The South Bend Common Council voted 8-1 to approve substitute bill 32-25 to rezone 1037 West Colfax Avenue to allow professional office uses, after a committee and public hearing that included written commitments from the petitioner and vocal neighborhood opposition.

Margaret Reed, representing My Property LLC, told the council the vacant house on Colfax has been unoccupied for more than four years, suffered break-ins and water damage, and that she intends to renovate the structure for small professional offices such as law or mediation firms while keeping the exterior appearance residential. Reed said she would maintain the lawn and limit signage to neighborhood-appropriate standards.

Planning staff and the plan commission reviewed the application and recommended conditions; staff noted the property sits in an area the neighborhood plan designates as Urban Neighborhood 1, but the petitioner requested a rezoning that planning staff and the commission judged to be low impact with recommended written restrictions. The petition includes 23 written commitments codified as exhibits; staff said the plan commission may later modify or terminate commitments with proper notice.

Several neighbors and a council member objected to the rezoning as spot zoning that does not conform to the Near West Side/Westside neighborhood plan. A council member representing the block said she received calls and emails from multiple immediate neighbors, including nine in strong opposition and three with concerns. Opponents said they feared changes in the neighborhood character and expressed concern about enforcement if commitments need modification later.

Council discussion acknowledged both the developer'9s investment in a problem property and the neighborhood'9s concerns. The motion to forward the substitute bill with a favorable recommendation carried on a roll call of eight ayes and one nay (Vice President Thomas Morgan recorded as the single no). The bill passed on third reading later in the meeting with the same vote tally recorded.

The rezoning is subject to the written commitments attached to the ordinance and to any enforcement or modification actions by the plan commission and city planning staff.