69ÂÜÀò

JANESVILLE — The Janesville City Council gave a big thumbs up Monday to Rotary Botanical Gardens’ request to rezone a parcel at the back of its existing Horticulture Center, to construct a new 2,880 square-foot greenhouse.

The request has been in the pipeline since May and the council approved it with little discussion. The vote was 6-0 with council member Heather Miller absent.

The greenhouse is proposed to be built on 1.8 acres donated to the city in 2021 for future use by Rotary Gardens. It is across Sharon Street and to the southwest of the main Rotary Gardens campus.

The acreage consists of two undeveloped wooded parcels that Rotary Gardens asked the city to rezone from residential use to conservancy use.

Monday’s vote follows the Plan Commission’s June 17 unanimous recommendation to the City Council to approve the rezoning request.

Rotary Gardens Interim Director Randy Hughes told The 69ÂÜÀò in May that the cost of constructing the greenhouse is being entirely covered by a private donor.

The city owns the Rotary Gardens property on Palmer Drive. Rotary Gardens has had a 99-year lease with the city since 1990, good through 2089.

According to city documents, Rotary Gardens maintains the Horticulture Center and has several smaller greenhouses and storage areas as well as other greenhouses around the city. Hughes said the new greenhouse is particularly needed to keep plants not native to Wisconsin safe from the elements in winter months.

“Utilizing city area greenhouses is a big help, but the travel between places is rough on the plants,� he said in May. “We want to reduce the wear and tear and also be able to care for them better.

Hughes said in May the new greenhouse has been on Rotary Gardens’ wish list for three years. Removal of trees and leveling the site, in preparation for the greenhouse’s construction, is already underway.