Committee approves zoning map amendment and related special-use permit with septic-condition disclosure

The committee considered two related items from developer Patrick Duda: a zoning map amendment (case 198 AM 26) to add a rural residential overlay and a special-use permit (case 199S26) to authorize one single-family residential lot from a 10.18-acre parcel near County Road 2600 North and County Road 500 East in Mohammed.

Staff said the Zoning Board of Appeals recommended approval of both items by a 4–0 vote and noted this was the first RRO (rural residential overlay) the ZBA had reviewed. The special-use permit prompted discussion of soil and septic suitability: John Hall told the committee the lot includes prime farmland soils that are often poor for septic systems, and the ZBA added a special condition requiring a statement on the plat of survey that septic suitability is worse than typical county conditions and that a septic system may not be feasible on the property. "The zoning board added a special condition that a statement has to be added to the plat of survey stating that the septic suitability of the soils on the property is much worse than typical county conditions," Hall said; he added staff will verify the statement is on the plat before it is recorded.

A committee member noticed a typographical error in the packet that said three lots were requested; staff confirmed it was a typographical error and that only one lot is being created. The developer representative agreed to the special condition. The committee approved both the map amendment and the special-use permit and will forward the recommendations to the county board.