Parry…
Well, I guess the 404 neighbors parried. (Previous Post) Where I thought we had an understanding, apparently not. At the 1/17/23 Plan Commission meeting, I asked for the fence to be brought into compliance. That was written into the lot combination agreement.
From my initial request that the fence be brought into compliance, I backed off and agreed to an intermediate solution. After at meeting at the site with the fence owner & Town Manager, I drew up what was discussed/what I expected, sent it to the Town Manager, and she shared it with the Plan Commission and the 404 fence owners. All appeared right with the world, until the work was completed differently than agreed.
So, Counter Parry… Back to the Plan Commission… I gave the Plan Commission an update. There position was to go back to the original agreement in their minutes and require the fence to be brought into compliance 8/31/23. So, I guess we wait until the end of the Summer to see what the next steps are. I’m guessing this won’t be resolved until at least this Fall…
It sucks to argue with the neighbors. It never ends with positive results. Unfortunately, sometimes, you have to take the extra steps to get what’s right. I follow the rules and expect others to do likewise.
Rose Among Thorns
I was at the Culver Town Council Meeting on the 9th. They appointed Lilly Arzola to the Culver Redevelopment Commission (CRC). She made a nice introduction and said that she is a life-long resident and now that her son is out of high school, she wanted to give back to the community. I think it’s great that she’s stepping up. My odd sense of humor can’t help but look at the make up of the CRC and the Town Council and wonder… Sally would be called a Rose among Thorns as the only woman on the Town Council. What would you call Marty Oosterbaan as the only man on the CRC now? Inquiring minds want to know!
Moving on…
The CRC has been more active than most redevelopment commissions. Often redevelopment commissions are accused of hording money, but the CRC has actively put their dollars to work in the community. It will be interesting to see what the new group decides to do as there is only one returning member this year. Of course, as always, I have opinions and suggestions! Here are a few:
Blighted Properties: There are five commercial properties in and around Culver that are constantly discussed as needing improvements. I’ll not be naming names here, but most of you reading this will have properties come to mind. In some cases, the CRC/Town have gone to the point of getting appraisals to consider buying them. They have also pursued them at tax sales and through the Unsafe Building Committee in Culver and Marshall County. They have been met with resistance from the owners who don’t see their properties in the same light. What if these property owners were approached as partners in lieu of adversaries?
- The Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA) has Blight Clearance Program with grant opportunities for improvements to blighted properties. Possibly the CRC could champion one or more of these properties for improvement under this program.
- The CRC already has a Facade Grant Program. Why not look at expanding this program to include cleanup of properties such as these? I can envision some pushback as this would “enrich” the property owner, but why is this any different from the enrichment offered with a facade grant? In the grand scheme of things, this not only increases property values which will be recognized in tax assessments, but it adds value to surrounding properties which are likely adversely affected. Whether it’s a renovation, a clean up or a complete tear down, this would add value to the community.
- The CRC could also be the catalyst for change in a positive manner here. Provide those property owners with updated appraisals. Provide them with professional recommendations on what improvements would increase value. If appropriate, provide them with Phase I Survey information or sponsor them with Marshall County if that Brownfield Program is reinstated. Provide them with paths for better use of the property if those owners want to remain the owners and if not, provide them with resources for lucrative sales. Again, any of these options would have a positive effect on assessed value.
- For a few hundred dollars, the CRC could commission architectural renderings of ‘What could be’ if the buildings in question were improved. Sometimes it takes an outside eye to see the hidden potential. This could be the catalyst to any of the previous points above.
Expansion Opportunities: There are businesses in Culver that could expand with assistance. In some cases there maybe a lack of knowledge and in others it could just be a perception that the expansion wouldn’t be welcomed. Here are a few that come to mind:
- CabinetWorks sits on a large portion of the land Culver has designated as an Industrial zoning district. As far back as when McGills originally was there, that property was held for control of neighbors, potential future expansion or the potential for a complimentary industry partner. When was the last time the town met with CabinetWorks to discuss their plans or to encourage them to pursue expansion or assist them in finding that complimentary partner? Is the necessary infrastructure in place so that property would be considered “Shovel Ready”?
- Edge Mechanical, Skyline Builders, Sellers Services are among the many companies that have a large service presence in the Culver area, but do not have a physical facility here. Could the CRC help them start satellite facilities here?
- The Business Development arm of Culver Crossroads worked with the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) to identify potential businesses that would fill a need in Culver. One that fit that need strongest was a sporting goods store. Could the CRC champion recruiting for something like this? (Maybe this would be a chance to kill two birds with one stone and replace one of the above blighted properties with a new commercial venture.)
- Millers Merry Manor has property surrounding it that was slated for future expansion into an Assisted Living facility at one point. The CRC could approach them to see if these plans are still under consideration and what assistance the town could offer to make this happen. If that plan is no longer viable, what do they want to see there? Could the CRC assist them in finding other opportunities for that property?
Online Presence: The CRC contributed to the effort to bring SURF broadband to Culver. They could champion community education on how to take advantage of this:
- Sponsor classes that teach web development, online marketing and online sales. The Culver Chamber of Commerce has made several false starts at this, but the broadband access should make this easier.
- Sponsor upgrades to our town websites including those that represent the town, but are not strictly municipally controlled, such as the Chamber of Commerce, the Visitors Center, Discover Culver, the Historical Society, LMEC and others that are commonly searched when someone is trying to find out more about Culver.
- A presentation was made at their meeting on May 15th where a MACOG program for bringing remote workers to Culver was discussed. The CRC could sponsor a specific landing page for people considering that move listing all the positive things and all the options for help. (Most of this is out there already, but just not in an organized form. A good start for this could be made just by linking the existing resources…)
- Sponsor professional services to improve websites. It could be done similarly to the Facade Program where there would be matching funds. Just as improving building facades makes Culver more presentable when someone visits, having local websites more presentable will help increase visits.
Transition Assistance: Long time businesses that are fixtures in the community often disappear when there’s not clear transition path. Bennett’s was a long-time Culver business that closed last year. Was the town aware they were closing? Did the town offer any assistance to prevent that closure? Is the town working with them after the closure for a new occupant for that building? Another example would be the Evil Czech on the Davis Street. While the town benefited when the lot was donated to them, wouldn’t it have been better for the town if a replacement business was there?
- The CRC could implement a program similar to the BEAR (Business Expansion And Retention) program MCEDC uses to keep track of industrial users could be implemented locally with our current businesses. Touching base and understanding challenges, plans and goals would allow offers of assistance to be timely.
- The CRC could assist in finding buyers for businesses.
- The CRC could purchase transitional properties and improve them for sale or market them to desirable new ventures.
- The CRC could sponsor consulting services that would help a transitioning business make themselves more marketable.
Promote Viable Businesses: Often small business owners are too busy just keeping the doors open to even know what help is available. This goes along with the previous transition assistance with the CRC providing a clearing house of resources available to small businesses:
- Provide explanations and assistance in obtaining appropriate tax abatements.
- What is the difference between a Real Property Tax Abatement and a Personal Property Tax Abatement.
- Provide explanations on TIF Districts and how to access those dollars.
- Provide information on Facade Grants.
- Provide contacts for the Small Business Development Center (SBDC)
- Provide contacts for mentoring programs such as SCORE.
- Provide information and contacts on student assistance available through local schools.
- Provide information and contacts on student assistance available through local colleges.
- Provide information and contacts on State training dollars.
- Provide information and contacts on State intern programs.
I’m sure there are lots of other things and the new commission members will have come in with their own goals. That said, the CRC is a group that always has a lot of potential for making positive changes in Culver. I hope the new group takes that mission seriously and is able to make things happen. From the brief introductions, I think they are.
Comprehensive Plan Vision
I am currently serving on committees in Plymouth and Culver working on new Comprehensive Plans (or Com Plans). These documents are governed by State statute, but leave some flexibility to the communities. Sometimes the term “dream” is used with these documents, as in, “What would be your dream use for this area.” or “Dream Big!”. That leans much more towards fantasy for my liking. My preferred term is “Vision”. The heart of the Comp Plan are the land use maps… the “plan” part of the Comp Plan. It’s a visual tool detailing what the community would like to see and where that is.
There are several stumbling blocks for most people in this process. The first is that Comp Plans usually have a life of 5-10 years. (Plymouth’s last Comp Plan was completed in 2013 and Culver’s was completed in 2014.) People can become fixated on that short time horizon. While the Comp Plan should be revisited and updated every 5-10 years, the plan should be for 25-50 years, as theoretically the community continues on in perpetuity. This makes the 5-10 year update more of a tweak, removing things from the previous to-do list that have been completed and to adjust the overall plan for new trends that have developed. The Vision should be longer.
The second hang-up is a struggle to look past what’s there now and who owns that property. Most people look at a parcel of land and say, “I know that landowner and they would never go for that.” But… this is where they need to be thinking farther into the future than the 5-10 year life of the Comp Plan. The municipality will be here 25, 50 & 100 years from now. Will that landowner? Will that building still be viable? Will that street be there? The Vision should be longer.
The third major hang-up is separating the Comp Plan from the Zoning Ordinance. The Comp Plan lays out what the community would like to see. The Zoning Ordinance lays out what is allowed. There can and should be a difference. This is where a zoning hierarchy would be useful. In a discussion in a Culver meeting last week, we discussed the current Comp Plan’s direction for Main Street between Washington Street and Lake Shore Drive to be future Commercial. We discussed extending that to Lake Shore Drive between Main Street and State Street. This brought up discussion of the recent rezoning of a house on Main Street from Commercial to Residential. (Rezoning of 303 North Main Street discussed here.) The rezoning of 415 Lake Shore Drive was discussed as well. I look at these differently. While I have no problem with the reversion of 303 back to a home, there should have been a way to make that accommodation under the commercial zoning, leaving the long term vision in place. I would say the same accommodation should have been made for 415. While the new construction at 415 will theoretically be there longer, the townhouses planned are denser development and a reasonable intermediate step between single family residential and commercial. The strict district designations need to be softened to allow more mixed development. Furthermore, townhouses mixed in with commercial spaces are a reasonable long term plan in a walkable community.
For my Lurkers, this is not the first time I’ve pushed the Vision idea. I really thought Culver missed the boat not redoing their Comp Plan in 2020 and calling it 20/20 Vision. The whole pesky pandemic thing kind of got in the way, not to mention the Town Manager at that time had Stellar Fatigue and despite the Stellar Communities SAP accomplishing much of what was in the 2014 Comp Plan, he didn’t want to create new goals that he would be charged with achieving. Ha!
As with most of these things, there will be more to come. I’m pleased with Culver and Plymouth putting forth the effort and while I was hesitant about them at first, I’m pleased with MACOG‘s administration of the planning. (Thanks Donny!) Everybody work on their Vision. Do your best to envision what’s over the horizon, not just what can be seen today.
Connections to Culver
It came to my attention the other day that there are people suggesting that The Dunes not have a street connection to the Town and only connect to S.R. 17 to the west. This seems ludicrous to me, from a planning standpoint, an economic development standpoint and a citizen involvement standpoint. Aside from the bad planning involved with this idea, it is probably a logistical moot point. 1) S.R. 17 is a limited access highway and INDOT is rather jealous with their driveway permits and 2) Cabinetworks owns the parcel to the west between The Dunes and S.R. 17 and are unlikely to want to bisect it with a road. *The picture to the right shows the relationship between the property being developed as The Dunes and S.R. 17.)
Interestingly though, this seems to be a recurring “problem” in Culver. This goes back to at least the early mid 2000’s when The Riggings were initially developed on the north side of town with its street, Anchors Way. At the time of the initial development, the town required a connection to State Street, but later the development was allowed to void that connection. Similarly, there were no connections required between The Riggings and the adjacent vacant property to the west.
West of the The Riggings, the Maple Ridge PUD subdivision was built a few years later. It again does not connect back into Culver, but only connects out to S.R. 10. Maple Ridge was not required to provide any connection points to adjacent properties.
This came up again with The Paddocks with a suggestion that it connect with S.R. 17 in lieu of Jefferson Street. (The Paddocks connects to Culver on Jefferson Street and includes long range plans to connect back to Academy Road to the north.) And then again, the Culver Meadows development proposed on the NW corner of town by Culver Investment Corp (CIC) was allowed to proceed through the primary PUD process with no connections back to Culver.
The Culver Meadows project was particularly troubling since it was allowed to ignore the Culver Comprehensive Plan recommendations for the extension of Academy Road to S.R.17. The reasoning given for not making the connection a requirement was that there were property owners between Culver Meadows and Academy Road that were opposed to the connection. But that is short-sighted. The Town of Culver is theoretically here in perpetuity. Those homeowners will change over time. Culver Meadows should have been required to provide their portion of the required Right-of-Way through their property and Culver could have waited for the right time to make the connection using that Right-of-Way. CIC was already planning a connection to S.R. 17, so it was just a matter of making that connection where it could serve both needs.
From the developer’s standpoint, these controlled entrances are the next best thing to creating gated communities, but with the benefit of dedicating the streets for municipal maintenance. Theoretically they are reducing traffic in the development to their residents only. This is part of the mindset where we’re seeing more privacy fences and complaints at Council meetings about street traffic. The last drawing I saw for The Dunes has a single entrance and that didn’t even align with adjacent streets. (That drawing is several months old.) There are reasons why towns are laid out on grids and Cul-de-Sac developments lead to more sprawl. (See previous post here.) Grids don’t always work, but the connections are still important.
Connected streets cut down on traffic bottlenecks. What are the residents of The Dunes going to do when street work is required at the entrance? That’s 200 residences with no redundant connection. There is a reason water lines are looped. The same principle applies to streets.
Connected streets promote walking and biking. They invite current residents into the new neighborhoods and vice versa. This is how connections are made. This is where a new resident might get invited to a local Church or civic club. This is how they hear about town initiatives.
Connected streets promote block parties, garage sales and other community involvement activities. The goal of new development goes beyond the head count and ad valorem increase. Culver should want the new residents to become community members. We don’t need more part-time residents and we don’t want to be a bedroom community.
I talked about changing The Dunes’ connections to the town before. (here) I think that idea should be expanded to include additional connections. Make them part of our community for the future. Maybe this is another case made for an Infrastructure Czar… And as far as a connection to S.R. 17? Let’s suggest connection points to the west and south for future development. It’s just good planning.
Electronic Sign Update
May 25, 2023
Kevin Berger
Commentary, Culver, Marshall County, Stellar
Community, Culver, government, Tips
At the Culver Town Council meeting Tuesday, the Council voted to allow the High School administration to have access to the electronic sign. The school will be required to follow the Town’s policy on what can be posted, but this should take this off the Clerk’s plate and allow better allocation of this resource, i.e. fewer instances of just Time/Temperature postings.
I think this is a good first step. Adding school functions here is a better allocation of the resource, but if that’s all that’s done, it is still going to be underutilized. As discussed in a previous post, we’re missing the cross-county advertising potential, a Stellar Region goal, as well as missing the visitor events. Hopefully the school will step up and post those events too.
Barring that, I think it would make sense to give Amber Cowell, Executive Director of the Culver Visitor Center, one of these access keys. I would trust her implicitly, but for those who wouldn’t, she is a Town employee, subject to the associated controls that go along with that. I am confident that Amber would make sure all the Culver events were listed. (It would be a literal part of her job.) I am also confident she would take the initiative to get us listed on the surrounding community signs as was the original goal. I truly believe that if we start that kind of networking, it will quickly become a two-way street and the cross-advertising goal will be reached.
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