A special meeting of the Village of Riverlea Planning Commission was held May 22, 2025 at 258 Frontenac Pl. Members present were Planning Commissioner Bryce Jacob, Christopher Bedell, Paul Collini, Rich Skowronski, and Jennifer Zipfel. The Planning Commissioner called the meeting to order at 6:07 p.m.
- The Planning Commissioner stated that he had he had spoken with the Village Council at the May meeting and they would like the Planning Commission to reconsider their decision to deny the application for a 6 ft fence at 276 W Southington Ave as the application seems to meet the current Village zoning code as written. Zipfel moved to rescind the Planning Commission’s decision to deny the fence application at 276 W Southington Ave and Skowronski seconded the motion. The following vote was recorded on the motion: Yea: 3, Jacob, Skowronski, Zipfel; Nay: None; Abstain: 1, Bedell. The motion carried (3-0-1). Collini was not yet in attendance at the time of the vote.
Bedell questioned if there was a reason for the fence to be 6 ft in height as he had not been in attendance at the May meeting. The Planning Commissioner replied that a concrete reason had not been given and that the Commission had tried to suggest other options. Bedell stated that the way the current ordinances are written, the commission cannot vote against such an application. Skowronski moved to approve the fence application at 276 W Southington Ave and Zipfel seconded the motion. The following vote was recorded on the motion: Yea: 4, Bedell, Jacob, Skowronski, Zipfel; Nay: None; Abstain: None. The motion carried (4-0). Collini was not yet in attendance at the time of the vote.
- The Planning Commission discussed the potential changes to the Village zoning code around fences. The Planning Commissioner stated that he had made the recommended changes to the Dublin zoning code, including the description of solid fences and picket fences.
Collini stated that the language needs to include the ability of the Planning Commission to have some leeway in their decisions. The Planning Commissioner stated that the language of decisions needs to include special circumstances where applicable.
Zipfel stated that she felt that the code should include language prohibiting dog eared cedar fences. The Planning Commissioner inquired if the code should allow fences made out of stone or brick. The Dublin code states that these should be no more than 3-4 ft in height.
Bedell asked if the code should include language around the colors that would be permitted and the Planning Commissioner replied that this would be dangerous to include, though they may want to specifically exclude colors such as neons or pastels.
Collini questioned where the language stating that the Commission has room to make decisions appears in the code. The Planning Commissioner suggested changing the language to read “Unless specifically permitted by the Planning Commission following variance request review.”
The Planning Commissioner stated that the fence application needs to be updated to require the submittal of a site survey.
Skowronski moved and Collini seconded a motion to adjourn. The motion was approved unanimously (4-0). The meeting was adjourned at 7:01 p.m.
Bryce Jacob, Planning Commissioner
Josh Mehling, Clerk