Marshall County
Water Street Townhomes Groundbreaking Article from Pilot News 12-19-24
End of an Era
With the retirement of Marshall County Commissioner, Kevin Overmyer, 2024 is the end of an era. Kevin, like is father, Glenn, served multiple terms as Marshall County Commissioner. In total, Marshall County went 46 out of the last 52 years with an Overmyer at the helm. I know there has been some ugliness over the last couple of years, but the positive impact of Kevin and his family has had on the county is undeniable.
A few years ago, a friend decided to run against Kevin. I was asked to support him in his bid to replace Kevin. My friend told me he thought Kevin’s time was up and that he could do a better job. I had to explain to him that, 1) He might be able to do as good a job… eventually…, but 2) As long as Kevin was willing to serve, his knowledge and connections were invaluable. This was a difficult position for me to take as I generally agree with the idea of term limits, the transfer of power, and the value of new blood. The problem is as long as that’s not a universal concept, the value of connections to politician at the State level are undeniable for a small rural county like ours. His respect in the larger State arena was shown when he was elected President of the Indiana Association of County Commissioners (IACC) Northwest District.
The above was demonstrated to me during my time serving on the board of MCEDC. A new project in Bourbon drew attention and support from the State. State officials attended the meeting and speeches were made. As was generally the case, Kevin was not one who wanted the spotlight, but it was turned on him by the State officials in their speeches and in the casual conversation at the reception that followed. Stories were told of Kevin’s trips to Indianapolis for meetings as well as kitchen table meetings with these officials in Kevin’s home. Kevin understood the power of these connections and that power was subtly demonstrated that day.
Kevin also understood the value of keeping Marshall County on the map. He made a false start at an economic development entity several years before MCEDC came to be. It failed due to some of the petty bickering that often occurs between municipalities, i.e. what I have referred to in the past as the lasting legacy of old basketball rivalries. Rather than dropping the initiative, he let the idea cool and simmer. Then, learning from his mistakes in the first attempt, he resurrected it in a new form, addressing the stumbling blocks of the previous attempt. This is what became MCEDC (Marshall County Economic Development Corporation), without which our county wouldn’t have made strides to create shell buildings that brought in new businesses, wouldn’t have created the partnership that brought Regional Cities dollars to Marshall County and kept us in that partnership, participating in READI and READI 2.0. When I was Chairman of MCEDC, I recognized the struggle with the municipal rivalries and with Kevin’s (and Roger Umbaugh‘s) help MCEDC created what became the quarterly County Development for the Future meetings. Those meeting broke down barriers, which helped Culver achieve Stellar Community status. That lead to Kevin co-chairing Marshall County’s Stellar aspirations and eventually achieving Stellar Region status.
Kevin also understood the need to work together and move things forward. Bureaucracies are born to grow and create barriers. Even at the County level, this is the case. Kevin had a keen eye for when the red tape was necessary and when it was just an impediment. He was someone you could call to make the right connections, make determinations between what was just policy and what was law, and help make things happen. He was adept at doing this, not only with those under his direct jurisdiction, but down stream in municipalities and upstream at the State. Kevin had a keen nose for BS and who was trying to do the right thing and who was trying to just skirt the rules.
I understand Kevin’s desire to retire and leave the stress behind. He has served Marshall County well, though that isn’t always recognized and no one is perfect. All and all, I feel he’s left a positive legacy. Which is the best any politician can do.
So, I want to end this wishing Jesse Bohannon the best and with the hope that he also can create a positive legacy in his time in office serving as commissioner. It won’t be easy and some of the rancor from the campaign will make this less than a smooth transition. As with my friend I mentioned earlier, I know those relationships can built again, but there is no shortcut for the time that requires. Kevin had a bit of a shortcut through his family name and Glenn’s years of service. Jesse will need to build that all on his own. Good luck Jesse! I hope people remember your time in office fondly 20 years from now too!
Water Street Townhomes Groundbreaking
We had a groundbreaking ceremony for Water Street Townhomes on Tuesday. It was great to see support from the Plymouth Community. Mayor Listenberger, Clerk Treasurer Lynn Gorski and Council Members Don Ecker, Linda Starr and Dave Morrow also turned out. Mike Miley was there representing the Plymouth Redevelopment Commission. Plymouth City Attorney Jeff Houin was there and Taryn MacFarlane from the South Bend Elkhart Regional Partnership (SBERP). This type of infill development for this area has been part of Plymouth’s last two Comprehensive Plans, so we were pleased to be able to help bring it to fruition.
Housing affordability has become more difficult with the duel challenges of record inflation and interest rate increases over the last 4 years. While there are signs of moderation, they will continue to be a challenge for the near future. Inflation moderates, but continues to accumulate and rarely reverses. The Fed has lowered interest rates, but the mortgage market has done little to reflect the decrease.
We were please to partner with the City of Plymouth and obtain a READI 1.0 grant for this project. Infill housing has also shown up in the two current Marshall County housing studies being completed, so this is a timely addition to the City. We did not get all we asked for from READI, but without their contribution and the matching dollars from the city, the project would not pencil out. Even with that, this is a market rate project, not an affordable housing project. Because of the current inflationary market, the banks look more at the income generated than the loan to value of a project, i.e. another reason the State and Municipal participation is important.
This project is part of a trend towards more walkability and brings some additional rental property to downtown Plymouth. Catty-corner to River Park Square, it will be conveniently located for local festivals. The Mayor’s initiative to improve the festival space on Garro Street between Michigan Road and Center Street as well as his initiative to create a downtown Entertainment District, positions Water Street Townhomes to be successful and Water Street Townhomes will provide residents to attend these events, as well as frequent the existing local businesses and restaurants in the area. This site once was home to the Gem Theater, a predecessor to The Rees, a Doctor’s office and various other business entities through the last 100 years. It will be included in the new downtown entertainment district. We hope to encourage others to revitalize the back half of Plymouth’s downtown main street. Putting this historic block back on the tax rolls is a positive change for the city.
Culver Sand Hill Farm also submitted a townhouse project for Culver, Spirit Townhomes, which was named in the READI 1.0 Strategic Investment Plan. Unfortunately, after the fact, Culver chose to partner with a different developer on the much larger project, The Dunes. (Discussed here.) C’est la vie! Sometimes you reap what you sow. These small pocket developments are ones that can make an impact without as much culture shock to the community. A trend of these small projects would ease a community into the idea of expansion and make it easier to integrate new residents into the community – something to consider throughout Marshall County communities.
We look forward to making a positive impact with Water Street Townhomes and hope it is a catalyst for more downtown Plymouth development. The Plymouth Administration and Common Council have been supportive and a great partner. There is a need for 1,300 new housing units in Marshall County. Often big developments are jarring to the community. Small, infill projects such as this can make a difference and be placed into the community with only ripples instead of waves. They can also take advantage of existing infrastructure, be placed walking distance from amenities, and generally become part of existing neighborhoods. I hope this is the first of many similar projects in Plymouth and Marshall County.
Solar Subdivisions
So this is an idea that came to me last week while sharing a couple beers with a friend associated with the solar industry. I’ll throw it out here and see if it has any legs. With the ridiculously large buffers being requested around the perimeter of solar farms and our dearth of available housing (1,300 units needed right now per the Housing Matters study done by United Way of Marshall County and backed up by the Regional Housing Study being done by MACOG), it would seem like a great idea to subdivide the proposed buffer and building housing around the perimeter of these solar farms. This would change the solar companies lease model, but with the solar companies’ help, this gives the farmers another source of income from the sale or rental of these perimeter properties.
As discussed here before, it seems the main complaint about solar is visual, i.e. the neighbors don’t like looking at them. This would solve this problem as anyone moving into these houses would automatically know what to expect. Many on the “green” side will want to live there seeing it as part of a sustainable future. I can already see the future subdivision names… Green Acres… Solar Farms… Sunshine Place…
Marshall County’s Zoning Ordinance’s A-3, Agricultural Residential District calls for a minimum lot size of 1 acre, which is 43,560 sf. I would like to think this could be negotiated down some, but to some extent these lots need to be larger to accommodate wells and septic fields. (County side sewer could allow some reductions.) Differing buffer setbacks have been requested, ranging from reasonable to absurd, but a mid range 500′ setback, that gives a lot approximately 90′. There could still be a buffer planting on the rear property line of these lots to appease the extreme solar haters, but there won’t be much to see.
This solution provides better use of land. The buffer areas aren’t large enough for much true farming and if they are planted with buffer trees, then they aren’t great for farming anyway. Electricity from the solar field could supplement the housing as a sales incentive, creating solar converts as they go.
Like solar itself, this wouldn’t be the answer in every case. But it might serve double duty in some cases and help find compromise.
Our Customers Say…
Ronald W Liechty - President, Garden Court, Inc.
Growing or Dying
January 27, 2025
Kevin Berger
Commentary, Marshall County, MCEDC, Politics, Rants
Community, Development, government, Rants, Trends
Years ago I was part of a group that went to New Bremen, Ohio. We went there as a delegation from the Culver Chamber of Commerce to meet with Jim Dicke II, to discuss how to turn around Culver and possibly get his assistance. Jim had been instrumental through his company, Crown Equipment, in revitalizing New Bremen. From that small group and the then Culver Chamber Board, the Culver Second Century Committee was born. (More on that another day.) One thing he said in that meeting has stuck with me over the years, “Communities are either growing or dying. There is no such thing as staying status quo.” (I don’t know if it was a personal statement or someone else’s, but I always attribute it to him.) I’ve repeated that over the years in multiple settings. I generally try and attribute it to Jim, but even when I don’t, I’m not too concerned, because it fits with one of my other favorite quotes, “Plagiarism is the Sincerest Form of Flattery.” Which I first saw in a B.C. Comic by Johnny Hart…
In this case, I am asking that question about Marshall County, as one of the first actions of the new County Commissioners was to enact a moratorium on projects that involve Solar Farms, Battery Storage Facilities, Carbon Capture and Data Centers. While I understand some of the arguments about Solar (though I don’t necessarily agree, I’ve discussed that here and here), I am particularly interested here in stopping Data Centers.
Data Centers have been protested in other areas for many reasons. One of them, NYMBYism, seems to be the main one behind these efforts. The protests are not coming from our Amish community, so most of the protestors have cell phones and use the internet. I assume they’re not against them as a concept. I also find that interesting coming from the Commissioners, some of whom have expressed their support for our new President, Donald Trump. In a January 7th press conference, President-elect Trump introduced an investor group, DAMAC, planning to bring $20 billion dollars in data center investment to the U.S. In the speech, he specifically called out Indiana as one of the places to benefit from this investment. Though apparently not Marshall County, per our moratorium.
The others reasons don’t seem to apply or could be controlled. There are complaints from other areas that they use too much power… but that’s what’s drawn them here… our somewhat unique position as a crossroads of power grids. Interestingly, the same reason that the solar farm developers have been drawn here, though for the opposite use, i.e. solar farms uploads power and data centers downloads power. The second complaint is excessive use of water, but that’s been mostly corrected and we don’t have a water shortage here. Also, in other areas they are concerned about the draw on existing water infrastructure, but this moratorium is in the County… which does not have a water system. The third complaint is potential pollution from back-up generators, but again, we’re on a major grid line and if that goes down, there’s a lot more to worry about than back-up generator exhaust! A couple of interesting resources here and here.
The main point here is that we seem to be moving towards an anti-development stance in the county. This despite a new national movement to reduce development impediments, Marshall County seems to be focused on setting up road blocks. I realize that some of this is grassroots, but that doesn’t mean it’s based in facts. It seems to be more based in NIMBYism and lack of knowledge. All of these things would increase our tax base, with minimum disruption to our communities. Yes, they should be researched and possibly controlled, but two years from now, we may lament being passed by.
While a data center wouldn’t employ a lot of people in the long term, it would generate jobs during construction. Once completed, it would be low impact on roads, i.e. no semi-traffic as with other manufacturing. Besides the building itself, they do not use up as much land. They are often taller than our general manufacturing construction, sometimes building 90 feet high. They don’t have larger numbers of regular employees, so no acres of asphalt parking lots. We already have setback requirements, impervious surface requirements and if we don’t want to give exceptions on heights, we have existing height restrictions.
But we currently have a moratorium. So what is our alternative? MCEDC has spearheaded three shell buildings in the past, with what seems to be great success. Are more on the horizon? The last one the building in the Plymouth Industrial park at the SE corner of Pioneer and Jim Neu Drive, which currently houses Divert. It has been occupied since 2022. Is there another in the works? Seems that there should be.
I don’t know what the answer is to the growth question. MCEDC is trying, but it’s hard to do without the County behind them and with headlines that make us seem anti-development. If the County Commissioners and County Council have another plan, I haven’t heard it yet. Hopefully they have something in mind. Because Communities are either growing or dying and I don’t think they want to preside over the latter.
Edit: Yesterday, January 28th, 2025, I attended the PIDCO Annual meeting. The guest speakers were from NIPSCO. The topic of data centers came up as well as wind & solar. Several things of note were mentioned that I thought were worth adding here:
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