Jana Wiersema | The Republic Grandview Lake residents who attended the county Board of Zoning Appeals meeting wore white to protest a variance proposal for Henry Chateau.
A conditional use request to allow a retreat center near Grandview Lake has been tabled for another month.
The Bartholomew County Board of Zoning Appeals voted to grant a 30-day continuance on Max Henry’s request for a conditional use variance to allow a retreat center in the Agriculture: General zoning district at 13200 Bellsville Pike in Ohio Township. The vote was 4-1, with board member Arnold Haskell in opposition.
Chairman David Flohr said the matter is continued until next month’s meeting, which is set for Sept. 25.
Henry’s application — as well as his previous requests to the board — has garnered criticism from Grandview Lake residents, and several individuals showed up Monday wearing white to show their opposition to the request. At the meeting’s start, there were about 90 individuals in attendance, with most departing after the continuance was approved.
According to the planning department’s staff report, there are two accessory buildings on the 56-acre property that the applicant wants to use for a retreat center. Henry previously submitted applications for an event venue at the same property, which were heard by the board in December of 2020 and July of 2021.
“Both requests were denied,” staff wrote. “Despite the denials, the applicant has been operating an event venue on the property in violation of the zoning ordinance.”
Henry has openly advertised the business — known as the Henry Chateau — at henrychateau.com and on social media, with Facebook showing that an open house was held on December of 2022, staff wrote. Additionally, the Department of Technical Code Enforcement found that a Cummins, Inc. corporate event was held at the site in January of 2023, and a business partner has indicated that at least five events have already been booked for future dates.
The ABC-Stewart Montessori School had previously announced plans to hold a fundraising gala at the Henry Chateau on Sept. 8, with the night including an open bar — despite Henry’s retreat center application stating that there would be no open bar events held at the site.
School officials recently announced on social media that, due to “the recent conflict between a select group of Grandview residents and The Henry Chateau,” they have rescheduled the gala for Feb. 23 at The Commons.
The website for Henry Chateau and the business’s Facebook page can no longer be accessed, and Google Maps lists the venue as permanently closed.
The site — which had still been accessible prior to Monday’s meeting— described the business as a “modern wedding and event venue” with the capacity for 250 guests.
The preliminary recommendation from planning staff was to continue the request in light of information about the property’s intended use that contradicts Henry’s application. Staff added that if the request is approved, it should include several commitments, such as limiting attendance to 50 people, ending events by 10 p.m., and having no bands, live music or DJ services on the site.
Attorney Jeff Rocker, who is representing Henry, also requested that the matter be continued and said that his client is on the way back from Europe.
“He was not able to be here tonight to answer any of the more detailed questions,” Rocker said. “His son’s here, but it would better to have him here and hear from the horse’s mouth, so we would appreciate a 30-day continuance to allow us to answer those questions for the planning staff, resolving confusion and get back here and give you guys the best information we have.”
Prior to voting against the continuance, Haskell expressed concern about a mailer that had been sent out to advertise ABC-Stewart’s fundraiser gala and how many people might show up at Henry’s property on Sept. 8 because they thought the event was still being held there.
Rocker said it’s his understanding that the school officials were unable to stop the mailers from going out, as these were sent out by a third-party marketing company and were already in the process of distribution. He added that the school has used social media to announce the change of venue.
“Max Henry’s grandchildren go to that school,” Rocker said. “That was an event that he was hosting personally to support his grandkids’ school. But we moved it because we understood that things like that created confusion, thinking that was a commercial event. It is not a commercial event, and it is not going to happen at the chateau.”
According to Henry’s application, if the board approves the conditional use variance, the Henry Chateau will be used as a corporate retreat for “professional, educational or religious meetings and conferences during which meals and recreation will be provided and for which housing shall be available.”
“Typical events will be 20-50 (people),” the application stated. “No bands or DJ services will be involved in these retreats and no outdoor music of any kind will be had. As predominantly daytime corporate events, the majority of these events will have food and non-alcoholic refreshments.”
Henry’s application also stated that there would be limited lighting at the site, screening from the forest, noise levels that would not reach neighboring properties, “no late-night events” and minimal impact on traffic.
Residences to the north and east of the subject property are lots on Grandview Lake and are separated from the property by a large, wooded area owned by the Grandview Lot Owners Association, according to the staff report.
The matter was previously on the board’s agenda for July, but it was tabled to allow a group of residents who are against the application more time to meet with their lawyer and the Grandview Lot Owners Association.
The planning department’s staff report on the request included about 20 letters from Grandview residents who opposed the request and one from a couple living in the neighborhood who indicated their support.
There is also an online petition at change.org about the matter, which has garnered more than 600 signatures from individuals who are against Henry’s request.
Those who oppose the request cite reasons such as the board’s previous denials, the applicant’s past violation of county regulations, possible traffic hazards, past issues with events at the site, a desire to keep the area rural and residential, concerns about noise, and property values.
