Zoning Ordinance Revisions
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Pending Initiatives
The Metropolitan Development Commission approved the 3 following amendment proposals. The City-County Council will now hear the proposals.
Amendment to Change Agency Reference: Dept. of Code Enforcement
09-AO-01 Amendment to change agency references from the Division of Compliance to the Department of Code Enforcement or its applicable division within that new department and make grammatical corrections in the following zoning ordinances:
Dwelling Districts Zoning Ordinance,
Commercial Zoning Ordinance,
Industrial Zoning Ordinance,
Special Districts Zoning Ordinance, and
Enforcement & Remedies Ordinance.
Changes would become effective in 2010.
Click to download the proposal (81 pages)
Amendment to Change Agency Reference: IMPD
09-AO-02 Amendment to change agency references in the Enforcement & Remedies Ordinance from the Metropolitan Law Enforcement Agency to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department and make grammatical corrections.
Click to download the proposal (2 pages)
Amendment to Change Agency Reference: Assessor
09-AO-03 Amendment to change agency references in the Subdivision Control Ordinance from the township assessors to the county assessor and make grammatical corrections.
Click to download the proposal (5 pages)
Recent Initiatives
Speedway Zoning Ordinance
A text amendment to the zoning ordinance that created 2 new zoning classifications: Speedway Main Street District (SZ-1) and Speedway Industrial District (SZ-2).
Approved 8-0 by the Metropolitan Development Commission on November 5, 2008 and subsequently approved with a minor change by the City-County Council on January 26, 2009 and finally ratified by the MDC on February 4, 2009.
Click 
to download a signed copy of the approved ordinance (17 pages)
Click to download the approved ordinance with explanatory notes (20 tabloid-size pages)
Map amendments rezoning areas to the SZ-1 and SZ-2 classification were adopted April 6, 2009 by the City-County Council.
Click 
to download a map of each of the rezoning areas
Regional Center Ordinance amendment - passed by City-Council Council: effective August 31, 2008. Click 
to download the text amendment
Regional Center Map amendment - adopted July 21, 2008! Click 
to download the map amendment
Regional Center Urban Design Guidelines - recommended by the Regional Centyer 2020 Plan, these guidelines were adopted by the MDC and articulate the design criteria for approvals within the Regional Center. Click 
to download the Guidelines.
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The Ordinance Revision staff is charged with updating the Indianapolis/Marion County Zoning Ordinance. This ordinance is segmented into approximately 19 distinct sections. While most of these Ordinance sections have been updated within the last decade, the ordinance is constantly reviewed for timeliness in today's changing legal environment. Additionally, new segments of the ordinance are proposed when needed.
New ordinance segments and ordinance revisions are drafted; staff then coordinates with appropriate City departments and other interested parties during a preliminary review period, and presents the proposals to the Metropolitan Development Commission and City-County Council for adoption.
Comments should be in writing. Comments submitted early are appreciated.
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Sidewalk Amendment 2007-A0-02 / Proposal 88 / G.O. 4, 2008
The City-County Council heard the amended Sidewalk Amendment, Proposal #88 [MDC, 2007-AO-02] and approved the proposal by a vote of 26-2! The Metropolitan Development Commission ratified the amendment on May 7th. Proposal 88, now numbered G.O. 4, 2008, became effective on July 1, 2008.
Click here to download the adopted Sidewalk Amendment, G.O. 4, 2008 (16 pages).
Click here to download the Payment In Lieu of Construction Agreement.
Click here to download the 2 page summary sheet.
Religious Uses in Commercial Districts Amendment 2007-AO-01 / G.O. 3, 2008
The Religious Use Amendment, 2007-AO-01, was heard and approved by the Metropolitan Development Commission. The amendment introduced as Proposal No. 21, 2008. The Metropolitan Development Committee amended the proposal to remove any parking requirement for Religious Uses in the Commercial Zoning Districts. The amended proposal was passed by the City-County Council on February 11th and enumerated as G.O. 3, 2008.
Click here to download the adopted Religious Use amendment, G.O. 3, 2008 (28 pages).
Ordinance Adjustments to Enhance Code Enforcement
The Department of Metropolitan Development (DMD), Department of Public Works (DPW), and Health & Hospital Corporation (MCHD) proposed several adjustments to the city code to eliminate ambiguities, add specifics to clarify the code and expedite enforcement, address oversights, modernize policy, and correct errors.
The changes that were adopted included the following:
- Correct the front yard Meridian Hills exception clause.
- Enforcement may be against the person doing the work, such as a contractor, in addition to the property owner.
- Repeat offenses are measured from the previous 12 months, not since January 1st.
- Specific parking requirements for dwellings in commercial districts.
- Allow for Temporary Auto Sales events twice a year in C-4 district.
- Update statute citations and agency names.
Rules of Procedure Changes
The Metropolitan Development Commission (MDC) adopted changes to their Rules of Procedure, including fees, on Wednesday December 7, 2005. The MDC also adopted changes to the Rules of Procedure of the Plat Committee and the Hearing Officer (HOV) at that time. The Metropolitan Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) also adopted changes to their Rules of Procedure, including fees. The effective date of the changes is January 3, 2006.
Adopted Rules of Procedure:
Excluded Cities Enforcement Enhancement
Adopted on August 3, 2005 and amended the Enforcement and Remedies portion of the City Code to allow law enforcement officers to enforce the zoning ordinances as well. Additionally, the ordinance modified the definitions of Recreational Vehicle and Inoperable Vehicle, and modified the fencing and screening requirements around swimming pools.
Amendment to the Flood Control District Zoning Ordinance
Adopted August 29, 2005 and amended the Flood Control Zoning Ordinance by using the most recent FEMA maps dated July 3, 2005.