SPENCER — Now the hard part begins.

The brand-new Owen County Advisory Plan Commission held its initial meeting Thursday night.

And more than a dozen opponents of any county planning — much less zoning — were on hand to keep an eye on things.

"As you all know, this is a controversial issue in Owen County," county commissioners' attorney Michael Bonnell informed the new commission.

It's not the first go-round for planning in Owen County. A former board of county commissioners established a county planning ordinance in the mid-1990s — and the firestorm of public opposition led to its repeal after the next election.

But now a new board of commissioners has become convinced of the need for at least some basic county planning, and perhaps zoning, for two reasons.

One is to protect the White River. The other is to have some way of regulating development around the edges of Spencer.

So early this year, the commissioners assigned member Byron Stockwell and Bonnell to draft an ordinance creating a county advisory plan commission to draft what under state law is called a "comprehensive" county land-use plan.

The word "comprehensive" can mean a range of things, as two of Owen's neighbors have demonstrated.

In Monroe County, the comprehensive plan looks like a small phone book, and the zoning ordinance like a big one. In Morgan County, the plan that county's own advisory plan commission and then county commissioners adopted in April runs five pages.

After the new Owen commission organized Thursday by electing citizen member Steve Dean, a Spencer civil engineer, as president and Mike Stewart, a Spencer insurance safety consultant, as vice president, it got down to tackling its task.

The ordinance passed by the commissioners on April 30 gives the nine-member commission 18 months to draft a comprehensive land-use plan for the county commissioners to consider.

"But I would like it to be done in much less time," commissioner Stockwell, a member of the plan commission, told his peers.

The commission agreed it will meet at 6:30 p.m. on the second Monday of each month until it completes its task, with an agenda available to the public by the prior Friday or earlier.

As for what the plan must entail, Bonnell told the members Indiana statute decrees "what must be in a comprehensive plan and what can be in it.

"You have a lot of latitude," he said, noting that the plan is to be only a "blueprint" of what the commission foresees as desirable for the county's future, not a set of enforceable regulations.

But he added a caveat: Anything in any enforcement ordinance such as a zoning ordinance or subdivision control ordinance must have some basis in the comprehensive plan or it wouldn't stand up in court.

For example, he said, any zoning ordinance regulation of something like timbering would have to have its basis in some sort of general statement in the land-use plan pertaining to the role of timbering in the county.

That led to a question from a county resident about whether there was going to be a zoning ordinance, or just a general plan.

At the meeting at which the commissioners had approved the ordinance creating the plan commission, the commissioners had indicated their lack of enthusiasm for zoning.

But Stockwell replied to the questioner that "I would imagine in the end there will be some zoning. I'm not in favor of any heavy zoning, but I imagine it (some zoning) is coming down the pike."

Another major issue was plans for allowing public comment. Bonnell said statute requires only one meeting for public comment, but he recommended a different course.

He suggested allowing people to comment on major topics after the commission discussed them and before it votes on them. He also suggested an "open mike" period at the start and close of meetings for comments on other issues.

The commission voted to adopt both, including 10-minute periods at the start and end of each meeting for public comment.

It got a workout immediately.

Jim Baughn, chairman of the county Libertarian Party and organizer of the anti-planning group Protect Our Property, delivered his stump speech against planning and zoning.

"If a landowner cannot use his land as he wishes, he is being deprived of his property," he argued.

He said county residents don't need planning, much less zoning, to protect themselves against hurtful land uses. And he said the commissioners had no elective mandate to impose it, given that only half the county's registered voters did so in 2000 and many voted for the Republicans just because they're Republicans.

In any event, said Baughn, it is better to have elected, publicly accountable commissioners pass ordinances to put any restrictions on people than to have an unelected plan commission do it.

"Little bureaucrats will be running around the county looking for those who do not kowtow to their whims," he warned.

Of the plan commission members, three are elected officials: commissioner Stockwell, county council member Nick Robertson and county Surveyor Cheryl Gafken. The other official on the commission is county extension agent Larry Hight.

The board has five citizen members appointed by the commissioners: Dean and Stewart of Spencer plus Dewey Frye of Freedom, Dave Nolton of Poland and Edward Raymer of Quincy.

Planning foe Baughn said after the meeting that opposition is coalescing. "We had 'em outnumbered at the meeting," he said, alluding to the audience.

Stockwell in turn was happy with the way the first meeting had gone, except for one thing.

"I'm not sure I like the table arrangement. I'd like to be closer to the door," he quipped.

Reporter Kurt Van der Dussen can be reached at 331-4372 or by e-mail at kvd@heraldt.com.