Valparaiso University fraternities will no longer be allowed to establish new houses off-campus. The city council approved a series of updates to the unified development ordinance Monday.
One part no longer allows fraternity and sorority houses in "residential transition" zones, instead restricting them to "campus" zones. Still, any existing ones are allowed to stay for as long as they continue being used for that purpose.
Council member Diana Reed refuted claims that fraternities are being pushed out for more expensive development. "We have had many properties for sale in this area, and no developer has come in trying to develop it to push out individuals of lower incomes," Reed said.
However, Council President Robert Cotton worried the change would reduce options for the owner of a building that used to house a fraternity that since lost its full charter. "There's a certain economic degradation that comes along with making a change when it inhibits the flexibility of a property owner to pursue viable options," Cotton said.
Reed noted that fraternity houses near campus can ask to be added to the campus zone.
The other parts of the update also drew heavy debate. One part updates the city's storm water management regulations, to bring them in line with the latest state and federal standards, but some residents and council members were frustrated that it didn't come with an increase in fines.
Resident Walt Breitinger called for fines to be raised dramatically. "The amount of money that I'm hearing here compared to the potential damage to the environment is inadequate," Breitinger told council members.
City Attorney Patrick Lyp explained that fines aren't covered in this portion of the unified development ordinance, meaning any adjustments would still have to go through the plan commission.
Efforts to streamline the ordinance's language on nonconforming uses also drew concern. Council member Barbara Domer worried that it would make it harder for neighborhoods to object to non-residential uses.
But Planning Director Beth Shrader said it doesn't change the process for neighbors to object, and it doesn't change the city's code enforcement process. "We see this as an opportunity to kind of take something out that didn't make a lot of sense, kind of cut the fat and have an ordinance that kind of makes more sense, holds together better," Shrader said.
Specifically, Shrader explained that the change eliminates the distinction between major and minor non-conformities, along with the option for minor nonconforming structures to go through a special use process instead of a use variance or development standards variance.
A motion was made to vote on the storm water changes separately from the changes to where fraternity houses are allowed and how non-conforming uses are handled, but after extensive debate, it was voted down.
The original ordinance ultimately passed by a vote of five-to-two, with Cotton and Domer opposing.
