Published: January 07, 2009 12:07 am         

Collett area plan to be presented

TERRE HAUTE — A plan nearly a year and half in the works will be one step closer to completion when it is presented Thursday to the Terre Haute City Council.

Members of the Vigo County Area Planning Department will present the final draft of the Collett Park Vicinity Neighborhood Plan for consideration.

Maintaining the historic district of Collett Park and creating definite boundary lines for Union Hospital are some main focuses of the plan, according to Darren Maher, assistant director of Area Planning.

“I do feel that it’s a good plan and with a plan of this magnitude, size and scope, you can’t make every single person happy,” he said. “I’m sure there are things within the plan some people would question and may even totally disagree with, but if you look at the plan as a whole, there’s so many good things in it that I feel that it’s a real solid plan and a majority of people who do see it and read through it and really think about it, they’ll see that it is a good plan. I’m confident of that.”

Marshall Rector, a board member of the Collett Park Neighborhood Association, knows the plan won’t please everyone, but also feels it should please a majority, he said.

He said when it comes to future development and a historic district, problems usually come up.

“We all want the perfect plan, the perfect solution and it’s very hard to obtain that,” he said, noting that the Neighborhood Association will be better off with the plan than without it because it addresses development issues between Union Hospital and the Association.

Plans and meetings for the 53-page document have been in the works since August 2007. This was a part of the Vigo County Area Plan Commission neighborhood planning initiative, in conjunction with the City of Terre Haute, Collett Park Neighborhood Association, Union Hospital and Camiros Inc.

Union Hospital paid $75,000 for the plan, which was done by Chicago-based Camiros Ltd. The Collett Park homeowners’ association paid an additional $2,000 to study about 8.3 acres north of Florida Avenue.

Other focuses or goals of the plan included: developing a policy document to be referenced by city leaders in determining development and zoning approval; providing a model for community and stakeholder involvement for future city planning efforts; providing strategies to make use of vacant properties and ensure that new housing complements the character of existing residences; and ensuring Union Hospital and the surrounding residential areas are compatible in terms of land needs, access and circulation, safety and character.

The study area is bound by Locust Street to the south, Lafayette Avenue and 12th Street to the east, Florida Avenue to the north and U.S. 41/Third Street to the west and includes Union Hospital, Collett Park and many single-family homes and multi-family dwellings.

It also includes city councilman Neil Garrison’s district. He said he’s in favor of the plan and has developed a list of advantages and disadvantages to present at the council meeting. Garrison’s biggest advantage listed is the boundaries developed around Union Hospital.

“Homeowners can maintain their properties with a better answer about the future of their properties,” his list states.

His largest disadvantage of not passing the plan goes along the same lines, stating, “If we do not pass this plan, we run the risk of not being limited to any boundaries or future expansion interests.”

After the plan is presented Thursday, members of the council can vote on it at their next business meeting Jan. 15.

Rector said the Neighborhood Association will deal with it accordingly, but he hopes it can “take those building blocks and say, ‘Now we have this as a foundation, let’s get to work and see what we can do.’”

Still, Garrison , D-5th, stressed that passing the plan would not make it a legally binding contract or blueprint.

“It’ll just be a rough sketch of what could happen in this area,” he said. “I think it can be used to guide future development either with the hospital or the neighborhoods, but the other thing I think is important, too, is it can be a guideline for area planning and for City Council members to fall back on in the future, especially as we have changing council members, we’ll still have something to lean on.”

Crystal Garcia can be reached at (812) 231-4271 or crystal.garcia@tribstar.com.