From: Nancy Banta
Hope
In order to get a confined feeding operation (CFO) in Bartholomew County, an applicant must first go through the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) for site logistics and then request conditional use from the Bartholomew County Board of Zoning Appeals. The BZA must consider four criteria before granting conditional use.
1. The CFO operation will not be injurious to the public health, safety and general welfare of the community.
2. Development of the property will be consistent with the intent of development standards established by zoning ordinances.
3. This operation will not be contrary to the general purposes served by the zoning ordinance and will not permanently injure other property or uses in the same zoning district and vicinity.
4. The conditional use will be consistent with the character of the zoning district in which it is located and the recommendations of the comprehensive plan.
On July 23, Scott Templeton will go before the Bartholomew County BZA to request conditional use for a CFO housing 11,000 hogs in Hawcreek Township, which is presently home to nine out of the 10 CFOs in Bartholomew County. At that time, the BZA must decide whether or not the Templeton CFO will satisfy the four criteria.
Will the Templeton CFO be injurious to the health of Hope, Schaefer Lake and surrounding small communities? Will the Templeton CFO be detrimental to the general welfare of these communities (think water shortage, water/lake contamination, and air/life quality)?
The Bartholomew County BZA must decide whether or not this CFO will permanently injure other property or uses in the zoning district. Will this CFO hinder the quality of life for the lake, town of Hope and rural residents? Will this CFO bring the property values down and cause harm to the physical and economic health of the community?
I can tell you for certain property values will plummet. My home has been assessed 49 percent lower simply because I live within a half-mile of a CFO. My neighbors’ properties have been devalued by 15 to 26 percent. Furthermore, Dr. Al Heber of Purdue University has developed a method to predict living conditions within a half-mile radius of a CFO. After careful study, he was able to predict our homes would be subjected to noxious emissions for two-thirds of the year. Therefore, eight out of the 12 months of a year vectors blacken the sides of our homes and we are forced to endure toxic air. Bartholomew County and farmer-supported research at Purdue University has confirmed criteria 1 and criteria 3 cannot be satisfied.
Let’s help our BZA reach a decision that will preserve our quality of life and retain the value of our homes. Please join my neighbors and me for the Building and Zoning Appeals meeting at 7 p.m. July 23 in Columbus City Hall and call your county commissioners at 812-379-1515 to let them know how much you want to keep your waters clean, air free from noxious emissions and the value of your home unblemished.
