Land Use Thoroughfare Plan N R
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Porter County Land Use Thoroughfare& Plan Prepared for: Porter County, Indiana By: Porter County2020 Building the Foundation for the Future PORTER COUNTY LAND USE AND THOROUGHFARE PLAN PORTER COUNTY LAND USE AND THOROUGHFARE PLAN PREPARED FOR: Porter County Plan Commission County Administration Building, Suite 304 155 Indiana Avenue Valparaiso, IN 46383 (219) 465-3540 PREPARED BY: HNTB Corporation 111 Monument Circle Suite 1200 Indianapolis, Indiana 46204-5178 (317) 636-4682 Adopted May, 2001 ACKNOWLEGEMENTS There were many individuals who devoted considerable time and effort toward the creation of this Plan. The contributions of both the County Officials, Town Officials, residents and interest groups were invaluable in helping to formulate this Plan. The officials of Porter County are sincerely grateful to all the people who contributed to the process and this Plan. PORTER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS Larry D. Sheets, President David L. Burrus, Vice President John A. Evans, Secretary PORTER COUNTY COUNCIL William R. Carmichael, President Carole Knoblock, Vice President Karen J. Conover Karen M. Martin Barbara J. Stroud Leon West John W. Ruge PORTER COUNTY PLAN COMMISSION Karen M. Martin, President Dan Fleming, Vice President Larry D. Sheets Kevin D. Breitzke Michael Bucko Richard Burns Robert C. Detert Michael Herzog Frank Mahnic CORE PLANNING GROUP Karen M. Martin Larry D. Sheets Robert W. Thompson, Jr., AICP Lonnie Steele i George Uzelac PLAN COMMISSION STAFF Robert W. Thompson, Jr., AICP, Executive Director/County Planner R. Lawrence Steele, Attorney Stephen P. Nigro, Assistant Planner/ Zoning Inspector Mary L. Cable, Administrative Assistant Patricia S. Gibson, First Deputy Toni Byers, Second Deputy Christine A. Patz, Third Deputy Jessica A. Greer, College Internship 2000 ii PORTER COUNTY LAND USE & THOROUGHFARE PLAN TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION........................................................................... 1 A. INTRODUCTION........................................................................................2 B. THE PLANNING PROCESS..........................................................................2 C. PRINCIPLES OF LAND USE PLANNING ....................................................3 D. PLAN COMPOSITION................................................................................3 CHAPTER II: THE PLANNING PROCESS ............................................................ 5 A. THE PROCESS..............................................................................................6 B. STEP 1: UNDERSTANDING PORTER COUNTY ........................................7 C. STEP 2: TRENDS IN PORTER COUNTY....................................................9 1. Public Meetings.....................................................................................9 2. Reviewing Existing Studies................................................................ 12 3. Documenting Physical Features........................................................ 12 4. Population Projections....................................................................... 12 D. STEP 3: FORMULATION OF VISION, GUIDING PRINCIPLES AND OBJECTIVES ............................................................................................. 13 E. STEP 4: DEVELOPMENT OF ALTERNATIVES AND FINAL LAND USE AND TRANSPORTATION PLAN.............................................................. 13 F. STEP 5: IMPLEMENTATION.................................................................... 13 CHAPTER III: COMMUNITY INVENTORY AND ANALYSIS .............................15 A. REGIONAL CONTEXT.............................................................................. 16 B. DEFINITION OF THE PLANNING AREA.................................................. 16 C. NATURAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL FEATURES ..................................... 16 1. Climate................................................................................................ 19 2. Topography, Drainage and Soils ...................................................... 21 3. Water Supplies................................................................................... 24 4. Agriculture and Industry .................................................................. 24 5. Existing Land Use............................................................................... 27 ii PORTER COUNTY LAND USE & THOROUGHFARE PLAN D. SOCIAL INFLUENCES .............................................................................. 29 1. Social Considerations......................................................................... 29 a. Population Characteristics .......................................................... 29 b. Population Projections................................................................. 33 c. Age Groups ................................................................................... 35 d. Household Size............................................................................. 36 e. Minority Populations ................................................................... 37 f. Poverty and Single Parent Households ....................................... 37 2. Economic Considerations.................................................................. 38 a. Employment Characteristics and Trends ................................... 38 b. Education and Income Considerations ...................................... 40 c. Commuting and Labor Force Considerations............................ 40 3. Housing Considerations .................................................................... 41 E. TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES AND CIRCULATION ........................... 44 1. Automobile ......................................................................................... 44 2. Railroads ............................................................................................. 46 3. Bike Trails ........................................................................................... 46 4. Water .................................................................................................. 46 CHAPTER IV: GUIDING PRINCIPLES AND OBJECTIVES .................................47 A. INTRODUCTION...................................................................................... 48 B. GUIDING PRINCIPLES AND OBJECTIVES .............................................. 49 1. Government........................................................................................ 50 2. Land Use ............................................................................................. 50 3. Parks and Recreation ......................................................................... 51 4. Community Services.......................................................................... 51 5. Economic Development..................................................................... 51 6. Natural Resources .............................................................................. 52 7. Transportation.................................................................................... 52 8. Infrastructure..................................................................................... 53 iii PORTER COUNTY LAND USE & THOROUGHFARE PLAN CHAPTER V: LAND USE PLAN .........................................................................54 A. INTRODUCTION...................................................................................... 55 B. STATUS QUO DEVELOPMENT................................................................ 56 C. MODIFIED STATUS QUO DEVELOPMENT ........................................... 58 D. URBAN/RURAL CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT..................................... 60 E. FUTURE LAND USE CLASSIFICATIONS .................................................. 62 1. Urban Fringe Development............................................................... 62 2. Suburban Development..................................................................... 62 3. Conservation Development............................................................... 62 4. Rural/Agricultural Development..................................................... 64 5. Other Notations on the Land Use Map ............................................ 65 a. Commercial & Industrial Nodes ................................................. 65 b. Gateways ...................................................................................... 66 CHAPTER VI: TRANSPORTATION PLAN............................................................67 A. INTRODUCTION...................................................................................... 68 B. THOROUGHFARE SYSTEM...................................................................... 69 1. Thoroughfare System Description.................................................... 69 2. Highways............................................................................................ 69 3. Arterials .............................................................................................. 71 4. Porter County Road Improvement Projects ..................................... 72 5. The 2020 Vision Plan Programmed Projects................................... 73 6. Congestion Management .................................................................. 73 7. Transportation Improvement Plan –TIP 2001-2005 ..................... 74 C. COMMUTER RAIL.................................................................................... 87 1. South Shore Line ...............................................................................