900 acres of St. Joe Farm considered for ‘business tech campus’
The county’s Area Plan Commission will consider the rezoning for the second time at its meeting at 3:30 p.m. April 16 both virtually and on the fourth floor of the County-City Building in downtown South Bend. The proposed rezoning would change it from an agricultural district and planned unit development district to an industrial district.
GRANGER — A developer, unnamed so far, is asking St. Joseph County to rezone 914 acres of farmland of the former, historic St. Joe Farm — east of Capital Avenue and Cleveland Road — where it would build a “business-tech campus.”
The county’s Area Plan Commission will consider the rezoning for the second time at its meeting at 3:30 p.m. April 16 both virtually and on the fourth floor of the County-City Building in downtown South Bend. The proposed rezoning would change it from an agricultural district and planned unit development district to an industrial district.
The commission’s recommendation would then go to the county council.
A staff report from the county describes the developer’s plans: Up to 300 people would work in three buildings ranging from 262,044 to 602,005 square feet. An area to the south would be reserved for future development. A 200-foot buffer of green space would be allowed along the nearby Juday Creek, which is a cold-water trout stream that conservationists aim to protect as it leads to the St. Joseph River.
County staff report that it would require the city of Mishawaka to extend water and sewer service to the site. While staff say that is currently being planned, The Tribune is also reporting that nearby, in a separate proposed development northwest of Capital and Cleveland, Mishawaka would also have to extend water and sewer service for a proposed auto mall that Gurley Leep Automotive Group hopes to build. In that case, Mishawaka officials say there are still several steps yet to be resolved. Among other things, the developer would have to pay to extend the utilities 1,000 feet to reach the site.
As WNDU has reported, St. Joe Farm dates back to 1867 when the land was purchased by the University of Notre Dame’s founder, the Rev. Edward Sorin. Holy Cross brothers farmed it for more than a century to feed students, faculty and staff on campus.
Notre Dame sold the property in 2008. Indiana Michigan Power runs its solar farm at the eastern end of the property, and there is also an old barn on site that’s rented for special events, according to WNDU.
The rezoning measure had originally come in March to the commission, who tabled it to add some assurances, particularly after some neighbors had raised concerns. In response, the property owners would agree to a set of commitments that are similar to those that have been set for the Economic Enterprise Center’s overlay district near New Carlisle. Among others, these would include assurances that there wouldn’t be disruptive businesses like slaughterhouses and metal shredding plants.
Steve Francis, who lives nearby, feels the commitments may not go far enough to ease neighbors’ concerns. Because it isn’t clear who the owner is or what sort of business would end up there, Francis said, neighbors are concerned about traffic and any possible impact to water, given nearby Juday Creek, along with the floodplain south of Cleveland.
New Carlisle comprehensive plan
Also at the April 16 meeting, the Area Plan Commission will vote on the comprehensive plan for New Carlisle to guide future growth and development in the town through 2040, especially in light of major industrial growth just to its east.