Austintown Zoning Commission approves rezoning

By kalea hall

khall@vindy.com

austintown

The Austintown Zoning Commission agreed to rezone lots on Interstate Boulevard from industrial to business, allowing any future businesses to fit in with those there now.

The next step is for township officials to have a public hearing on the change, which is expected in August.

“This is something we have been looking at for awhile,” said Darren Crivelli, township zoning inspector, at Thursday’s zoning commission hearing. “It’s a nice area. We just want future businesses to be compatible.”

Switching the 33 acres on Interstate Boulevard to business would avoid the possibility of junk yards operating near the hotels, restaurants and retail stores in that area.

Sexually-oriented business is also permitted on industrially zoned areas. Rezoning the area to business would enable the township to dictate where sexually oriented businesses can operate.

Earlier this year, the trustees approved a resolution to rezone the area. On Tuesday, the Mahoning County Planning Commission unanimously approved rezoning the area.

“They understand what we are doing,” Crivelli said. “It just makes sense. There is a place for every type of business.”

Before presenting the reasons for the rezoning to the county planning commission, Crivelli sent letters to all property owners located in the area to alert them about the possible change.

Crivelli told the township zoning commission he only received one comment from a property owner who said, “You guys should have done this years ago.”