The area at the heart of the veterinary clinic zoning scenario is the nearly two acres enclosed within the black line in the middle, near top portion of the photo.

The red rectangles represent residences that are nearest to the proposed site for the veterinary clinic.

Residence number one is the large white house owned by Phyllis and Garald Wirth, who have lived there for decades.

Number 2 indicates four, four-plex brick apartments known as the Gilbert apartments. They are owned by Kevin Beyer of Beyer Properties. He also owns the brick four-plex at the corner of Dunn Street and Mathews Drive.

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The Veterinary Clinic Zoning Scenario
September 3, 2004

The Property in Question
The area outlined in black consists of about two acres. The property is in the southern part of a large agricultural field owned by rural Gilbert farmer, Gene Upstill. The property is known to be a wet area with a drainage intake on the west half. Also, there is a grass waterway on the east end, and some of the land may be in or close to being in the flood plain.

Gene and Upstill Farms, Inc. own most of the land west of Gilbert and northeast of town. Gene was the one who sold land to the Gilbert School District in the spring of 2004 for its new middle school. He is also the one who has sold local developer Rich Lepper land for the Village North housing subdivisions on the south side of Gilbert.

A Veterinary Clinic in a Residential Area
Dr. Tammy Kersting, whose veterinary clinic is now on Main Street next to the Post Office, has apparently made a verbal agreement with Gene to buy the two acres from him so that she can build a new veterinary clinic on the site. The property is now listed as an R1 zone, reserved for single family homes and is pretty much protected against intrusion by other kinds of development.

In the comprehensive plan that the city council approved in December 2004, the two-acre parcel was to be rezoned to an R3 area for multi-family homes. However, the city code allows hospitals, lodges, fraternities, sororities, and educational and philanthropic organizations to locate in an R3 zone. The code also allows property owners to apply for special use permits to build other kinds of facilities in an R3 zone.

It seemed clear during discussions about the comprehensive plan, however, that the city envisioned the area from the Wirth home north to the cemetery to be a mixed density residential area. There was no talk of allowing commercial enterprises in the area. Instead, the city envisioned that it would annex the land along Mathews Drive east to Highway 69 for a commercial zone and that Mathews Drive would be a gateway to Gilbert. In developing the comprehensive plan, the city leaders also talked about having a light industrial area west of town. Dr. Kersting's clinic could easily have fit into those area. Unfortunately, though, the city never followed through on it comprehensive plan.

Three Action Steps at City Hall
There are at least three actions that the city will have to take before Dr. Kersting can be granted approval to build her clinic in the proposed area. The city will have to update it's zoning codes so that the area in question is changed from R1 to R3. The city will have to approve a wording change in the ordinance so that a veterinary clinic can be built in an R3 area. And the city would have to approve a special use permit for the clinic to be built in an R3 area.

The city council will hold the first of three hearings on the second item (the wording change) at its meeting on September 20. The city may also waive the second and third hearings and vote on the change that night. We hope the city does not take that hasty route. The city has not spelled out what the timetable is for the other actions.

A Question of Wisdom and Integrity
In contacting other central Iowa towns, the general rule is that veterinary clinics and hospitals must be located in commercial zones and cannot be in R3 zones.

We question Gilbert's wisdom of placing a veterinary clinic in a residential area. Even if the proposed area becomes R3, it is snuggled among older R1 zones on the west and what is intended to be R1 zoning to the north. Why would the city allow a veterinary clinic to be smack dab in the middle of a residential area? Well, we have at least one guess based on what we intuit, observe, and hear.

Could it be that Gilbert's core power players want a foothold in the northeast area of town as a precedent for further commercial development on that land? If the answer is yes, and that is their motive, then our biggest concern is about the credibility and integrity of the elected officials that are pushing for approval of the proposed site for the clinic.

Finishing — Not Trashing — the Comprehensive Plan
The comprehensive plan was in the making for over four years. It took lots of volunteer time and money to pay the consultants. The process consumed a lot of council energy and was the focus of attention in ways that put off other important work. (I.E. "We will have to wait to discuss that when the comprehensive plan is finished.")

The plan was supposed to assure that development would be based on a vision of the community as opposed to a scheme done behind closed doors by developers with ulterior motives. The plan was approved in December 2003, but there have been loose ends. For instance, the zoning ordinances in the code book are archaic — probably part of some boiler plate wordage adopted years ago.

Instead of deviating from the plan to accommodate the first new development request out of the chute, the city leaders should not only hold fast to what was envisioned but should finish the plan. That would include going through the zoning code with a fine-toothed comb and deleting such things as fraternity and sorority houses from the R3 zoning list and tending to a lot of other business. It is not a time to be adding band aid wording to the plan. It is not the time to make an exception to allow a veterinary clinic in the area.

If the core power players in Gilbert want to develop a commercial area to the northeast, then they should tell us what they are up to. If they feel they made a mistake with the comprehensive plan, then they should say so. If it is time to return to the drawing board, then let's do it. But the way this change is zoning is evolving to favor Dr. Kersting and her clinic makes it smell as though some of our core city leaders and other members of the Gilbert power structure are the ones scheming behind closed doors with ulterior motives. Perhaps they should wake up and learn to work as hard toward having an open and honest government as they are bent on helping Dr. Kersting.

Spot Zoning
An attorney told us that a city can get into big trouble if it establishes a pattern of spot zoning (I.E. departing from a plan and making specific zoning exceptions for favored persons.) He said that if other people come along and challenge the zoning laws, they could point to the pattern of spot zoning and reasonably claim that the zoning laws were invalid.

The Frog Fable
We have heard an illustration about frogs. We do not know if it is fact or fable. Either way, the story seems relevant. It goes as follows.

If a person puts a frog in a pan of cool water then gradually heats the water until it boils, the frog will be complacent and not jump out. Instead, it will boil to death. If instead, a person drops a frog in a pan of boiling water, it will bound out immediately to save its life.

Fables are meant to convey meaning by themselves and not have to be explained. So we won't offer a full explanation. Except it is important to point out that the story is about increments. And this situation in Gilbert about the veterinary clinic involves increments.

We can understand how a member of the planning and zoning commission or city council could look at the specific small increments involved in allowing Dr. Kersting to build her proposed new clinic and perceive that the actions were justifiable. But if a member steps back and contemplates the whole picture before voting, he or she should ask some questions. And those questions could begin with one about the nature of these small increments and how they add up. This does not have to be a time to ratchet up the heat another notch (I.E. have another one of those status quo litanies of "so move, second" followed by a unanimous vote in order to let the power structure of the community forge ahead unbridled.) It can be a time to ratchet down (I.E. defeat the scheme, and go back to the drawing board to come up with solutions that are in the best interests of the town and that build an atmosphere of trust in the democratic process and our Gilbert leaders.)

Don't Let Popularity Stand in the Way
Dr. Tammy Kersting is an extremely popular veterinarian and highly respected in her field. There ought to be solutions that are a win-win for her and the Gilbert community. However, to come up with those solutions, patience is a virtue, and hurrying to approve the proposed site for her new clinic could be unwise, if not disastrous for the long-range development of the community.

Recommended Increments
There are incremental steps that should be taken. For instance, the zoning code should be updated to replace the archaic, boilerplate version. Also, the planning and zoning commission should start sowing seeds to develop a commercial area consistent with the comprehensive plan. That will take regular meetings, at least monthly, with the commission having a sense of volition of its own, setting its own goals and not the goals of the core power structure of the town. Also, the mayor should appoint an economic development commission. It seems that the last one disbanded in 1999. And the mayor should appoint a task force to create a vision for downtown Gilbert so that property is used wisely. These steps would help ensure that Gilbert will be ready when other businesses need commercial space in Gilbert. Instead of having to throw on a future band aid solution that violates the zoning ordinances in order to help such businesses, the city could say, "Right this way, we're glad you're here, we have a space waiting for you, and it's compatible with the vision of our community."