Editor’s Note: This artic has been updated.
MOUNT VERNON — Mount Vernon voters will decide if a 40-acre rezoning issue will be approved this November.
The Vernonview Drive referendum will be on the Nov. 5 General Election ballot. The city road was rezoned to planned neighborhood development (PND) from R-1 single-family residential in a 4-3 vote by Mount Vernon City Council on June 24.
Upland Terrace resident Don Carr turned in petitions to former city auditor Terry Scott in July with 701 signatures of citizens who support overturning council’s decision (497 are required).
A number of residents have opposed the Vernonview rezoning since it first came before the Municipal Planning Commission (MPC) in May 2023.
Added stress on the water and wastewater treatment plant is one of the public’s concerns if the rezoning is approved, fearful it will bring higher costs to all Mount Vernon residents, according to comments collected by Carr.
Another concern expressed by Carr is an influx of traffic. If the high-density rezoning is approved by the voters, the proposed development on this property will increase traffic by 400 more cars on Vernonview Dr. at Coshocton Ave, CVS and Kroger, Carr’s document states. “It’s already nearly impossible to turn left at Beech Street and also the exit at Kroger and Buffalo Wings onto Vernonview Drive.”
High-density housing (townhomes and apartments) may be appropriate in some sections of Mount Vernon, but not in the middle of a current R-1 single-family zoned area, according to Carr, who added if the PND rezoning is approved, residents are concerned that existing single-family home values will decline.
Vernonview Drive rezoning history explained
In 2023, Joshua Williams of the Brookes Group initially planned a 232-unit townhome community. He requested a zoning change from R-1 to R-3, multi-family housing.
The MPC denied his request. Commission members agreed a PND designation might be more appropriate and give the city more control.
Another developer, KNG Equity, requested a zoning change to PND in April. KNG’s plan called for a mix of single-family, owner-occupied, and multi-family residents, as well as townhomes.
The planning commission approved the change, with reservations about the apartments and townhomes.
Two days before city council’s June 24 meeting, KNG Equity sent revised plans, instead calling for 124 owner-occupied units.
KNG eliminated the multi-family units and hopes to include some townhomes with the single-family housing.
Now, with the referendum on the ballot, the rezoning change is ultimately left for Mount Vernon’s registered voters to decide.