An update from last night’s Progress Team zoning meeting regarding the Oak’s Academy zoning request to use the home at 2327 N Broadway (the former Jim Jones house) for educational uses.

The variance request has been amended to expire after one year. The Oaks is launching a second school on the Near Eastside in 2012, and will be “incubating” a pre-K and Kindergarten class for that new location in the current Fall Creek Place school. Because the current school is at capacity, there is no room to add the two classrooms. As such, the school seeks to move an 8th grade humanities class into the house at 2327 Broadway for the year. Once the new school opens and the pre-K and K “incubator” classrooms move to that school, the Oaks will no longer need to use the house.

The Oaks is in the preliminary stage of determining feasibility of using the house. The variance request is an early step, but other steps, including necessary code modifications needed to accommodate educational use, and the cost of doing so, have not been determined. The School would assume maintenance of the property and would not have any pickup or dropoff of students at the location. They would be walking back and forth from other classes inside the main school building. The 3 staff people using the house would either park in the existing parking pad behind the home or in current school parking lots.

General neighbor concerns revolved around the safety of students in a home not designed for such purpose as well as concern that the variance could set a precedent that would make it easier for the owner of the home to continue the commercial or institutional use after the Oaks vacates after a year. While the variance will expire after one year, and any future use for such purpose would require a new variance with a new public hearing, neighbors reiterated their desire to maintain homes and lots for the planned residential use.

A public hearing of the Indianapolis Board of Zoning Appeals has been scheduled for July 12 at 1pm in the Public Assembly Room of the City County Building.

Neighbors are encouraged to provide feedback concerning this request as to what position, or no position, you would like to see the neighborhood take regarding this variance request. You may provide your comments to progress@fallcreekplace.com by 5pm on Monday June 27. These comments will be compiled and submitted to the Board of Directors for consideration at their scheduled June 28th meeting.

Neighbors are also welcome to contact the City directly concerning this request by emailing the staff planner assigned to this case, Alexander Sulanke, at alexander.sulanke@indy.gov. Reference case #2011-UV2-010 in any correspondence. The public hearing is also open to the public.

Note that this variance request does not address two other controversial Oaks Academy-related issues you may be aware of, including the potential sale of residential building lots along Broadway and the recent construction of a gravel parking lot. This request is solely for the conversion of the house from residential to classroom use.