A new confined hog feeding operation will not be coming to rural Pulaski County. The county commissioners voted Monday to deny a request to rezone a piece of property at 300 South and 700 West from General Agriculture to Intensive Agriculture. That would have allowed for the construction of four wean-to-finish pig production buildings.
Commissioner Jerry Locke made the motion to reject the rezoning request, after an hour and 40 minutes of discussion with project developers and local residents. “I guess we’ve got to weigh the positive benefits for Pulaski County versus the negative,” he said, “and from what I’ve been hearing and listening to people, boy it’s a tough decision to make, but I’m going to make a motion to deny the request to zone from A1 to A2 in Jefferson Township.”
Commissioner Kenny Becker seconded the motion, citing a lack of support for the operation from local residents. “I’ve talked to a lot of people,” he said. “I’ve only had two that were for it. One worked for them. I’m going to have to second his motion. I’m working for the taxpayer, and that’s who’s spoken.”
The operation was only expected to create one full-time job for day-to-day operations, according to developers. However, additional part-time employees or local contractors would have been needed to help deliver hogs and inject manure into fields.
The project would have had a larger regional impact, according to Michael Veenhuizen with Livestock Engineering Solutions. Speaking on behalf of the project’s developers Monday, he said it would have a ripple effect throughout Northwest Indiana’s economy, potentially generating $9 million worth of additional sales, $2.4 million in new income, and 81 new jobs. However, residents pointed out that Pulaski County would see the same share of benefits, if the operation were to be built elsewhere.
A big concern for many of those in attendance Monday was the potential impact on property values. While Veenhuizen pointed out that other Indiana counties have actually seen property values increase following the construction of similar facilities, Commissioner Becker feared that the operation would do little to attract new residents and slow the county’s population decline.
Many residents also complained that they weren’t properly notified of the proposal, finding out about it by word-of-mouth, rather than through official channels. However, County Attorney Kevin Tankersley said he was confident that the proper procedures had been followed by the Pulaski County Community Development Commission.
