The Broad Ripple Village Association (BRVA) zoning committee met at Broad Ripple United Methodist Church on January 23, 2007. This committee hears cases from petitioners who are seeking liquor licenses, zoning variances, and rezonings for property in the Broad Ripple area. The committee meetings are open to the public and are held on the fourth Tuesday of each month at 5:30 PM.

Following the meeting, a private vote is taken on each case. The committee then makes a recommendation to the full BRVA board of directors. The board makes the final decision on whether or not to support a petition at the hearing downtown. The January meeting had four petitioners.

First was Landsharks, which is located at 810 Broad Ripple Avenue. Landsharks is planning an expansion into the vacant storefront at 808 Broad Ripple Avenue. This property has the distinction of being in a section of the strip that has two owners: part of the space is owned by Kosene & Kosene, and the other part is owned by Ossip. This complicates the zoning requirements because the two owners have different designations, which results in different parking needs.

The 808 space was most recently occupied by the hat store Lids. Andi Metzel, representative for the club's owners, showed plans to convert the space into an expansion of the existing Landsharks club. The layout includes an additional bar and a waiting area with sofas and chairs. This expansion would give the club an additional door to the Avenue, improving the customer flow during peak hours.

The preliminary conclusion from the presentation was that sufficient parking exists behind the building, so no zoning variance will be required for this expansion. While there is a maximum square-footage of alcohol-serving businesses legally allowed in the Kosene & Kosene section of the building along the north side of Broad Ripple Avenue, there is no such restriction for the Ossip end (the west end).

Next was Three Sisters Cafe, which is located at 6360 Guilford Avenue. Although no physical changes are planned for Three Sisters Cafe, zoning variances are required due to changes in building ownership. The variances are for a small shortage of available parking and for a sign setback (the sign is too close to the property line).

The third petition was for the property located at 6548 Cornell Avenue. This property has been a residential rental for many years. The proposal is to obtain a zoning variance to allow for the conversion to a small boutique or office space. The building would retain its residential appearance. The trees and garage would also remain. The proposed uses, stated urban planner David Kingen, would not require a parking variance, but would require a variance for a ground sign.

The last petition was for Ripple Flats @ 6310, which is located at 6310 College Avenue. This project by Van Kirby and Dan Detrick has been before this committee several times over the past year. This appearance before the committee was requested because of some changes to the project in response to requests from neighbors and the BRVA. Several neighbors to the project spoke in opposition at the meeting. The main points of the opposition included the proposed height of the structure, parking concerns, and inconveniences that might be experienced during construction. Van said they would work closely with the construction team to minimize those problems.

The next BRVA zoning committee meeting will be Tuesday, February 27, 2007, at 5:30 PM.