Daniel council delays Highway 40 storage license amid dispute over recorded buffer zone

The Daniel Town Council on May 4 moved to continue a decision on a business-license application for Daniel Highway 40 Storage after residents and planning commissioners raised complaints that the business is using a recorded agricultural buffer zone for vehicle and trailer storage.

Mark Harrelson, who identified himself as the managing partner for Daniel Storage, told the council he believed limited operational use of the back field was appropriate and said the business's U-Haul and storage operations would generate sales-tax revenue for the town. "We were not told that we could utilize it for operations," Harrelson said, asking the town to clarify allowable activity so the business could proceed without harming neighbors.

Planning staff and several commissioners said complaints allege commercial operations and equipment are currently parked in the buffer area. One planning commissioner summarized the disagreement: "The buffer zone is defined by the recorded legal description and it starts here and it ends here," and urged the council to ensure that the line be clearly marked and enforced. Another commissioner told the council that neighbors were told the buffer zone would remain agricultural and not be developed for commercial uses.

Council members said the priority is to resolve the factual question of the buffer's exact location and the permitted uses memorialized in the recorded agreement before issuing a license. The council voted to continue the license and asked Harrelson to meet with a small review group and the town staff to place stakes and agree a definitive demarcation on site; members said the item will return to the council after that on-site review.

The council emphasized it had not approved parking or a broad expansion of commercial activity behind the building and that the recorded plat and deed restriction will control whether equipment and rental vehicles may be stored there. The mayor (chair) asked the applicant and planning staff to convene a site visit on Friday, May 8, and report back to the council at its next meeting.

Next procedural step: the council continued the business-license matter pending an on-site verification of the recorded buffer-zone boundary and a written agreement clarifying permitted uses.