Final public hearing on Cole County zoning set

The last scheduled public meeting to discuss the proposal for zoning in Cole County takes place Monday night.

From 7-8:30 p.m. at the Cole County Emergency Management classroom on Southridge Drive county staff, along with Mark White of White and Smith LLC, the consultant for the draft zoning plan, will be on hand to answer questions about the proposal.

Voters will be asked on Aug. 5 if zoning should be mandated countywide.

If voters approve the zoning issue, county officials said the zoning plan and map would have to be finalized and ratified by the county Planning and Zoning Committee. The plan would then go to the County Commission, which would have to hold hearings in all the townships before taking a final vote to adopt the plan.

Three public meetings were held in April and May in towns across the county and Cole County Senior Planner Shannon Kliethermes said not many changes have been made to the plan based on feedback.

"Most people ask for clarifications and there are a few changes in the zoning maps," he said. "Some properties may be zoned a little differently such as having more commercial zoning on U.S. 50 and other big highways, but overall the main questions have been how the adoption process works."