An 11-acre stretch of land west of the U.S. 40 and County Road 600 West intersection in Cumberland is now zoned for a much bigger future. The town's Plan Commission voted 5-1 to rezone the property from B-1 to B-2, opening the door for a construction staffing company to build a vocational school, office space and training center expected to cost roughly $4 million.
The lone dissenting vote came from commission member Anna Pea, who argued the proposed buildings looked industrial and would set an unwelcome precedent for the area. According to The Daily Reporter, Pea also said the building architecture does not align with the National Road overlay standards or the town's comprehensive plan, and noted the future land use map calls for mixed-use development with first-floor commercial and upper-story residential space.
The rezone clears the way for Mark Geith, president of Commercial Trade Source, to purchase the land and relocate his business to Cumberland. Geith plans to build office space and a vocational school on the site, with the company establishing its own permanent facility rather than continuing to operate out of a storefront near Pendleton Pike and Interstate 465 in Indianapolis. CTS is a construction staffing company that also delivers training classes, according to the news outlet's reporting.
What's Actually Being Built
The project calls for two structures: a 40,000-square-foot, two-story building housing offices and vocational training space, plus a 15,000-square-foot, single-story building that would go up a couple of years after the first. Construction on the first building isn't expected to begin for one to three years. The project is projected to create 10 to 15 full-time jobs and serve approximately 250 students annually once operational, per the same account.
Bill Niemier, the attorney representing the petitioner, told the commission that B-2 zoning permits school buildings and office space by right. He emphasized that the hearing addressed only the rezone itself, not the specific development plans, and said the renderings shown that night were very preliminary. Geith intends to work with the planning department on an acceptable building appearance as construction gets closer, the article notes.
Neighbors Push Back on Noise and Privacy
Not everyone at the meeting was satisfied with assurances about future details. Jesse Robbins, who owns neighboring property, raised concerns about privacy between his land and the petitioner's parcel and asked the commission to consider setbacks, landscaping, lighting, noise and operating hours for adjacent homeowners. He specifically wants the line of trees bordering the properties to remain intact.
Niemier responded that most of the operations would be indoor, running Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and said outdoor noise would be no louder than a lawnmower. The proposed development may include mounding, a fence, landscaping and a buffer zone to address some of those concerns, though final site plans have not been locked in.
Other residents weighed in as well. Sue Marlatt said the property should be used strictly for approved uses, while Bernadette Lathrop argued the building's backside should be masked appropriately given its proximity to the Pennsy Trail.
Zoning Change in Context
B-1 zoning is intended for low-intensity business, while B-2 is meant for higher-intensity business uses, which is why the shift matters for what can ultimately be built on the site. The rezone also lands against a broader backdrop in Cumberland: the town's current comprehensive plan was first adopted in October 2026 and is reviewed and amended annually to guide land-use decisions for the next 20 years, according to the Town of Cumberland Department of Planning & Development.
That same town department notes it works alongside the Plan Commission and Board of Zoning Appeals on planning matters, including requests for variances of developmental standards — the bodies that will likely shape how closely the finished project hews to the concerns raised by Robbins, Marlatt and Lathrop. Commercial Trade Source, for its part, was founded in 2010 in Indianapolis and currently operates offices in Indiana, Ohio, Florida and Pennsylvania, according to the company's own account on its website.
For now, the rezone is the only formal action on record. No construction, site-plan or building permits have been issued, and questions about final building designs, access points and traffic plans remain unresolved as the one-to-three-year runway before groundbreaking begins.
