St. Croix County Board denies rezone for Hideaway LLC in Town of Somerset
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
HUDSON — The St. Croix County Board has denied a rezone request for Hideaway LLC to operate in a Commercial 3 district along the Apple River in the Town of Somerset.
A motion to approve the rezone at the St. Croix County Board’s June 6 meeting failed on a vote of 11 “yes” to six “no” and one abstention.
The rezone requires three-quarters of the county board to approve it, so 14 of the 18 county board supervisors present for the meeting would have to vote in favor for the rezone to be approved, said Heather Amos, St. Croix County corporation counsel.
Hideaway LLC/Mike Kappers had originally applied to rezone the entire 41 acre parcel in the Town of Somerset from Residential-1 and Commercial-1 to the Commercial-3 zoning district. After the Town of Somerset reviewed the request, the applicant modified the request to only rezone 4.7 acres from C-1 to C-3, according to background information provided to the county board.
In St. Croix County, one parcel can have different zoning districts, in contrast to Dunn County, where only one zoning designation is allowed per parcel.
According to a St. Croix County staff report, Kappers said the rezone was necessary after the St. Croix County Zoning Board of Adjustment (BOA) in the fall of 2022 revoked two of the conditional use permits issued in 1984 and 1991 for existing uses on the property due to non-compliance with conditions set in the permits.
Uses that were allowed under the previous conditional use permits included an Apple River tubing operation, two outdoor open air concerts per year, a food concession/eatery and a campground.
Committee
Daniel Hanson, county board supervisor from New Richmond, made a motion to send the issue back to the community development committee for reconsideration.
The issue of the rezone should be sent back to the committee so the committee can send it back to the Town of Somerset for reconsideration, he said.
Adjoining landowners brought a petition to deny the rezone, and the county board cannot discuss conditional use permits without the risk of exposing the county to legal action, Hanson said.
Brent Johnson, an attorney representing Kappers/Hideaway LLC, agreed that the conditional use permits were not the issue in front of the county board.
C-1 and C-3 zoning allow different conditional uses, he said.
One county board member asked the corporation counsel for an explanation of the differences between C-1 and C-3.
Under C-1, the Apple Eatery was allowed as a conditional use, while under C-3, the eatery is allowed as a permitted use. Outdoor entertainment is allowed under C-3 as a conditional use. Tubing on the Apple River is allowed in R-1 and in C-2 as a conditional use, Amos said.
The motion to send the rezone back to the committee failed on a vote of 11 “no” to seven “yes,”with county board supervisors Paul Berning (Hudson), Scott Counter (New Richmond), Hanson, Greg Tellijohn (New Richmond), Bob Swanepoel (Hudson), Jerry VanSomeren (Baldwin ) and Tim Ramberg (Hudson) voting in favor.
Legal background
The rezone is governed by state statute 59.69, Amos said
Kappers made the request for a rezone from C-1 to C-3 to the Somerset Town Board, which recommended approval because the town board and plan commission had determined the rezone was consistent with future land use identified in the township’s comprehensive land use plan, she said.
St. Croix County Community Development also determined that the rezone is consistent with the county’s comprehensive land use plan and applicable state law, Amos said.
Under state statute, a protest petition can be filed by the neighbors if it is filed with the county clerk at least 24 hours before the county board meeting and must have the signatures of 51 percent of the adjacent landowners, she said.
The county confirmed that 85.8 percent of the property owners signed the petition, Amos said.
Three-quarters of the county board must vote for approval of the rezone. The county board can approve the rezone, deny the rezone, or refer the rezone back to the community development committee with instructions on how to proceed, she said.
The county board got a little ahead of itself by voting early in the board meeting on sending the rezone back to the committee, Amos said.
The options for the county board are to approve the rezone, deny the rezone or send the rezone back to the committee with instructions on how to proceed, she said.
Consistent
John Hilgers, senior planner with the community development department, said that according to state statue, zoning must be consistent with future land use identified in the comprehensive plan.
The planning office found the rezone from C-1 to C-3 would be consistent with the Town of Somerset and St. Croix County’s future land use identified in the comprehensive plans, he said.
C-1 is a less intense zoning designation, while C-3 allows retail and other more intense uses that generate more traffic to expand the list of uses for the property, Hilgers said.
A restaurant and bar are not allowed in C-1, he said.
Mark Carlson, county board supervisor from Hammond, asked whether the protest petitions were legitimate or accurate. Is the allegation that the venue provides inadequate road access accurate?
Hilgers said he had received the petitions the day before the county board meeting, and while some do not appear to be accurate, some do appear to be accurate.
The east/west road, 170th Avenue, has been used for several decades for camping, the eatery, the campground and tubing on the Apple River, he said.
The town plan commission and town board would have to make sure the road is adequate for additional commercial use, Hilgers said.
Zoning as C-3 would not be spot zoning, he noted.
Is it a legal access for commercial that meets the standards and requirements for fire and ambulance? Counter asked.
That would have to be determined by the town board, Hilgers said.
A conditional use permit would require working with the Board of Adjustment and the fire department, for example, to be sure there is adequate access, he said, noting that a conditional use permit is a separate application.
POWTS
Would the existing POWTS support additional use? Hanson asked.
POWTS stands for private on-site wastewater treatment system.
The POWTS would be addressed under the land use permit through the commercial development department. Any use as a bar or tavern would require a review process of the POWTS, Amos said.
The POWTS and other issues are separate from the rezone. The rezone would be consistent with the town’s future land use and has town approval, so the rezone should be approved, she said.
Vote
A motion to approve the rezone request from Mike Kappers/Hideaway LLC failed on a vote of 11 “yes,” six “no” and one abstention since a minimum of 14 county board members are required for approval.
Voting against the motion were Tim Ramberg (Hudson), Jerry VanSomeren (Baldwin), Bob Swanepoel (Hudson), Daniel Hanson (New Richmond), Scott Counter (New Richmond) and Dave Ostness (Hudson).
Greg Tellijohn (New Richmond) abstained from voting.
Voting in favor of the motion were Mike Barcalow (Hudson), Mark Carlson (Hammond), Ryan Sherley (New Richmond), Bob Feidler (Hudson), Paul Berning (Hudson), Paul Adams (Hudson), Carah Koch (Hudson), Cathy Leaf (Hudson), Bob Long, (Hudson), Shawn Anderson (Hudson) and Lisa Lind (Hudson).
