After years in the works and months working on reconciling differences between the City of Connersville and Fayette County regarding Confined Feeding Operations (CFOs), the Fayette County Commissioners voted on an ordinance regarding the placement of CFOs in the county.
The reconciliation committee came to the following agreements for CFO placement regulations:
• Distance between a CFO and primary dwelling: 1,620 feet
• Distance between a CFO and an area of public use: 2,640 feet (half a mile), with no variance within 1,620 feet allowed
• Distance between a CFO and the corporate limits of the City of Connersville: 1 mile
• Added definition of area of public use: State, Federal and Political subdivision, excluding right of ways and roadways
• A CFO can be within 1,620 feet of the primary dwelling (a home) if the person placing the CFO owns the home and it does not violate any of the other criteria
Connersville City Council adopted a slightly different CFO ordinance in September, and rejected the amended ordinance earlier in the month. The city can not enforce anything placed outside the city limits, so the vote from the county commissioners was of added importance to the city as well.
If the commissioners chose to reject the ordinance, regulations would revert back the original ordinance the commissioners voted on which sat setback distances almost universally to a quarter of a mile.
“I think that the reconciliation committee done a good job of talking everything out before we agreed to it,” said Commissioner Dale Munson, who served on the committee. “Everything that was changed was agreed to by all parties. I feel like it was a good ordinance.”
Area planning director Bill MacDaniel said recommended the commissioners adopt the ordinance as a show of cooperation between the city and the county.
“I think it’s also important to recognize this is being done in the spirit of city government and county government,” MacDaniel said. “Which we haven’t always had. We’re working on that because of the relationship with some of the members of the city council and also of course the relationship with Mayor Frank.”
MacDaniel said that no matter the decision that was made by thee commissioners there would likely be members on either side of the equation that would not be completely satisfied with the ordinance.
“No matter what you do, you’re going to have people on opposite ends of it, No matter what you do with confined feeding, you’re going to have people that are unhappy,” MacDaniel said. “It’s just one of those things. Kind of a lightning rod.”
City Council member Diana Phillips was also at the meeting, not in an official capacity, but was asked her opinion and said that she, speaking only for herself would ask the commissioners pass the ordinance. Saying she did not expect any of her fellow council members to want a CFO inside a mile of the city.
The County Commissioners voted unanimously to adopt ordinance 2021-12. Which will put the above amendments in place regarding CFO placement in Fayette County.
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