then that he withdrew the sign variance appeal ( for now) so he could still put the cremation wording on the sign. Finally, could you please further investigate from an unbiased source how much noise the crematory furnace will emit to determine if it falls within Carmel's noise ordinance? (Reassurance was given at the meeting by the furnace salesman, not a crematory owner that actually has this furnace near a residential property.) Please give us some consideration in our request to not want to think about death and view death every single time we look out our great room, sunroom, bedroom, and breakfast nook windows or sit on our patio or drive in/out of the subdivision entrance. We have lost more by the outcome. of this decision than the board will, by far, ever realize. Sincerely, 11/26/2008 Page 2 of2 Judy Birt 4607 Wood haven Drive / 11/26/2008 '-. ~- '-.. Board of Zoning Appeals of the City of Carmel, Indiana Docket Numbers 08100005 SU and 08100006 V .'. We object to this Special Use application for permission to build a funeral home crematory at 11411 N. Michigan Road. Our objections fall within 2 main areas: Inappropriate business for this location Environmental concerns Inappropriate business for this location The property at 11411 N. Michigan Road is a strip of land, averaging approximately 166 foot wide, sandwiched between properties zoned S-1 Residential and B-3 Business. The south property line of this parcel is the northern limit of the US 421 - Michigan Road Overlay Zone. Since, as we understand it, a Funeral Home/Mortuary/Crematory is specifically "Prohibited" on all other Clay Township properties, which have frontage on Michigan Road, why should one be allowed as a "Special Use" in the middle of this area? The northern boundary of the US 421 - Michigan Road Overlay Zone is set as the north property line of Parcel #17-13-06-00-00-034 (Altum's Garden Center), which is the south property line of Parcel #17-13-06-00-00-035 (11411 N. Michigan Road). This makes sense if you consider that when the Overlay zone was created, 11411 N. Michigan Road was zoned for 8-1, Residential. We feel that since the zoning for 11411 N. Michigan Road was changed to 8-5 Business in 2004, the Overlay Zone boundary should have been extended to include this parcel, because it is now the only commercial property along Michigan Road, in Clay Township, that is not in the Overlay Zone. This would once again bring the northern boundary of the overlay zone to the edge of the residential zoning district and include all of the commercial property on the east side of Michigan Road and fulfill the purpose and intent of the Overlay zone to "protect the public health safety, comfort, convenience and general welfare by providing for consistent and coordinated treatment of the properties bordering u.s. Highway 421; (also known as Michigan road) in Clay Township, Hamilton County, Indiana" and "promote the steady flow of traffic'~ (23C. 00.01 ) Differences that impact the Residential neighborhood are front and side yard areas, screening, and lighting standards. Environmental Concerns Since 2004, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recognized that mercury exposure/toxicity is a public health risk with potential to cause permanent brain and nervous system damage and other adverse effects. Few studies on the safety of mercury emission from U.S. crematoria exist and the validitylreliability of those studies from a scientific standpoint is questionable. The (EPA) states: Dental amalgam also contributes to mercury emissions through the cremation of bodies containing dental amalgam. A mercury flow worksheet developed for EPA Region 5 estimated that in the United States in 2005 almost 3,000 kilograms (6,613 Ibs.) of mercury were released to the environment from crematoria. There remains a lack of good empirical data on the magnitude of mercury emissions from crematoria. (www.epa.gov/mercury/consumerlhtm) Crematoria are the 3rd largest source of air emissions of Mercury in the United States. The main source of the Mercury is amalgam dental fillings. The forecast is for an increase in Mercury emissions from crematoria for the next several decades due to the deaths of baby boomers. Elevated levels of Mercury have been found in soil samples taken within 328 feet of crematoria. The remaining vaporous Mercury that does not settle on the soil is added to the general atmosphere and carried by the wind to nearby areas. The stated purpose of the Michigan Road Overlay Zone is to "protect the public health, safety and comfort, convenience and general welfare". For the Planning and Zoning Board to allow a funeral home having a crematorium, which emits Mercury onto our property, does not seem to fulfill the previously stated purpose and will devalue our homes/property and unnecessarily expose our families to adverse health risks. We are not aware of any other crematoria in Carmel at this time and we see no reason to subject the residents of Carmel to the environmental hazards associated with one. There are crematoria close by that can be used. Conclusion . Even without applying the Overlay Zones standards to this parcel, the Board can fulfill the intent of the plan by denying this application. . We request this application be denied as an inappropriate use in this area. . Approval of this application will cause the surrounding residential area property values to decrease and "public health, safety, comfort, convenience and general welfare" would be adversely affected. ';1 .. TO: 1) Board of Zoning Appeals of the City of Carmel, Indiana 2) Plan Commission of the City of Carmel, Indiana RE: DocketNo. #08090017 DPJADlS Docket Numbers 08100005 SU and 08100006 V DATE: 11/9/08 FROM: Residents of Wood haven Subdivision We request denial of the Special Use application for permission to build a funeral home with a crematory at 11411 N. Michigan Road. Our objections include: 1) Inappropriate business for this location 2) Environmental concerns such as unnecessary health risks of exposure to mercury emission/air pOllution 3) Specific plan details - issues with proper greenbelt distances, lighting, noise, to bordering properties 4) Traffic congestion/delays 5) Home/property devaluation Address '1'-67 wc>oJ ~4.u-<,^ Dt-o ?~t--~/ n't1 tAt 11 (k;. I Z(YlS VI! LE Ii1 '-I ft;07 ct l(lQOll C.~, lfGoG/" , L./ tj 5 2. 1-1 ~l__ U<:r> C,+ '! G 07 7 . q9 r}- It l.{ b)" UVo 0 \ '%\ V(I l 60)/ ;1 f) r:---J /1733 D)crcrd!.)WUJt'/, I "1.. '7007 ~f53 i<-)otdJJuu-,('~ f).1' '7{,07? tin. Address C yLc-€c Y'S9; 6 ~ /JOL? T7!J-/-1Ul--rJjk Wood h4{;~ Ov. ~~)~ . ~- TO: 1) Board of Zoning Appeals of the City of Carmel, Indiana 2) Plan Commission of the City of Carmel, Indiana RE: Docket No. #08090017 DP/ADLS Docket Numbers 08100005 SU and 08100006 V DATE: 11/9/08 FROM: Residents of Timber Ridge Subdivision We request denial of the Special Use application for permission to build a funeral home with a crematory at 11411 N. Michigan Road. Our objections include: 1) Inappropriate business for this location 2) Environmental concerns such as unnecessary health risks of exposure to mercury emission/air pollution 3) Specific plan details - issues with proper greenbelt distances, lighting, noise, to bordering praperties 4) Traffic congestion/delays 5) Home/property devaluation Address -\ ~~t- '1Gc. , ( 12,!)1/II;/th pv C\d-S ~H~ qt>\ \'~\>0t"\..})'" \It...,. 'z:.'~''\s.\(j\ '-\ \., 01 :::r Qlu \' \W~N Pt 12 i(.1>l(,,'\I.Lf;::tN 4t,.1l1 Z/G,I\S' G 1 I/--e.. Ti() 46('7' Ll tJilS V \'/ ,.( 1'\. Lt b D)/ 7-/ bY! s\j: lIe I tV no 77 2/c/'f}// tu--( L -fl.;} fNIJiI -<1<2e ZIV Lit tJ '} '} .z I C rJ~Vi I t ~ / Ai Lj(p() 7 '7 y 7: V\.) v' It -l t 6 j; f/--. " ,1 ,- ,. I) 1'l5 jf Address , q Z ,,\ -t I L-'- jo ;-1> -;Z10/ ; "-I \L/....\ L Page I of2 Holmes, Christine 8 From: Jon Dobosiewicz Uond@NF-LAWCOM] Sent: Friday, October 10,20081'37 PM To: Holmes, Christine B Cc: Conn, Angelina V; Tingley, Connie S Subject: RE: Nelson Funeral Home Christine, Please accept this e-mail as the official request to withdraw the number of parking spaces Variance request filed earlier today. Thank you for working with us to address this matter. Sincerely, Jon .Jon C. Dobosiewicz Land Use Professional Nelson & Fnmkenberger,PC 3105 East 98th Street, Suite 170 Indianapolis, IN 46280 317-844-0106 Vuice 317-428-8393 Cell 317-846-8782 Fax jon@nf"Law.com From: Holmes( Christine B [mailto:cholmes@carmel.in.gov] Sent: Friday, October 10, 2008 1:31 PM To: Jon Dobosiewicz Cc: Conn[ Angelina V Subject: RE: Nelson Funeral Home Jon, With the inclusion of the clergy office, I believe the designated public .floor area is correct, and that adequate parking based on that floor area would be provided with 128 parking spaces. The petition has not been docketed yet, so you would. not need to officially withdraw it. ['II make a note in the file that the parking variance is no longer necessa"ry. Thanks, Christine Christine Barton-Holmes, LEED AP Planning Administrator Department of Community Services City of Carmel One Civic Square Carmel, Indiana 46032 317.571.2424 317.571.2426 fax ~ Ple~1s-e considt2r th~ ~il'ollJOnlnel1t -b<.:~tore printing 10/10/2008 Page 2 of2 From: Jon Dobosiewicz [mailto:jond@NF-LAW.COM] Sent: Friday, October 10,20081:14 PM To: Holmes, Christine B Subject: Nelson Funeral Home Christine, Please see an updated parking exhibit attached. Upon your review and determination that the proposal meets the parking requirements for the proposed use please reply back. Upon receipt of your e-mail I will forward a e~mail and letter to your attention withdrawing the parking variance filed today. Thank you for meeting to discuss this matter yesterday and please let me know if you have any questions. Sincerely, Jon Jon C. Dobosicwicz Land Use Professional Nelson & Franl{enberger, PC 3105 East. 98th Street, Suite 170 Indianapolis, IN 46280 317-844-0106 Voice 317-428-8393 Cell 317-846-8782 Fax jon@nf-Law.com 10/10/2008