Gary city officials want the operator of a proposed truck repair shop to consider a different location for the business, saying they have concerns about the proposed site’s proximity to Gary/Chicago International Airport.
The Common Council’s planning committee met Tuesday and gave a second review to a proposal from Hammond resident Joshua Guerrero, who wants to turn the former CT Adult Superstore at 4620 Industrial Hwy. into a facility where trucks and semitrailers can be repaired and maintained.
Guerrero also envisions from five to 10 trucks belonging to area residents being parked on the property — an issue that has concerned council members in the past.
But on Tuesday, officials said it’s the location that bothers them the most.
Sarah Kobetis, the city’s deputy director of planning, said the truck repair shop could interfere with possible future expansion of the airport. “We believe it’s not compatible to have such a facility so close to the airport,” she said.
Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson said her staff wants to help Guerrero find a new location.
“It’s not that we don’t want a truck repair business, we do,” she said. “We want to work with him to find a more appropriate place for that business.”
Aside from the location, several council members expressed concern about a single-story building being used for a truck garage.
More Top Picks Dizziness And Vision After A Concussion Whats Connected
Council President Ronald Brewer said he didn’t understand how a semitrailer could fit into the building.
“I’m not seeing it,” Brewer said.
Guerrero initially said the only change that would need to be made was installation of an overhead door, but later admitted the building’s roof would have to be raised slightly higher than its current 10-foot height.
“I can use the existing building as my shop,” he said.
Guerrero had previously said he hoped to be open for business at the Industrial Highway/Clark Road site by June or July. While willing to work with Gary officials to find a new site, he was unsure how quickly they could find an alternative spot and when he could be ready to open his business.
Freeman-Wilson admitted this is a business delay caused by the city, as she said she wished the ordinance seeking a special use permit to allow the business had been brought to her attention directly.
“This is a case of the right hand not knowing what the left hand is doing,” she said.
Gregory Tejeda is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.