Zoning Petition Forwarded to MDCThe zoning fate of 3440 Guion Road to establish Honor Academy Charter School still remains unanswered. The hearing examiner decided not to hear the petition January 25 because of improper legal notice. The petitioners, National Heritage Academy, did not send legal notices to the affected landowners when the legal description was amended in December to add 1.47 acres into the site. The hearing examiner decided to transfer the petition to the full Metropolitan Development Commission Feb 21 meeting with the recommendation that proper legal notice be served. This decision was against the wishes of the remonstrators Pam Young and Mary Bussing. Bussing thought this decision violated their due process of not being able to present their case at this meeting. However, the hearing examiner noted the remonstrators could still present their case at the Feb 21 meeting and to the full city-county council. All decisions can be appealed in a court of law. Bussing said she later contacted the division of planning and said the decision to transfer could not be appealed. On February 6, Larry Williams of Department of Metropolitan Development said the hearing examiner’s decision to transfer cannot be appealed, but the remonstrators could make a request to send the petition back to the hearing examiner. The charter school received approval January 22 from the city of Indianapolis Charter School Board to operate a school within this area. Final approval resides with the Mayor Bart Peterson. The Flackville Neighborhood Association and The Westview Neighborhood Association are fighting the zoning petition because of the poor drainage in the area. The residents are not comfortable with the site engineering plans concerning surface water. The plans call for lowering the site elevation from 740 feet above sea level to its original level of 738 feet above sea level. The surface water would be captured into a 60-foot wide detention pond before discharging into Little Eagle Creek. The residents have been flooded out of their homes in 1978 and 2003. Bussing said she plans to talk to DNR about the National Heritage Academy building the school in a flood plain. National Heritage Academy will own the site and operate the school.The petitioners have already sent the plans to U. S. Army Corp of Engineers for approval of the drainage plan in a wetland area. Bussing wants National Heritage Academy to buy her property because the school’s drive will circle around her property. The petitioners contend the neighbors will not really be adversely affected with the school in their neighborhood because the school’s impact of bus noise is during the time when most residents are working. This is not the case for Bussing, who operates a home based business.
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