A rezoning of property along Utica Pike approved by the Jeffersonville City Council on Monday will be vetoed by Mayor Rob Waiz today.

“I’m going to go ahead and veto the zoning ordinance on the Kempf property,” Waiz said in a telephone interview this morning.

“Well, God bless America,” said David Lewis, an attorney representing some of the opponents of the rezoning. “I didn’t see this coming.”

On Monday, the council voted 4-2 to rezone one of four acres Thomas and Nancy Kempf own at 2413 Utica Pike from single-family to limited-multifamily zoning. The couples plans to raze their 6,000-square-foot home and replace it with Casa Del Rio Condominiums. The couple plans to live part-time in one of the condos and market the other three for $900,000 to $1.1 million each.

The vote to approve the rezoning came despite a 6-3 vote by the city’s Plan Commission a week ago, and impassioned opposition from several neighbors of the proposed development.

The council next meets Dec. 19 and will have the opportunity to overturn Waiz’s veto. Councilman Ed Zastawny was absent from Monday’s meeting and, assuming no other council member changes their vote, he would decide whether the veto is overturned. Over the weekend, Zastawny said he had not had time to study the Kempfs’ request.

“We’ll be there,” Lewis said.

But before the council voted, Planning and Development Director Chester Hicks said the Kempf proposal is “appropriate” for the Utica Pike Overlay District and does not violate an agreement entered into earlier this year with Utica Pike residents who opposed Perrin Pointe, a patio home development about 200 feet west of the Kempfs’ property.

The Utica Pike Overlay District, which is part of the city’s zoning code, was established to maintain the road’s unique character.

“I have a great deal of respect for the Plan Commission, and I believe they did the right thing,” Waiz said.

Steve Kempf, Thomas and Nancy Kempf’s son and the spokesman for the project, was stunned this morning after learning of the mayor’s decision to veto the ordinance.

“We agree with Mr. Waiz’ planning director’s recommendation,” Steve Kempf said. “I don’t think a mayor’s ever overrode a zoning change.”

Councilman John Perkins, who spoke on behalf of the Kempfs’ proposal at the Nov. 29 Plan Commission meeting, was nearly speechless this morning.

“Well, I don’t know what to say,” Perkins said. “We’ll have to see if there’s a fifth vote to override the veto.”

Perkins also pointed out that before the council voted Monday, City Attorney Les Merkley cautioned the board’s members that they might have a difficult time defending a decision that was opposed to Hicks’ recommendation.

Another fact that concerns Perkins is the Kempfs own property across Utica Pike that is zoned for limited-multifamily use.

“Unless (the veto) is overturned, they may look at building on the other side of Utica Pike,” he said.