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LORDSTOWN -- After hearing concerns from residents both in person and by letters read aloud, village council on Monday voted 5-1 against a zone change request to reclassify 34.77 acres of property owned by Clean Energy Future Trumbull LLC.
Had the request been approved, the zoning for the property off state Route 45 would have been changed from residential to industrial. Council referred the zone change request back to the village planning commission for further review.
Council President Ron Radtka was the only member to vote in favor of the change.
The planning commission previously passed the zone change request and recommended council do the same to give the industrial zoning classification needed for a second power plant.
Planning / zoning administrator Kellie Bordner previously said the company wants the industrial zoning to be the same as the surrounding properties. She said the properties to the north and west of the property already are zoned industrial.
Some residents who live near the site expressed concerns about noise and bright lights at the property.
Resident Mark McGrail of Goldner Lane, who is running for mayor in November, said the neighborhood is a densely populated residential area and he is not for rezoning it to industrial.
"This is not an either-or situation. There needs to be some middle ground to support the energy center and the residents and everyone comes away happy," he said.
McGrail said his main concern about changing the zoning for a second power plant is there is a noise nuisance with a loud humming sound coming from the first plant that can be heard at night. He said there also is a light nuisance that lights up the residents' properties on Goldner Lane.
"There is objectionable noise coming from the facility every night. These issues need to be addressed properly first for the residents who live nearby. We ask you to vote against this and help the residents in the neighborhood," McGrail said.
He asked village officials to meet with company officials to address the noise and light issues.
Resident Larry Tura of Hallock Young Road said he agrees a lot of noise comes from the property and said a barrier needs to be created.
Resident Laura Czoka of Hallock Young Road said she hears the noise from her home, which is farther away.
"Would any of you like to live in the neighborhood with the constant noise?" she asked council before their vote.
Bordner read aloud 10 letters sent to council all expressing opposition to the zone change and complaining of the constant loud noise and bright lights. The letters were from residents on Goldner Lane, Ina Drive and Hallock Young Road.
"The zone change will be sent back to the planning commission for further consideration and review," Bordner said.
A representative of the company attended the meeting but declined to comment after the vote.