County seeks to grow New Carlisle development area, cites bond for various projects
NEW CARLISLE — Land clearing has begun for the 680-acre General Motors/Samsung SDI electric vehicle battery plant. And already St. Joseph County officials are seeking to expand the New Carlisle Economic Development Area where it sits.
The area would add 309 properties, a move that county Economic Development Director Bill Schalliol said would chiefly help to sell bonds to support various other projects within its new boundaries over the next 25 years.
Schalliol said there aren’t any current plans to acquire those 309 properties. And eventually, he said, there may be a few that the county would need to acquire.
An open house in New Carlisle has been set for Nov. 13 for the public to learn more, just one day ahead of the plans' final approval.
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The current EDA would grow from 5,426 acres to 6,923 acres, he said. That's a growth of 28%. The boundaries would expand to the southwest generally to Timothy Road and expand to the east generally to Snowberry Road.
Schalliol doesn’t expect GM/Samsung to grow beyond the 680 acres it has purchased. But it is possible that another developer could eventually build an industrial use in the area.
Since GM/Samsung made their move, he said, “There are certainly people kicking the tires, looking at the area.”
Overall, though, he said that much of the expansion area would remain in their original uses for agriculture and homes, along with Bendix Woods County Park.
After county commissioners voted to give their stamp of approval Oct. 24, local environmental advocate Steve Francis complained to officials that there hasn’t yet been a public hearing on such a major expansion.
Schalliol said the expanded boundaries have been initially approved by the county’s Redevelopment Commission and the Area Plan Commission. It came to commissioners for approval and to the county council committees for a presentation on Oct. 24. It will go back to the Redevelopment Commission and to the council for final approval on Nov. 14.
Francis recalled the original EDA and the significant public pushback on plans for industrial development on the highly fertile farmland, once part of the Grand Kankakee Marsh. Unless a public hearing is held — and not at the end of the process — Francis said, “We are going to continue to organize.”
By statute, Schalliol said, the expansion doesn’t require a public hearing until the Nov. 14 meetings.
But, just recently, county officials scheduled an open house for the public to learn about and ask questions about the expanded boundaries from 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. Nov. 13 at the New Carlisle-Olive Township Public Library, 408 Bray St., which is in town and just south of U.S. 20.
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Schalliol said the bond would facilitate projects that include adding land along a railroad corridor, extending utilities to the Mini Mountain Campgrounds for improvements that owners are planning there, partly to allow for year-round camping, and improving the intersection of Indiana 2 and Timothy Road.
The county, he said, also wants to upgrade utilities at Bendix Woods County Park. And, next door, Navistar Proving Grounds is looking to expand its facilities.
He said that, because this wouldn’t be a general obligation bond, it wouldn’t affect taxes.
South Bend Tribune reporter Joseph Dits can be reached at 574-235-6158 or jdits@sbtinfo.com.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: St. Joseph County seeks New Carlisle development area expansion
