Re-platting makes way for more development and infrastructure

Plans are continuing forward for more development at the Glover Business park by Comfort Inn.

The planning commission held a public hearing in September which accepted the initial re-platting of land owned by John and Jacqueline Wieser. This re-plat divides what was one lot into two separate lots.

These plots of land are located in the area north of the Comfort Inn and west of link 17J.

A frontage street to the property already exists, called Gregory Drive, which the owner plans to extend.

After the preliminary plat, public services director John Hehnke listed some issues with the plans that needed to be worked out before any projects went forward. Wieser promised to address all issues brought forth by the city when moving forward with any plans.

These issues included analyzing the thickness of Gregory Road, the stipulation that water and service lines must be installed before the construction of the extension of Gregory Road and that the area must comply with the storm water management ordinance.

"John Wieser has agreed to all of those and then they were acknowledged by the planning commission," said city manager Gary Person.

Hehnke acknowledged that everything had been worked out.

"It's part of the consideration also that we want the council to be aware that John (Wieser) does also want some consideration for some of his infrastructure to be paid for by some of the existing redevelopment plan that exists on the East Old Post Road," Person said.

If Wieser's infrastructure is paid for through the existing plan, whatever Wieser decided to build on his property would help pay for the infrastructure associated with that building, Person said. The proposal for this will come before the council some time in the next month, he estimated.

Councilman Mark Nienhueser wondered why the city would put utilities on the back side of the property being re-platted instead of the front side.

An existing sanitary sewer already runs in this area that will be extended to the new lots, Hehnke said.

Nienhueser also wondered why the frontage roads were being constructed differently on opposite sides of the highway.

"Why aren't we consistent?" Nienhueser asked.

Hehnke explained that state regulations limit how the roads can be constructed.

Nienhueser voiced that he thought the frontage road should be constructed in a fashion that would allow for more development in the future.

"Somewhere down the road you'll have more infrastructure you would have liked to go in," he said.

The lay of the land in this area doesn't allow for alternative construction of the frontage road, Wieser retorted.

"It's pretty steep to the west side," Wieser said. "If you look at the topography of that land, it's pretty limited off the back side of these lots."

The city council approved the final plat splitting the land in question into two separate lots.