Bedford Township: Village may have ice cream shop in works
1/12/2005TEMPERANCE - Rob and Patricia Hendrickson are taking a pioneering chance on Temperance, and they're hoping that all those who have worked toward a revitalization of the unincorporated village have enough of a sweet tooth to make their risk pay off.
The Hendricksons have filed a site plan with Bedford Township to build an ice cream shop along Lewis Avenue and just within the boundary of the new village overlay district that township board members created in May. "Scoops" would be the first new commercial building to be constructed in Temperance completely under the new ordinance.
"Without [the overlay district], I would have had to go before the [Board of Zoning Appeals] in order to build on this property," Mr. Hendrickson said. "I'd like to start construction in the spring and open as early as I can. I think the town needs it, and I think it'll be good for downtown Temperance and for us."
The 0.88-acre parcel is located on the east side of Lewis Avenue, just across the road from the entrance to the Ivor Lindsey Senior Citizen Complex. It is currently zoned commercial, and was purchased in June by Mr. Hendrickson and his wife, Patricia. The site plan he has submitted calls for a 700-square-foot building.
The village overlay district rides above Bedford Township's existing zoning ordinances. It exempts the properties within the district's boundaries from many of the stringent architectural, landscape, lighting, and setback requirements defined elsewhere in the zoning ordinances, township officials said. The less-stringent requirements within the district make it easier for existing businesses to expand or rebuild on their present sites without having to spend money to come into compliance.
Scoops may be a harbinger of good things to come and an indication that new residential developments near Temperance are beginning to have an impact on commercial development there, said Dennis Jenkins, Bedford Township's planning and zoning coordinator."I think this is a clear indication that the businesses are finding the population in the Temperance area to be beneficial to their businesses," Mr. Jenkins said.
Gail Keane, chairman of the Temperance Action Committee that first advocated the overlay district, said the new ice cream store should benefit from a planned streetscape project planned for Temperance this year, and should help draw customers for other e businesses.
"In our survey, one of the things that people said they wanted [in Temperance] was an ice cream shop," Mrs. Keane said. "We'd like to keep that small-town feel."