Board denies proposal to turn southern Indiana farmland into Ford parking lot

SELLERSBURG, Ind. (WDRB) -- Hundreds of Ford trucks waiting for parts can be seen sitting at places across Kentuckiana, including the Kentucky Speedway, and Jeffboat among others.

The automaker needs more space. Neighbors along Highway 60 in Sellersburg, Indiana, learned that a plot used as farmland for decades was under consideration.

With power lines above it, development on the property is tricky. The field is currently zoned for agriculture.

"From newborn babies, to cattle, crops, this land means everything to me," said Michelle Kirchgessner. "There's really not anything you can do with this land other than farm it."

In recent weeks, Kirchgessner and other neighbors learned that a use variance had been requested for the land.

"Ultimately it would be to allow this 6-acre tract to be used for temporary parking," Attorney John Kraft, who is representing the side asking for a use variance, said.

If approved, the field would be filled with gravel, then used as a temporary parking lot that Ford would lease to store vehicles.

"And by temporary, I mean the applicant would use this for a maximum of five years," said Kraft.

During a Clark County Board of Zoning Appeals meeting on Wednesday, Kraft explained that, after that period, the gravel would be removed, and the field returned to its agriculture use. But Kirchgessner and other neighbors raised concerns about the semis required to haul the trucks in and out of the lot.

"It terrifies me to have fleet vehicles coming in," said one neighbor.

There is also concern about empty trucks being potential targets for crime.

"People try to steal other parts of these disabled trucks," another neighbor said.

But Kraft said the area would be under 24-hour security.

"So, it's not as if they (vehicles) are going to be parked there and anybody can go and salvage parts from them," he said.

While he provided neighbors and the board with some answers, the decision ultimately rested with board members.

Citing traffic concerns and the potential effect on nearby property, the board voted against the proposal.

"I'm just really excited, and super, super stunned," Kirchgessner said. "But I'm elated."

While Ford is denied a parking lot, the field remains up for sale.