Findlay may require permits for donation bins

FINDLAY — Proposed new zoning rules that would restrict the placement of donation bins in Findlay are advancing. Findlay City Council's Planning & Zoning Committee met Thursday afternoon, voting 5-0 to advance the proposed rules to the Findlay Planning Commission for further review. The committee also voted on Thursday to advance new zoning rules that would regulate the location of fueling stations, oil change businesses, small-box retail stores and self-storage units within city limits. The vote was 4-1, with Councilman Grant Russel, R-1, opposed. Committee members include Dennis Hellmann, R-2, Dan DeArment, R-4, Jim Niemeyer, R-6, and Russel, with Brian Bauman, R-5, chairman. A count of donation bins last summer found 30 on Tiffin Avenue alone, many parked "front and center," said Matt Cordonnier, director of the Hancock Regional Planning Commission, in a meeting held earlier this year. In the future, the placement of a donation bin in the city could require a permit. The number of bins per property would be limited, and bins would be required to be placed at the side or rear of the property. Non-compliance would be treated like a zoning code violation and could include possible court action. On Thursday, the committee finalized language that would exempt religious and charitable organizations from the requirements, with some stipulations. Donation bins owned or leased by these organizations must support the group's mission and be placed to the side or rear of their primary building location. Under the proposed new business zoning, fueling stations, oil change facilities, and small box retail stores, zoned "C2" commercial, would all be considered "conditional uses," meaning that the businesses would have to seek city permission before being established. Current zoning gives them the "inherent right" to operate within a "C2" zoning district, Cordonnier has said. Self-storage units, zoned "I-1" light industrial, would also be considered a conditional use, under the recommendation. Russel said he opposes the "conditional use" zoning for fueling stations and oil change businesses, explaining his "no" vote on the recommendation. Pawn shops, zoned "C2," had been included in the original conditional use language, but the committee agreed to remove them. Previous attempts to limit the establishment of small box retail stores in the city in 2022 were not supported by council. Once reviewed by the planning commission, the recommendations will return to the committee, if necessary, before moving on to Findlay City Council for a vote.