Those traveling through downtown Alliance will find rows and rows of charter buses on properties downtown. 

Those buses belong to an Alliance charter transportation business, US Coach, that has been operating for over 120 years. 

US Coach president and owner, Ben Bolog of Alliance, said the business has grown over the years, now offering expanded services such as refurbishing, repairing, buying, selling and renting out charter buses for group traveling events in Ohio and beyond. 

He owns a roughly one-mile radius of properties spanning the downtown Alliance area, he added, and keeps anywhere from around 90 to hundreds of buses stored on those properties, which are periodically switched out. 

"We are the largest salvage bus facility in the United States," he said. "People don't think about buses, but we are that important."

With that being said, Balog acknowledges that some more recently obtained properties in Alliance fall under updated zoning codes and are not grandfathered in like some of his other US Coach-owned properties where storage of buses has been permitted. 

Alliance Director of Public Safety and Service Mike Dreger said the bussing storage is becoming a "frustration," and that the zoning issue is the "outside storage of buses" that he said is found in the current Alliance zoning code, Chapter 11. 

Dreger explained that the storage of buses on some downtown properties is "a conditional use by our zoning code which requires the approval of our planning commission."

He cited additional zoning "roadblocks" for Balog, including the approval by two city boards, on top of other issues that the city has to sort out. 

Both Dreger and Balog pointed out controversy and confusion over a small parcel of land off Mechanic Avenue and Prospect Street that's inside Balog's property where he hopes to store the buses up to code. 

Although the city hasn't clarified exactly what's behind the problem, Dreger said ownership of that parcel is "in question" and said this is slowing down the process to move forward with Balog's plans, on top of the additional variances that would need to be granted. 

"My best judgment is and has been that planning commission is at a minimum going to want any outside storage area to be fenced and screened to block any public view of the storage area," Dreger said, "Installing such fencing in a means that works for the owners’ operational needs in turn requires multiple variances to our zoning code, which must be granted by the city’s board of zoning appeals."

Bolog told 21 News he's already submitted plans in the past to install fencing around what he said is the most suitable piece of property he owns for this purpose, which is right behind US Coach's main building near the train tracks on Mechanic Avenue.  

Bolog said if he can't move forward and somehow keep buses on his nearby properties, he'd lose his livelihood.

"It would close me down. It would literally kill a 5-generation business," he said. "We provide quite a few jobs. We also are the only Second Chance housing provider, and at this end of the county, we take people from all walks of life, and the only reason we can afford to do that is because of the buses." 

Dreger said this zoning issue has been ongoing for six years, adding the buses are a nuisance, although he said there have not been any complaints or citations and is confident city leaders and Bolog will finalize a plan to move forward. 

He added that COVID-19 and miscommunications with Balog have slowed down the process. 

Dreger told 21 News he was unable to go on camera for an interview because he was in a private meeting Tuesday afternoon with city leaders to discuss this very matter. 

"I feel like the city wants us to do it a specific way that will benefit the city, that could harm us as a company, and I have to look at employees and generational business and just the fact of, I don't want to be the generation that made the mistake," Balog said. 

21 News asked Dreger how the unknown ownership of a land parcel is affecting the zoning process and who's in charge of handling issues over parcel ownership, and will update upon clarification. 

Full statement from the Alliance Public Safety and Service Department: 

"The principal compliance issue is outside storage of the buses. That is a conditional use by our zoning code which requires the approval of our planning commission. My best judgment is and has been that planning commission is at a minimum going to want any outside storage area to be fenced and screened to block any public view of the storage area. Installing such fencing in a means that works for the owners’ operational needs in turn requires multiple variances to our zoning code, which must be granted by the city’s board of zoning appeals.

 As you were told, we have been working on this for over six years. The initial roadblock was related to ownership of a portion of the properties within the storage area. We waited a long time for the ownership to be resolved, and while it remains unresolved, we are hopeful we may have a way to work around that issue. Add in the COVID years, and a period where the owner thought he would move his operations out of Alliance, and you end up with six years and much frustration by everyone. We are finalizing a plan of action that could work, but as I mentioned there are two boards that must grant approvals."