McCORDSVILLE — McCordsville has annexed nearly 100 acres of county land into its town limits to make way for a new subdivision, plans for which leave open the possibility a third Vernon Township Fire Department station would be built within the neighborhood.
McCord Pointe, a 220-lot subdivision, will sit on 96 acres along County Road 1000N between 500W and 600W. It will feature a mix of ranch-style and two-story properties, ranging from $200,000 to $350,000, with construction beginning in 2018, said Greenfield attorney Ron Pritzke, who represented the development plans to the McCordsville Town Council on behalf CalAtlantic.
The subdivision’s developers have also agreed to keep an acre of the plot empty for the next three years, giving town officials time to decide whether that’s a good location for a new fire station to better serve the county’s most northern residents.
The stipulation is tucked into an agreement amid other plans for the neighborhood, including a private 1,800-square-foot swimming pool with a baby pool, pool house, bathrooms and changing facilities. Plans also include a playground, and the developer has agreed to connect the subdivision to McCordsville’s growing trails system.
The one-acre plot isn’t guaranteed to become home to the area’s new fire station, but town officials said they wanted the land available if they needed it.
Asking a developer to set aside of a bit of property for public use isn’t an unusual request, but this is the first time McCordsville has taken advantage of the option, said Ryan Crum, the town’s director of planning and building.
Leaders in Vernon Township and McCordsville officials have for years been looking for land that could be used to build a third fire station to help accommodate the town’s growing population, officials said.
McCordsville — the second fastest-growing community in Indiana — grew by more than 7 percent last year, gaining more than 400 new residents, according to Census data.
Residents are served by a fire station, located in the 7500 block of North Form Street in McCordsville, but officials have been searching for land to build nearer to the Hancock-Hamilton county line.
It’s been tough to pin down a spot with so many residential developments taking up real estate on the town’s northern end, officials said.
So town officials asked McCord Pointe’s developer, CalAtlantic, to reserve a one-acre plot along the edge of the annexed property.
The site, which would be wide enough to accommodate two houses, will remain undeveloped for the next three years, per the agreement between the town and CalAtlantic.
Vernon Township will likely need more than a single acre for a fire station, Crum said. But there are lots nearby — outside of the McCord Pointe boundaries — that are currently empty and a bit too small to draw the eye of a developer. The town and township would likely look to combine the adjacent properties for a big-enough plot, he said.
Plans for the development and annexation of land were unanimously approved by the town council at their June meeting.
It’s the second time in six months McCordsville had annexed a chunk of county land to make room for a subdivision.
Weeks earlier, the town annexed 16 acres of county land to make room for Stonegrove, a 34-lot subdivision that will be located near the intersection of county roads 900N and 600W.
The property will be developed by Premier Land Company and homes be priced between $275,000 and $350,000, Greenfield attorney Ed Walters told the board on behalf of the developer.