Thornburg v. Randolph BZA: Court Affirms Variance for Poultry Farm

On January 4, 2023, the Janzen Schroeder team received great news from the Randolph County Court. The Court affirmed the county BZA’s decision to give a variance to a local poultry farmer seeking to build additional barns. This win was based on months of hard work and cooperation between Brianna and the client.

In June of 2022, the Randolph County BZA (board of zoning appeals) heard our presentation in support of a variance request so that the client could build two more turkey barns near his existing barns. The problem? Since the first barns were built several years ago, the County changed its ordinance and put in place a greater setback requirement for livestock and poultry barns. The proposed barns would be farther away from the nearest residence than the existing barns were, but required a variance because of the new setback ordinance.

After working with the client to prepare for the zoning hearing, we presented evidence that approving the variance would not hurt the general welfare of the community and would not have a substantial adverse impact on adjacent property values. Remonstrators at the hearing opposed the variance for various reasons. But, as Brianna and the client explained, the site and all the surrounding properties were zoned “Ag-Intensive.” The state already regulates confined feeding. CFOs are a key economic resource for the county. Two barns were already located at the site—there was no evidence to suggest adding two barns farther away would have a negative impact on the area. Instead, there was evidence of how CFOs contribute to the county tax base, area incomes, and rural property values. The farmer did not create his own difficulty. When he built the first two barns, the property met all setbacks and zoning requirements. For all these reasons, the BZA granted the variance.

Remonstrators appealed the BZA’s decision to the Randolph County Circuit Court. The parties filed their legal briefs and counsel argued the case in December 2022. The Court issued its opinion upholding the BZA’s decision in the farmer’s favor on January 4, 2023. After 30 days with no appeal, the decision is final and binding.

We appreciate working with our clients in cases like this and are happy to report this wonderful outcome for the farmer, Randolph County, and the poultry industry in Indiana. A copy of the decision is available here. Please contact Brianna if you’d like to discuss any upcoming zoning issues.