Staff Reports The Bridgeport News 

July 7, 2005

The Bridgeport Planning Commission has already reviewed the detailed plans for Charles Pointe.  Last Thursday, the Harrison County Planning Commission also reviewed what could be in store for the development along Interstate 79. During the meeting last week, the county’s planning panel endorsed Genesis Partners’ concept for the creation of a Planned Unit Development (PUD) at Charles Pointe.  Genesis Partners is the group responsible for the overall development of Charles Pointe. The meeting was informational in nature, and the presentation of the PUD plan was similar to one held last month in front of the Planning Commission of Bridgeport.  The PUD spells out in detail where every aspect of residential, retail, business, recreation and entertainment will take place on 1,360 acres of the site.  Even though the PUD was endorsed by the county’s planning panel, the PUD won’t go into place until it is approved by the Bridgeport City Council. Although the Bridgeport Planning Commission approved the PUD and sent it to the City Council for approval, Council has already stated it will not create the PUD until the 1,360 acres are annexed into the city. A PUD is an overlay to a zoning district that allows for flexibility in design.  There are PUDs already existing in Bridgeport, including Deerfield and Center Court. The creation of a PUD means Genesis Partners would not have to come back to the Planning Commission for every project on every parcel. Instead, developers would only have to return for approval in the event they would change something that is part of the PUD.