HANCOCK COUNTY — A contentious housing proposal near New Palestine is back, but unlike its first attempt, this time it aims to follow standards already established for the area.
Neighbors remain just as concerned, however, particularly over the developer’s renewed desire to connect to streets in their neighborhood. The additional traffic would compromise safety, they say, while the new houses could clash with their community’s character.
Last fall, D.R. Horton, a home builder with headquarters in Arlington, Texas, sought approval from Hancock County officials for Fields at Sugar Creek, a 185-lot subdivision on 81 acres near the southeast corner of U.S. 52 and County Road 800W. The developer wanted a planned unit development, which would’ve established standards for the neighborhood that differed from that area’s existing residential zoning classification. Houses would’ve been able to go on smaller lots and be closer together, for instance.
Many residents of the nearby Schildmeier Village opposed the proposal, and the Hancock County Plan Commission passed it on to the county commissioners with a negative recommendation. D.R. Horton withdrew its petition before the commissioners could consider it.
Now, the developer has filed documents with the plan commission proposing 111 homes on almost 60 acres without a zoning change. The county plan commission was scheduled to consider a primary plat for Fields at Sugar Creek in February, but D.R. Horton requested it be continued to the commission’s April 27 meeting, which members granted. Mike Dale, executive director of the plan commission, said the developer’s request was due to issues that arose during the county technical committee’s discussion of the project and issues raised by Schildmeier Village residents.
Gary Pool, county engineer and a member of the technical committee, said plans for Fields at Sugar Creek call for streets that run too long without any breaks and that he’s required D.R. Horton to make modifications. He added it could be accomplished by adding through-streets or cul-de-sacs, which likely would require removing a lot or two from the total.
Dale recalled how much of Schildmeier Village residents’ opposition to last year’s attempt stemmed from their desire to see any new residential development near them meet standards already in place. Now, the developer is trying to do that, he continued.
“So it’s easy to feel good about that, because it would seem that the developer has decided to just meet the interests of the neighborhood by conforming to the current zoning, as they expressed,” Dale said. “That’s why, on the surface, it looked like it was a project that would probably be supported by staff.”
But neighbors still have a lot of concerns, which they’ve expressed in emails to Dale and the plan commission. Many of those concerns have to do with wanting Fields at Sugar Creek to blend in with Schildmeier Village, something Dale said might be difficult. Schildmeier Village was developed decades ago and lacks street lights and sidewalks, which would be required in Fields at Sugar Creek.
During last year’s attempt, D.R. Horton offered higher architectural standards than the existing zoning classification’s minimum in exchange for a higher density of homes. Now, all the developer is subject to are the minimum architectural standards.
“The character of this new neighborhood would be definitely and maybe drastically different,” Dale said.
According to plans filed with the county, D.R. Horton also wants to connect two of Fields at Sugar Creek’s streets to cul-de-sacs in Schildmeier Village, something the developer offered to rescind in response to the opposition that swelled during last year’s attempt.
Schildmeier Village residents worry the increase in traffic will compromise safety in their neighborhood, which lacks street lights and where vehicles and pedestrians share the road.
That’s one of the concerns of Deno Webb, president of Schildmeier Village’s homeowners association. He also said D.R. Horton has not been forthcoming with Schildmeier Village residents, and that he feels they and county officials are more concerned about money that developments bring in than the interests of the existing residents.
“Everybody’s about the profit, and yet we’re about the community,” he said. “We want a community that is controlled; we want a community that people will feel comfortable living in and be proud of.”
Webb added he has no problem with a residential development north of Schildmeier Village, but wants it to be “above board.” He wishes D.R. Horton would sit down with him and his neighbors to hear their concerns and be willing to adapt their proposal to those concerns.
D.R. Horton representatives did not return requests for comment for this story.
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Fields at Sugar Creek
- 111 lots
- 59.4 acres
- Southeast corner of U.S. 52 and County Road 800W
- D.R. Horton
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