CHAPTER
171: LOWER ST. CROIX RIVERWAY ZONING
ORDINANCE
Contents Page
171
- A. Purpose................................................................................................................. 3
171
- B. Definitions.............................................................................................................. 3
171
- C. Lower St. Croix Riverway Rural
Residential Overlay District Created............................ 7
171
- D. Permitted Uses...................................................................................................... 7
171
- E. Permitted Structures............................................................................................... 8
171
- F. Conditionally Permitted
Structures and Activities....................................................... 8
171
- G. Conditional Use Permits.........................................................................................
8
171
- H. Prohibited Uses...................................................................................................... 8
171
–
1. Density and Minimum
2. Residence Standards...................................................................................... 9
3. Minimum
4. Maximum Structure Height............................................................................... 9
5. Ordinary High Watermark Setback.................................................................... 9
6. Bluffline Setback............................................................................................. 9
7. Structural Color Standards............................................................................... 9
8. Sign Standards............................................................................................. 10
9. Structural Erosion Control Measures............................................................... 10
10. Slope Preservation Zone Standards................................................................. 10
11. Vegetation Management Goals and Standards................................................. 10
12. Private On-Site Wastewater Treatment Systems.............................................. 12
13. Filling and Grading......................................................................................... 12
14 Erosion Control Standards.............................................................................. 12
171
- J. Standards for Conditionally
Permitted Structures and Activities................................. 13
1. Land Division................................................................................................. 13
2. Planned Cluster Developments....................................................................... 13
3. Transmission Services................................................................................... 13
4. Wireless Communication Service Facilities...................................................... 14
5. Filling and Grading Activities........................................................................... 14
6. Structural Erosion Control Measures Inside Slope Preservation
Zones................ 15
7. Stairways..................................................................................................... 15
8. Lifts.............................................................................................................. 16
9. Public Roads and Private Roads Serving Two or More Parcels or
Dwelling Units.. 16
171
- K. Conditional Use Permit standards........................................................................... 17
1. Bed and Breakfast Operations........................................................................ 17
2. Home Occupations........................................................................................ 17
3. Nature-Oriented, Educational, Non-Profit Facilities............................................ 17
171
- L. Nonconforming Uses,
Nonconforming Structures and Substandard Lots..................... 18
1. Nonconforming Uses; General Rules............................................................... 18
2. Nonconforming Structures:
Maintenance and Repair........................................ 18
3. Reconstruction of Nonconforming Principal Structures...................................... 18
4. Expansion of Nonconforming Principal Structures............................................. 19
5. Nonconforming Accessory Structures.............................................................. 19
6. Substandard Lots.......................................................................................... 21
7. Mitigation Requirements................................................................................. 21
171
- M. Administration...................................................................................................... 22
1. Riverway Permit............................................................................................ 22
2. Variances..................................................................................................... 24
3. Board of Appeals........................................................................................... 25
4. Department Review........................................................................................ 26
5. Reasonable Accommodations for the Disabled................................................. 26
6. Ordinance Amendments ............................................................................. 26
7. Penalties...................................................................................................... 27
171
- N. Severability........................................................................................................... 27
171
- O. Effective Date....................................................................................................... 28
The
Town of
171 - A. PURPOSE: This ordinance is enacted by the Town
of
1. Purpose: This
ordinance is enacted to create regulations to protect the continued eligibility
of the Lower St. Croix River for inclusion in the National Wild and
These rules are also necessary
to reduce the adverse effects of overcrowding and poorly planned shoreline and
bluff development, prevent pollution and contamination of surface and ground
waters, prevent soil erosion, provide sufficient space for sanitary facilities,
minimize flood damage, maintain property values and preserve and maintain the
exceptional scenic, cultural and natural characteristics of the lower St. Croix
riverway.
2.
Applicability. This ordinance regulates all land located in
the Town of Troy and within the boundaries of the Lower St. Croix National
Riverway as set forth in the Master Plan jointly prepared by the States of
Minnesota and Wisconsin and the National Park Service, pursuant to P.L. 92-560
and as shown on the official Town of Troy Lower St. Croix Riverway District
map. Additionally,
this ordinance is enacted to create local regulations consistent with the
intent of NR 118 and appropriate to the pre-existing patterns of development,
local topography and other natural conditions that will allow reconstruction,
limited expansion and new development where the visual and environmental impact
is minimized.
171 - B. DEFINITIONS:
For the purpose of this ordinance:
1. “Accessory
structure” means a subordinate structure, the use of which is incidental to,
and customarily found in connection with, the principal structure or use of the
property. Accessory structures include,
but are not limited to the non-habitable area of attached garages and detached
garages, sheds, barns, gazebos, patio, decks, swimming pools, hot tubs, fences,
retaining walls, driveways, parking lots, sidewalks, detached stairways and
lifts.
2. “Accessory
use” means a use subordinate to and serving the principal use of the same lot,
located on the same lot and customarily incidental thereto.
3. “Agriculture” means beekeeping; livestock grazing; orchards; raising of grain, grass or seed crops; raising of fruits, nuts or berries; placing land in federal programs in return for payments in kind; owning land, at least 35 acres of which is enrolled in the conservation reserve program under 16 USC 3831 to 3836; and vegetable raising.
4. “Antenna”
means any device or equipment used for the transmission or reception of
electromagnetic waves, which may include an omni-directional antenna (rod), a
directional antenna (panel) or a parabolic antenna (disc).
5. “Bed and breakfast operation” means a place of lodging for transient guests that is the owner’s personal residence, that is occupied by the owner at the time of rental, and in which the only meal served to guests is breakfast.
6. “Bluffline” means the line along the top of a slope preservation zone where the slope landward first becomes less than 12%, as measured landward from the bluffline for not more than 50 feet nor less than 25 feet.
7. “Board
of Appeals” means the body created in Section 170-5 of the Town of
8. “Building line” means a line measured across the width of a lot at that point where the principal structure is placed in accordance with setback provisions.
9. ”Camouflage
design” means a wireless communication service facility that is disguised,
hidden or screened, but remains recognizable as a tower or antenna.
10. “Compliant
building location” means an area on a lot where a building could be located in
compliance with all applicable ordinance requirements.
11. “Conditionally
permitted structure or activity” means a structure or
activity allowed in the riverway district as
specifically listed in sections F. and J. of this ordinance and permitted only
after the Plan Commission and Town Board determine that all conditions
specified in the ordinance for that use have been met.
12. “Conditional use” means a use specifically listed in sections G. and K. of this ordinance and permitted only after the Board of Appeals has determined that all conditions specified in the ordinance for that use have been met and has created and imposed such other site or operation - specific conditions as are necessary for public and neighborhood health, safety and welfare.
13. “Department”
means the Wisconsin department of natural resources.
14. “Disabled”
means having a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or
more major life activities.
15. “Earth-tone”
means colors that harmonize with the natural surroundings on the site during
leaf on conditions.
16. “Expansion”
means an addition to an existing structure regardless of whether the addition
is vertical or horizontal or both.
17. “Filtered
view of the river” means that one can see the river through the vegetation,
while any structure remains visually inconspicuous.
18. “Footprint”
means the area of land that is covered by a structure at ground level, measured
on a horizontal plane. Cantilevered or
pier supported horizontal expansions or similar expansions, that enlarge the
area of the structure without using a
ground level foundation, shall be included in the calculations that determine
the combined structure footprint.
19.“Foundation” means the underlying
base of a building or other structure, including, but not limited to pillars,
footings and concrete and masonry walls.
20. “Highest
visible bluffline” means the line along the top of the highest riverway facing
slope preservation zone, visible in leaf on conditions, when viewed from at, or
near the midline of the river.
21. “Human
habitation” means the use of a building or other structure for human occupancy,
including but not limited to cooking, eating, bathing and sleeping.
22. “Land
division” means any division of a parcel of land by the owner or the owner’s
agent, for the purpose of transfer of ownership or building development, which
creates one or more parcels or building sites of 35 acres or less.
23. “Landscape
architect” means a person who has graduated with a major in landscape
architecture from a college accredited by the American Society of Landscape
Architects.
24. “Lift”
means a mechanical device, either temporary or permanent, containing a mobile
open top car including hand or guard rails, a track upon which the open top car
moves, and a mechanical device to provide power to the open top car.
25. “Local
zoning ordinance” means chapter 171
of the Code of Ordinances of the Town of
26 “
27. “Lower
St. Croix riverway” or “
28. “Management
zone” means the rural residential management zone as described in NR 118.04.
29. “Mitigation”
means action taken to minimize the adverse impacts of development. The term “mitigation” may include, but is not
limited to, the installation of vegetative buffers, the removal or relocation
of nonconforming structures from the 75
foot shoreland setback area, and the implementation of best management
practices for erosion control and storm water management.
30. “Net
project area” means the area of a lot minus slope preservation zones,
floodplains, road rights-of-way and wetlands. The net project area need not be
contiguous.
31. “Nonconforming
structure” means a building or other structure whose location dimensions or
other physical characteristics do not conform to the standards in the current
local zoning ordinance but which was legally constructed or placed in its
current location prior to the adoption of the ordinance or ordinance amendment
that made it nonconforming.
32. Nonconforming
use” means the use of land or a structure or other premises that does not
conform to the land use restrictions in the current local zoning ordinance, but
which was legally established prior to the adoption of the ordinance or
ordinance amendment that made it nonconforming.
33. “Ordinary high water mark” means the fixed
elevation(s) established by the Department as the ordinary high water mark on
the
34. “Ordinary
maintenance and repair” means any work done on a nonconforming structure that
does not constitute expansion, structural alteration or reconstruction and does
not involve the replacement, alteration or improvement of any portion of the
structure’s foundation.
35. “Planned
cluster development” means a pattern of development that places residences into
compact groupings as means of permanently preserving open space.
36. “Porch”
means the area of a principal structure, with a roof over it, providing access
to a building.
37. “Principal
structure” means the main building or other structure on a lot that is utilized
for the property’s principal use. The
term “principal structure” includes porches and the inhabited portion of
attached and detached garages.
38.
“Protrude above the bluffline” means that a structure appears silhouetted
against the sky when viewed during summer months, from at or near the mid-line
of the river or from 250 feet riverward from the shoreline, whichever is less.
39. “Reasonable
accommodation” means allowing a disabled person to deviate from the strict
requirements of this ordinance if an accommodation is necessary and reasonable,
in order not to unlawfully discriminate against the disabled person and to
allow them equal housing opportunity.
40. ”Reconstruction”
means the replacement of all or substantially all of the components of a
structure other than the foundation.
41. “Selection
cutting” means the removal of selected trees throughout the range of
merchantable sizes at regular intervals, either singly or in small groups,
leaving a uniformly distributed stocking of desirable tree and shrub size
classes.
42. “Setback”
means the minimum horizontal distance between the foundation of a structure and
either the ordinary high water mark, the bluffline or the highest visible
bluffline. Setback shall be measured to
the outer edge of a roof overhang instead of the foundation when the roof
overhang width extends more than three feet beyond the foundation. When the roof overhang is 3 feet or less and
any part of the structure is cantilevered out beyond the foundation, the
setback shall be measured to the outer cantilevered portion of the structure.
43. “Shelterwood
cut” means a partial removal of mature trees leaving trees of desirable species
and form to provide shade, seed source and a desirable seedbed for natural
regeneration with the final removal of the over story after adequate
regeneration is established.
44. “Single-family
residence” means a detached structure used for human habitation for one family.
45. “Slope
preservation zone” means an area where the slope facing toward the river is 12%
or greater when measured horizontally for a distance of not more than 50 feet
nor less than 25 feet.
46. “Small
regeneration cut” means a harvest of not more than one-third of the contiguous
forested ownership within a 10-year period with each opening not exceeding 6
acres in size and not closer than 75 feet at their closest points.
47. “Stealth
design” means a wireless communication service facility that models or mimics
in size or shape and color something in the surrounding landscape, such as
silos in farm settings and trees in forested lands, and is unrecognizable year
round as an antenna or antenna mount.
48. “Structural
alteration” means the replacement or alteration of one or more of the
structural components of any of a nonconforming structure’s exterior walls.
49. ”Structural
component” means any part of the framework of a building or other
structure. The structural components of
a building’s exterior walls include the vertical studs, top and bottom plates,
and window and door sills and headers. A
structural component may be non-load-bearing, such as the framework of a wall
at the gable end of a one-story house.
Wall-coverings, such as siding on the exterior and dry wall on the
interior, are not included in the definition of “structural component.”
50. ”Structural
erosion control measures” means a retaining wall or other man-made structure
whose primary function is to control erosion.
51. “Structure”
means any man-made object with form, shape and utility, that is constructed or
otherwise erected, attached to or permanently or temporarily placed upon the
ground, a riverbed, streambed or lakebed or upon another structure. The term “structure” includes swimming pools,
hot tubs, patios, decks and retaining walls, but does not include landscaping
or earthwork such as graded areas, filled areas, ditches, berms or earthen
terraces. The term “structure” does not
include small objects that are easily moved by hand, such as lawn chairs,
portable grills, portable picnic tables, bird feeders, bird baths and bird
houses.
52. ”Subdivision
Ordinance” means the Town of Troy Subdivision of Land ordinance. Note:
53. “Substandard
lot” means a lot with dimensions that do not conform to all of the requirements
of this ordinance, the Town’s Subdivision Ordinance or applicable County
ordinances.
54. “Transmission
services” means electric power lines, telephone and telegraph lines,
communication towers, cables, sewage lift stations, sewer and water pipes, and
other pipes, conduits and accessory structures that are used to transport
power, convey information or transport material between 2 points, other than
wireless communication service facilities.
55. “Town”
means Town of
56. “Visually
inconspicuous” means difficult to see, or not readily noticeable, in summer
months as viewed from at or near the mid-line of the
57. “Wetland”
has the meaning found in s. 23.32 (1), Stats.
Note: Section 23.32 (1), Stats., defines “wetland”
to mean “an area where water is at, near, or above the land surface long enough
to be capable of supporting aquatic or hydrophytic vegetation and which has
soils indicative of wet conditions.”
58. “Wireless
communication service facilities” means hardware that provides wireless
communication services including antennas, towers, all associated equipment,
and buildings and other structures.
171 - C. LOWER ST. CROIX RIVERWAY RURAL RESIDENTIAL MANAGEMENT OVERLAY
DISTRICT CREATED.
The entire area to which this
ordinance applies is hereby classified as a rural residential management zone
as defined by
171 - D. PERMITTED USES.
The following uses are permitted in
the rural residential management overlay
zoning district if the standards in Section
I are met:
1. Single-family
residential and accessory uses.
2. Conservancy
3. Forestry
4. Agriculture
5. Public
parks, natural resource management and interpretation areas, waysides, rest
areas and scenic overlooks.
6. Filling
and grading outside of slope preservation zones.
171- E. PERMITTED STRUCTURES.
The following structures require
issuance of a Town riverway permit are allowed in the rural residential
management overlay zoning district if the applicable standards in section I are
met:
1. Single-family
residences and accessory structures.
2. Piers
or wharves that have required state and federal permits or that meet statutory
criteria or administrative rule standards and do not require a state or federal
permit.
3. Signs.
4. Structural
erosion control measures constructed outside of slope preservation zones. Rock
rip-rap may be allowed within a slope preservation zone and within the ordinary
high water mark setback area if the Town determines that rip-rap is necessary
to prevent erosion in flood prone areas and either a state permit is granted
for the rip-rap or statutory criteria or administrative rule standards are met
so that a state permit is not required for the rip-rap.
171- F. CONDITIONALLY PERMITTED STRUCTURES AND ACTIVITIES.
The following activities and
structures are conditionally permitted in the rural residential management zone
district that require issuance of a Town riverway permit and that shall comply
with the applicable requirements in
1. Land
divisions.
2. Planned
cluster developments for single-family residences.
3. Transmission
services.
4. Wireless
communication service facilities.
5. Filling
and grading within slope preservation zones.
6. Structural
erosion control measures constructed in slope preservation zones.
7. Stairways.
8. Lifts.
9. Public
roads and private roads serving 2 or more lots or single family residences.
171- G. CONDITIONAL USE PERMITS.
Conditional use permits for the
following uses must be approved and issued by the Town Board of Appeals. All such uses shall comply with the
applicable requirements of sections I and K.
1. Bed
and breakfast operations.
2. Home
occupations.
3. Nature-oriented
educational, non-profit facilities.
171- H. PROHIBITED USES.
All uses and structures not listed
herein as permitted uses, conditionally permitted structures and activities or
conditional uses are prohibited in the rural residential management riverway
zoning district.
171 -
1. Density and Minimum lot size.
The minimum lot size in the
rural residential management riverway zoning district shall be one lot per one
acre of net project area. The minimum lot size and subdivision density shall
also conform to the requirements of the Town subdivision ordinance unless an
exception or variance is granted by the Town Board of Appeals and/or the Town
Board.
If the lot is not served by a
public sewage system or community sewage collection and treatment services, the
lot shall have adequate room for one single-family residence and 2 private
on-site wastewater treatment systems.
2. Residence Standards. There may not be more
than one single-family residence on each lot.
3
. Minimum lot width. The minimum lot width
shall apply at the building line and at the side of the lot nearest the
river. The minimum lot width in that
location shall be 200 feet.
4. Maximum structure height.
The
maximum structure height shall be measured, between the average ground
elevation and the uppermost point of the structure, excluding chimneys. The maximum structure height shall be 35 feet
except for wireless communication service facilities, which shall meet the
height requirement in section J.4 of this ordinance.
5. Ordinary high water mark setback.
All structures except piers,
wharves, structural erosion control measures stairways and lifts shall be set
back at least 200 feet from the ordinary high water mark. The setback shall be measured on a horizontal plane from the
foundation of structure to the ordinary high water mark, unless otherwise
required by the definition of “setback” in section B of this ordinance.
6. Bluffline
and highest visible bluffline setback.
All structures, except piers,
wharves, structural erosion control measures, stairways and lifts shall be set
back at least 100 feet from the
bluffline, or from the highest visible bluffline when measured on a horizontal
plane to the foundation unless otherwise required by the definition of
“setback” in section B of this ordinance.
Structures may be set back
less than 100 feet from the bluffline or highest visible bluffline, but not
less than 40 feet from the bluffline or from the highest visible bluffline,
only when all of the following conditions
are met:
(a) No part of the structure, excluding chimneys, protrudes above the
bluffline when viewed from, at or near the midline of the river or from 250 feet riverward from the shoreline,
whatever is less.
(b) The structure is not located in a slope
preservation zone.
(c) The structure utilizes earth-tone building materials that are of a
non-reflective nature, except that windows may be made of ordinary window glass
or non-reflective glass, but may not be made of glass designed to reflect more
light than ordinary window glass.
(d) The structure is visually inconspicuous.
(e) The entire structure is located more than 200 feet from the ordinary high watermark.
7. Structure Color Standards.
All new, expanded,
reconstructed or repainted structures shall be earth tone colored.
NOTE: the Town may develop a building materials
color planning guide to aid in the definition and application of building
material-colors that meet this standard that may be added as an appendix to
this ordinance. Any such appendix shall
not be considered part of this ordinance and may be revised by the Town without
being treated as an amendment to this ordinance. Any riverway Planning Guide
developed by the Town may not be adopted over the objection of the Department.
8. Sign Standards.
Signs are allowed if one or
more of the following criteria are met:
(a) The sign is approved by state or local government and is necessary
for public health or safety.
(b) The sign indicates areas that are available or not available for
public use.
(c) The sign is not visible from the river and is otherwise lawful.
9. Structural Erosion Control Measures.
Except for rock rip-rap
allowed in compliance with section E. 4. of this ordinance, structural erosion
control measures may only be placed above the ordinary high water mark and
within the ordinary high water mark setback area and bluffline setback areas if
all of the following criteria are met:
(a) The structural erosion control measure is constructed outside of
slope preservation zones, or a conditionally permitted structure and activity
permit has been issued in compliance with the requirements of section 171-J.6
of this ordinance that allows its construction inside of slope preservation
zones.
(b) The Town determines that structural erosion control measures are
necessary to address significant on-going erosion that nonstructural erosion
control measures cannot control.
NOTE: the Town may develop an environmental
management planning guide to aid in the definition and application of erosion
control measures and other water run off management mitigation applications
that may be added as an appendix to this ordinance. Any such appendix shall not be considered
part of this ordinance and may be revised by the Town without being treated as
an amendment to this ordinance.
(c) The structural erosion control measure is constructed of natural
materials and is made as visually inconspicuous as possible.
(d) The person seeking to construct the structural erosion control
measure submits a detailed construction plan, an erosion control plan and a
vegetative management plan, showing how the structural erosion control measure
will be constructed, what land disturbing activities will take place, what, if
any, vegetation will be removed, and how new, native vegetation will be
re-established. Construction may not
proceed until the Town has approved the plans.
10. Slope Preservation Zone Standards.
(a) No structures except piers, wharves, structural erosion control
measures, stairways and lifts, may be placed in slope
preservation zones.
(b) Slope preservation zones may not be altered to become less than 12%
except where permitted pursuant to section J-5 of this ordinance.
11. Vegetation
Management.
(a) Goals. All of the
following goals apply:
(1) The primary goals of these vegetative
management provisions are to screen structures to make them visually
inconspicuous and to prevent erosion and minimize disturbance of
environmentally sensitive areas such as steep slopes, shorelines and bluff top
areas.
(2) A secondary goal is to maintain and restore
historically and ecologically significant plant communities and enhance
diversity.
(3) Vegetative screening of structures takes
priority over restoration and maintenance of significant plant communities.
(b) Standards. The purposes of vegetative management standards
are to lessen the visual impact of existing, new and expanded structures,
prevent erosion, protects ground water and prevent surface water contamination.
The following vegetation management standards apply in the rural residential
management zone, except where different standards are authorized elsewhere in
this ordinance for transmission services, wireless communication facilities or
roads:
(1) Vegetation in ordinary high water mark setback
areas, directly facing slope preservation zones and 40 feet landward of the
bluffline and highest visible bluff shall be left undisturbed unless activity
is authorized elsewhere in this subsection.
(2) Vegetation may not be disturbed or removed if
it would disrupt the visually inconspicuous character of structures, reduce the
quality or diversity of the plant community, or increase the potential for
erosion, unless activity is authorized elsewhere in this subsection.
(3) Routine pruning of trees or shrubs to improve
their health and vigor, pruning to provide a filtered view of the river,
pruning to prevent property damage, and removing trees that pose an imminent
safety hazard to persons or structures is allowed.
(4) Vegetative management plans, tree trimming and
reforestation shall comply with the Town of
NOTE: the Town may develop a vegetative management
planning guide to aid in the definition and application of riverway vegetative
management guidelines that may be added as an appendix to this ordinance. Any such appendix shall not be considered
part of this ordinance and may be revised by the Town without being treated as
an amendment to this ordinance.
Generally accepted forest management guidelines, which include
guidelines for forest aesthetics, are described in a WDNR publication titled
Wisconsin Forest Management Guidelines, PUB-FR-226 2003 available from the WDNR
Forestry Division, PO Box 7921, Madison, Wisconsin 53707-7921 or on the
Wisconsin DNR website at:
http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/land/forestry/Publications/Guidelines/index.htm.
(5) Lawns within ordinary high water mark setbacks
areas, slope preservation zones and bluffline setback areas shall not be
expanded. Maintenance of existing lawns may be continued.
(6) These standards do not prohibit the growth and
harvest of non-wood-fiber crops, the removal of vegetation to allow permitted
uses or structures or conditional uses, the removal of state-designated noxious
weeds, and the pruning or removal of vegetation to prevent insect infestation
or disease that threaten large areas of vegetative cover.
NOTE: Noxious weeds include those species
designated by s. 66.96(2), Stats., which includes Canada thistle, leafy
spurge, field bindweed and any other such weeds as the St. Croix County Board
by ordinance or resolution declares to be noxious.
(7) Herbicide use shall be limited to direct
topical application to cut stems to kill noxious weeds, exotic species, poison
ivy, poison oak or poison sumac, or as a prescribed treatment within a forest
stewardship plan.
(8) The practice of forestry shall be allowed on
lands for which a forest stewardship plan has been developed under
(9) Noxious weeds, exotic species, poison ivy,
poison oak, poison sumac or any other vegetation that is removed shall be
replaced with native vegetation, which may include native non-noxious weeds.
c) Penalties. The
penalty for removing vegetation in violation of this Town ordinance shall
include replacement of vegetation with native vegetation at the property
owner's expense in addition to other remedies available under this ordinance.
12. Private
On-Site Wastewater Treatment Systems.
Private on-site wastewater
treatment systems shall be constructed in accordance with the requirements of
Commerce Chapter 83 or more strict requirements that may be required by the
Town in its Subdivision Ordinance or by the County in its sanitation code.
13. Filling
and Grading.
Filling
and grading are permitted outside of slope preservation zones when all of the
following requirements are met:
(a) Filling and grading activities are set back at least 40 feet from
slope preservation zones.
(b) Filling and grading activities do not disturb more than 10,000
square feet of land.
(c) No wetlands are filled or drained.
(d) Any vegetation that is removed is replaced with native vegetation.
(e) Filling and grading activities are designed and implemented in a
manner to minimize erosion, sedimentation, and impairment of fish and wildlife
habitat.
(f) As part of an erosion control plan, WIDNR Storm Water Management
Standards are implemented.
(g) Filling and grading are not allowed for the
purpose of adding net project area in order to create additional lots.
14. Erosion Control Standards. All permitted
filling and grading on, or within 40 feet of a slope preservation zone shall,
as part of an erosion control plan, comply with the Wisconsin Construction site
Erosion Technical Standards and Wisconsin Post-Construction Storm Water
Technical Standards included in the WiDNR Storm Water Management Standards.
171 - J. STANDARDS FOR CONDITIONALLY PERMITTED STRUCTURES AND ACTIVITIES.
The
structures and activities specifically described in this section require a Town
riverway permit and are permitted when the Town determines that all applicable
requirements in this ordinance have been met:
1. Land Division.
Subdivision of property into
lots is a permitted use when the Town determines that all of the following
conditions are met.
(a) All lots on which single family residences are proposed to be
built shall meet the minimum lot size and width
requirement in section I.1 and 3 and
shall be suitable for residential
development in their existing condition, without the need for a variance.
(b) All such proposed lots shall be suitable for their proposed use and
will not be subject to the potential for flooding, inadequate drainage, severe
erosion, inadequate water supply or inadequate sewage disposal
capabilities.
(c) The use of such proposed lots for residential purposes will not be
limited by unfavorable soil and rock formations, unfavorable topography, or any
other feature likely to result in harm to the health, safety or welfare of
future residents of the lots or of the local community.
(d) The Town shall consult
with the State Historical Society concerning potential impacts to archeological
sites. If the property is found to
contain an archeological site, the Town and the applicant shall develop and
implement a plan to avoid or mitigate adverse impacts to the archeological site
with the assistance from the State Historical Society.
2. Planned Cluster Developments.
A subdivision for a cluster
development for single family residences is a permitted use when the Town
determines that all of the following conditions are met:
(a) The proposed clustering provides a better means of preserving
scenic views, open space and shoreline than a non-clustered single family
residential subdivision.
(b) The proposed structures comply with the minimum ordinary high water
mark and bluffline setbacks and height standards in
(c) The total number of single family residences in a planned cluster
development shall not exceed 50% more than the total number of residences that
would be allowed if the development complied with the lot size and width
requirements of sections I.1.and I.3.
(d) Every lot or outlot in a planned cluster development containing
riparian land shall be owned by a homeowners association with membership
consisting of all lots in the planned cluster development.
(e) Notwithstanding the requirements of sections I.1. and I.3.
regarding lot size and width and subsection J.2.(c) herein, the minimum lot
size in a planned clustered development may be reduced to one acre of net
project acre, and the lot line width to 132 feet where also consistent with the
Town’s Subdivision Ordinance. For every
cluster lot created, at least one acre of open space containing all of the riparian land 175 feet
landward from the ordinary high water mark shall be permanently preserved by a
restrictive covenant or conservation easement that prevents future subdivision
and development of the open space.
3. Transmission Services.
The construction, updating,
maintenance or reconstruction of transmission services is permitted when the
Town determines all of the following conditions have been met:
(a) All new, updated or reconstructed transmission services shall be
placed underground if the Town determines that underground placement is
technically feasible. An applicant who
seeks to establish that underground placement is technically infeasible, shall
provide supporting engineering data to explain to the Town what factors make it
infeasible.
(b) When underground placement has been determined to be technically
infeasible, above ground transmission services shall be designed and located to
minimize adverse visual impact on the scenic character of the riverway.
(c) New, updated or reconstructed transmission services shall be
constructed and maintained using minimally invasive techniques for construction
and maintenance, including erosion control. Existing transmission facilities
shall be maintained using minimally invasive techniques, including erosion
control.
(d) Cutting or clearing of vegetation for transmission service maintenance
may be conducted provided that an understory layer of vegetation shall be
maintained to prevent erosion and allow succession. Vegetative management shall
protect the quality and diversity of the plant community and prevent erosion.
Herbicide use shall be limited to direct topical application to cut stems to
prevent regrowth. The pruning of normal tree growth for safety reasons or to
prevent interference with the transmission service and the removal of noxious
weeds is allowed.
4. Wireless
Communication Service Facilities.
The installation,
reconstruction, modification and replacement of wireless communication service
facilities is permitted when the Town determines that all of the following
conditions have been are met:
(a) Construction and maintenance shall be conducted using techniques
which minimize the cutting or pruning of vegetation in order to preserve mature
vegetation and provide screening of the facilities. Erosion control measures
shall be employed.
(b) Wireless communication service facilities shall use building
materials, colors, textures, screening and landscaping that blend the
facilities into the surrounding natural features and shall be visually
inconspicuous.
(c)
Wireless communication service
facilities shall be of camouflage or stealth design, unless placed on existing
structures.
(d) Wireless communication service facilities may not exceed a height
of 50 feet or no more than 20 feet above the tallest structure or tree canopy
within a 300 foot radius of the proposed communication facilities as measured
horizontally, whichever is higher.
(e) New or reconstructed wireless communication service facilities may
not be placed in slope preservation zones of any kind, floodplains or wetlands.
5. Filling and Grading Activities.
(a) Filling and grading in any of the following areas are conditionally permitted
when the Town determines that all of the conditions in par. (b) have been
satisfied:
(1) In slope preservation zones that do not
directly face the river and do not drain directly to the river.
(2) Outside of slope preservation zones when more
than 10,000 square feet of land is proposed to be disturbed by filling or
grading activity.
(3) Within 40 feet of a
slope preservation zone.
(b) Filling and grading in the areas described in par. (a) are
conditionally permitted when the Town
determines that all of the following conditions are met:
(1) Filling and grading activities will not
disturb more than 10,000 square feet of land that is located in a slope
preservation zone.
(2) No wetlands are filled or graded.
(3) Any vegetation that is removed is replaced
with native vegetation.
(4) Filling and grading activities are designed
and implemented in a manner that minimizes erosion, sedimentation, and
impairment of fish and wildlife habitat.
(5) The filling and grading is visually
inconspicuous.
(6)
As part of an erosion control plan,
Wisconsin Construction Site Erosion Technical Standards and Wisconsin
Post-Construction Storm Water Technical Standards as included in the WiDNR
Storm Water Management Standards must be implemented to control erosion.
6. Structural Erosion Control Measures In Slope
Preservation Zones.
The construction, updating,
maintenance or reconstruction of structural erosion control measures in slope
preservation zones is permitted when the Town determines that all of the
following conditions have been met:
(a) The Town has determined that structural erosion control measures
are necessary to address significant on-going erosion that nonstructural
erosion control measures cannot control.
(b) The structural erosion control measure is constructed of natural
materials and is located and constructed to be as visually inconspicuous as
possible.
(c) The person seeking to construct the structural erosion control
measure submits a detailed construction plan, an erosion control plan and a
vegetative management plan, showing how the structural erosion control measure
will be constructed, what land disturbing activities will take place, what, if
any, vegetation will be removed, how new native, vegetation will be
re-established, and the Town has approved all aspects of all plans.
7. Stairways.
The installation,
reconstruction, modification and replacement of stairways are permitted when
the Town determines that all of the following conditions have been met:
(a) The stairway is required to provide pedestrian access to the river
because of steep, rocky, unstable or wet site conditions.
(b) The tread width of the stairway does not exceed 48 inches.
(c) Landings are located at vertical intervals of not less than 20
feet, and no individual landing exceeds 40 square feet in area.
(d) Hand rails may be allowed in conjunction with stairways.
(e) Canopies and roofs are not allowed on
stairways.
(f) Stairways, handrails and landings shall be anchored and supported
above grade with pilings or footings or by using professionally engineered
designs that do not require continuous anchorage for structural integrity and
which designs have been approved by the Town’s Engineer.
(g) Stairways shall be constructed of unfinished wood or stone, or
shall be painted or stained with earth-tone materials.
(h) Stairways shall be visually inconspicuous and shall be located in
the most visually inconspicuous area of the lot.
(i) Native plantings shall be used to form a vegetative canopy to
screen the stairway from the river.
(j) Existing vegetation may be removed only within one foot of either
side of the stairway route and no more than 8 feet above the stairway floor.
(k) Only one stairway is permitted on a lot that abuts the
8. Lifts.
The installation,
reconstruction, modification and replacement of lifts is permitted when the
Town determines that all of the following requirements have been met:
(a) The lift is required to provide pedestrian access to the river
because of steep, rocky, unstable or wet site conditions.
(b) The car floor of the lift does not exceed 4 feet by 6 feet in area.
(c) Canopies and roofs are not allowed.
(d) All visible parts of the lift shall be painted or finished in
earth-tone, non-reflective materials and shall be visually inconspicuous.
(e) Lifts and their transporting device or power source shall be
visually inconspicuous and shall be located in the most visually inconspicuous
portion of the lot.
(f) Native plantings shall be used to form a vegetative canopy to
screen the lift from the river.
(g) Existing vegetation may be removed only within one foot on either
side of the lift route and no more than 8 feet above the lift floor.
(h) Only one lift is permitted on a lot that abuts the
(i) Contiguous landowners may be permitted to construct a shared lift
serving both properties.
9. Public Roads and Private Roads Serving Two or
More Lots or Single Family Residences.
The construction,
reconstruction or right-of-way maintenance for public roads and private roads
serving 2 or more properties or single- family residences is conditionally permitted if all of the following
conditions are met:
(a) No new road, may be
constructed in slope preservation zones, in an area 40 feet landward of blufflines, within 200 feet
of the river, within 100 feet of tributary watercourses or in wetlands, except
as minimally required to serve a permitted expansion of a nonconforming
structure.
(b) Route design and construction or reconstruction shall minimize
visual impacts by using terrain features to blend the road into the landscape,
avoiding cuts and fills as much as feasible.
(c) New roads shall be visually inconspicuous.
(d) All new roads shall meet or exceed the applicable standards and
requirements of the Town Subdivision, Road Standards and Driveway ordinances.
(e) Cutting or clearing vegetation for road right-of-way maintenance
shall be conducted only in accordance with the following requirements:
(1) Vegetation shall be managed to allow an
understory layer to remain in place to prevent erosion and allow
succession. Vegetation shall not be
disturbed in such a way that there would be reduced quality or diversity of the
plant community or increased potential for erosion, except as necessary for
public safety.
(2) Herbicide use shall be limited to direct
topical application
(3) Mowing of a safety zone is allowed, extending from the edge of the pavement back 15 feet or to the ditch bottom, whichever is less, as is the periodic clearing of intersection vision triangles. Other parts of the right-of-way may be mowed to control noxious weeds and undesirable brush and only after July 15 in order to avoid adverse impact on ground-nesting birds.
(4) Cutting of trees more than 4 inches in
diameter at breast height is prohibited, unless determined by the Town to pose
a hazard to public health or safety or as otherwise permitted in section
I-11.
171 - K. CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT STANDARDS.
1. Bed and Breakfast Operations.
A conditional use permit may
be issued to the owner of land in the rural residential management zone for a
bed and breakfast operation if all of the following requirements are met:
(a) The bed and breakfast operation provides 4 or fewer rooms for rent
to transient visitors.
(b) The bed and breakfast operation has sufficient parking spaces on
its lot for the guests.
(c)
Any other conditions deemed appropriate
to the owner, site or proposed operation by the Town Board of Appeals.
2. Home Occupations.
A conditional use permit may
be issued to the owner or tenant of land in the rural residential management
zone for the use of a single-family residence for a home occupation if all of
the following requirements are met:
(a) The owner or person who rents the residence on a full-time basis
will conduct the home occupation.
(b) The home occupation is conducted inside of the residence and is
subordinate to the use of the home as a principal residence.
(c) The home occupation will not cause environmental pollution.
(d) If the home occupation causes additional persons to visit the
residence, sufficient parking is provided on the lot.
(e) Any other conditions that may be deemed appropriate to the owner,
site or proposed operation by the Town Board of Appeals.
3. Nature-Oriented Educational, Non-Profit
Facilities.
A conditional use permit may
be issued to the owner of land in the rural residential management zone for a
nature-oriented educational, non-profit facility in the overlay district if all
of the following requirements are met:
(a) The facility will not cause environmental pollution or erosion.
(b) The facility has sufficient parking on its property for patrons to
park.
(c) Any other conditions that may deemed appropriate to the owner, site
or proposed operation by the Town Board of Appeals.
171 - L. NONCONFORMING
USES AND STRUCTURES AND SUBSTANDARD LOTS.
1. Nonconforming Uses; General Rules.
A nonconforming use in the
rural residential management zone may not be expanded or enlarged. A change from one nonconforming use to
another nonconforming use is not allowed.
If a nonconforming use is discontinued for a period of 12 months, then
any future use of building and premises shall conform to all of the
requirements of this ordinance. No nonconforming use shall be approved by
2. Nonconforming Principal Structures: Maintenance and Repair.
As defined by this ordinance,
ordinary maintenance and repair to nonconforming principal structures in the
rural residential management zone is allowed, without a riverway permit. The Town’s Building Code and other applicable
ordinances do apply.
3. Reconstruction of Nonconforming Principal
Structures.
Nonconforming principal
structures located in an ordinary high
water mark setback area, bluffline setback area or
slope preservation zone, may be structurally altered or reconstructed
and the pre-existing foundation may be replaced, improved, repaired or
structurally altered only after the Town has determined that all of the
following requirements have been met and issued a riverway permit:
(a) The lot has an area of at least 7,000 square feet.
(b) The altered or reconstructed structure will be visually
inconspicuous or will be rendered so within a reasonable time through
mitigation as required in section L.7 of this ordinance. The mitigation
requirements shall be incorporated into the riverway permit.
(c) The structure is altered or reconstructed in the same footprint as
the pre-existing structure.
(d) The height of the structure following alteration or reconstruction
complies with the height limitations of section.I-4. The reconstructed structure may not be any
taller than the pre-existing nonconforming structure, except that a
pre-existing flat roof may be replaced with a pitched roof.
(e) The color of the structure complies with the building material
color requirements of section I.7.
(f) The property owner submits a mitigation plan that complies with
the requirements of section L.7. When
the Town issues a permit for alternation or reconstruction, the mitigation plan
shall be approved or modified and approved by the Town and incorporated into
the permit, and the property owner shall be required to implement the
mitigation plan as a permit condition.
(g) Private on-site waste water treatment systems shall be brought into
compliance with the current
requirements of Wis. Adm.
Code Comm. 83, the
(h) The foundation of a nonconforming principal
structure may only be replaced, improved or structurally altered in conjunction
with the reconstruction of the structure when the entire structure is located
more than 50 feet from the ordinary high water mark.
(i) A nonconforming principal structure located in a slope
preservation zone and located entirely more than 50 feet from the ordinary high
water mark may be structurally altered or reconstructed, and its foundation may
be improved or replaced but not expanded, so long as Wisconsin Construction
Site Erosion Technical Control Standards and Post-Construction Storm Water
Management Technical Standards as included in WIDNR Storm Water Management
Standards are implemented to control
erosion pursuant to an erosion control plan reviewed for compliance by the Town
Engineer.
(j) An erosion control plan and re-vegetation plan shall be submitted
the Town for review, approval or modification and approval prior to the issuance of a permit for any structural
alteration or reconstruction of a nonconforming principal structure.
(k) No filling and grading is allowed during the
structural alteration or reconstruction project except as minimally necessary
to perform permitted construction and bring the site into compliance with
existing sanitary and erosion control requirements.
4. Expansion of Nonconforming Principal
Structures.
Nonconforming principal
structures located in an ordinary high water mark setback area or bluffline
setback area may be expanded and the pre-existing foundation may be replaced,
improved, repaired or structurally altered in conjunction with the expansion
only after the Town has determined that all of the applicable requirements for
reconstruction in sub. 3 have been met, the Town has further determined that
all applicable following requirements have been met and issued a riverway
permit:
(a) Structures located entirely or partially within 50 feet of the
ordinary high water mark, or entirely or partially on a slope preservation zone,
may not be expanded.
(b) Where footprint expansion is permitted, vertical expansion of the
existing nonconforming structure is also permitted up to the height limit in
section I-4.
(c ) A nonconforming principal structure that is entirely located more
than 50 feet from the ordinary high water mark and also located entirely or
partially within 75 feet of the ordinary high water mark may be expanded only
if the Town, after consulting its Engineer
concludes that there is no compliant location available elsewhere on the
lot.
(d) Structures entirely located more than 75 feet from the ordinary
high water mark may be expanded regardless of whether a compliant location
exists elsewhere on the lot.
(e) Nonconforming structures that are located entirely or partially
within the 200 foot ordinary high water mark setback area and located entirely
outside a slope preservation may expand to a total footprint, including the
existing and expanded area, of not more than 1,500 square feet.
(f) The property owner submits a mitigation plan that complies with
the requirements of section L.7. If a permit is issued for the expansion, the
mitigation plan shall be approved or modified and approved by the Town and
incorporated as approved into the permit.
The property owner shall implement the mitigation plan as a condition of
the permit.
(g) Nonconforming principal structures located entirely more than 200
feet from the ordinary high water mark and entirely outside a slope
preservation zone and entirely or partially inside the bluffline setback area
or highest visible bluffline setback area, may expand to a total footprint,
including existing and expanded area, of
not more than 2,000 square feet; provided that the expansion will not increase the area of the structure
silhouetted against the sky when viewed from the midline of the river during
leaf on conditions.
(h) Footprint expansion may occur only on the side of the structure
farthest from the river or, if landward expansion is not possible, in a location
that runs parallel to the ordinary high water mark
5. Nonconforming
Accessory Structures.
Ordinary maintenance and
repair of nonconforming accessory structures in the overlay district is
allowed. Nonconforming accessory
structures may not be structurally altered, reconstructed or expanded, except
that attached garages, detached garages and storage sheds may be structurally
altered, reconstructed including the foundation or expanded and sidewalks and
driveways may be minimally expanded to serve an approved expansion after the
Town has determined that all of the following requirements have been met and
issues a permit:
(a) The detached garage or storage shed is located entirely outside of
any slope preservation zone.
(b) The entire detached garage or storage shed is set back more than 75
feet from the ordinary high water mark.
(c) A detached garage or storage shed shall not be used for human
habitation. Attached garages shall not
include a habitable area without complying with sub. (e)
(d) Existing garages located more than 75 feet from the ordinary high
water mark may be structurally altered or reconstructed, including the
foundation, provided WIDNR Storm Water Management Standards are
implemented to control erosion, pursuant to an erosion control plan reviewed
for compliance by the Town Engineer
(e) The combined footprints of the uninhabited portion of all
nonconforming attached garages, detached garages and sheds on a lot that are located entirely more than 75 feet from the ordinary high water mark, entirely outside a slope preservation
zone and entirely outside a bluffline or highest visible bluffline setback
area shall not exceed 900 square feet.
The combined footprints allowed for such structures that are located inside a
bluffline or highest visible bluffline setback area shall not exceed 500 square
feet. The combined footprints allowed for the non-habitable portion of detached
garages and the non-habitable portion of attached garages and sheds is in
addition to the footprint area allowed for nonconforming principal structures.
(f) A newly constructed or expanded garage may be attached to a
nonconforming principal structure. When
this occurs, the garage footprint area shall be included in the combined
footprint of the accessory garages and sheds.
Any habitable area created inside an attached garage construction or
expansion shall be included in the principal structure footprint.
(g) Expansion or construction may occur only on the side of the
principal structure farthest from the river or, if landward expansion is not
possible, in a location that runs parallel to the ordinary high water mark or
bluffline.
(h) The detached garage or storage shed is built with earth-tone
building materials that are non-reflective, except that windows may be made of
ordinary window glass or non-reflective glass, but may not be made of glass
designed to reflect more light than ordinary window glass.
(i) Mitigation measures are implemented and maintained that comply
with the requirements of section L.7 of this ordinance. If a permit is issued for expansion or
construction, the mitigation plan shall be approved, or modified and approved
by the Town and incorporated into the permit.
The property owner shall be required to implement the mitigation plan as
a condition of the permit.
(j) The structure is visually inconspicuous or will be rendered so
within a reasonable time through a mitigation plan that complies with the
provisions of section L.7 of this ordinance.
(k) Nonconforming principal structures that are permitted to expand may
enclose an existing attached deck provided that the area of the deck, once
enclosed, shall be included in the area of principal structure footprint.
(l) Boathouses constructed on or before December 16, 1979 and located
entirely above the ordinary high water mark may be maintained and repaired but
may not be expanded in any dimension and shall conform to the building color
requirements of this ordinance.
Pre-existing boathouses shall conform to the requirements of Wis.
Stats. § 30.121.
(m) Existing and expanded nonconforming accessory structures shall
comply with the building material color standards contained in section I.7. of
this ordinance.
(n) In this section, “attached garage” means a storage structure for
vehicles that shares one or more structural walls with the principal structure.
(o) The lot has an area of at least 7,000 square feet.
6. Substandard Lots.
Lots in the rural residential
management zone that were of record with the St. Croix County Register of Deeds
on January 1, 1976, or on the date of the adoption of an amendment to the
County or Town ordinance that made the lot substandard and that do not meet the
requirements of this chapter may be allowed to be used as building sites when
the Town determines that all of the following criteria are met:
(a) Either the lot is held in separate ownership from abutting lands or
the lot, by itself or in combination with an adjacent lot or lots under common
ownership in an existing subdivision, has at least one acre of net project
area. Adjacent substandard lots under
the same ownership may be sold or developed as separate lots only if each such
lot has at least one acre of net project area and separately complies with the Town’s
subdivision ordinance and other applicable Town ordinances.
(b) All structures that are proposed to be constructed or placed on a
substandard lot and the proposed use of the lot shall comply with the
requirements of this ordinance, and any underlying
7. Mitigation Requirements.
Expansion, structural
alteration or reconstruction of nonconforming principal structures and
nonconforming accessory structures in the rural residential management zone
shall comply with these mitigation requirements. Mitigation requirements shall
be roughly proportional to the magnitude of the impacts of the proposed project
on scenic resources, water quality, erosion potential and the protection of the
shoreland area. Mitigation measures
shall include but not be limited to the following:
(a) Planting of trees capable of screening the entire riverway face of
non-conforming structures from the riverway,
viewed from at or near the mid-line of the river, during summer months, if
existing vegetation is not sufficient to render the structures visually
inconspicuous. The trees shall be native
to the area, at least 2 inches in diameter and planted no more than 12 feet
apart across the riverway facing frontage. The trees may be planted at
staggered distances between the shoreline and the structure.
(b) Vegetation in the area within 50 feet of the ordinary high water
mark shall be preserved or restored through planting of native vegetation. Vegetation shall be established or maintained
at densities adequate to protect water quality, habitat and natural scenic
beauty of the shoreland area. Vegetation
shall provide screening between all
structures and the river so as to make all non-conforming structures visually
inconspicuous while providing a limited view to the river from the
structures. A 15-foot wide mowed area
around the structure to protect it from wildfire is permitted.
(c) Planting of trees for screening, reforestation or erosion control
shall comply with the recommendations contained in the Town Riverway Vegetative
Management Guidelines and the Wisconsin Forest Management Guidelines. Wisconsin
Storm Water Management Standards shall be implemented to encourage storm water infiltration
and erosion and runoff limit.
(d) An affidavit describing the approved mitigation plan shall be
executed and recorded with the County registrar of deeds by the property owner
within 14 days after approval of the mitigation plan. The affidavit shall alert
subsequent purchasers of the land of the requirements of the mitigation plan.
171 - M. Administration
1. Riverway Permit
(a) A riverway permit issued by the Town is required prior to
undertaking or engaging in any uses, construction or activity authorized under
the conditions and for the purposes set forth in sections D.1.,3.,5. and 6.,
and all of sections E., F. and L. of this ordinance, except for applications to
perform ordinary maintenance and repair and where otherwise exempted.
Applications for ordinary maintenance and repair that require a building permit
shall be received and approved by the Town Building Inspector. Riverway permit
applications are subject to primarily review by the Plan Commission. The Town Board takes action on riverway
permits, acting only after receiving the recommendation of the Plan Commission.
Other Town ordinances, including but not limited to the building code, road,
driveway, utility and subdivision ordinances also apply in the rural residential
management zone, as do all applicable regulations of other governmental
entities.
(b) Concept review.
(1)
Purpose. Riverway permit applications are preceded by
concept review by the Town Plan Commission.
Prospective permit applicants shall apply for concept review prior to
making application for a Town riverway permit.
Concept review informs the Plan Commission concerning the applicant’s
proposal and allows the parties to identify the requirements of this ordinance
that apply to their plans, to discuss
and refine such plans where possible and to identify the information that
applicants will be expected to provide to the Town as part of riverway permit
application. Concept review also allows
the Plan Commission to make an informed decision prior to the submission of
formal application on whether it can identify and waive the submission of
information otherwise required under the ordinance but irrelevant to the
project for which riverway permit application is being planned.
(2)
Procedure. Each request for concept review receives a
public hearing before the Plan Commission.
The Town Clerk must verify that the applicant has mailed written notices
to all landowners and residents of land contiguous to the property affected at
least 24 days before the public hearing on the concept review. The Plan Commission, Town Engineer or
designee will visits the property for which application is sought to
inspect the proposed project site prior to the public hearing. Following concept review, the Plan
Commission shall make a record of specific portions of the ordinance applicable
to the concept under review and of such otherwise required application
materials for that project as the Plan Commission decides to waive.
(c) Riverway Permit Application.
(1) Purpose. Application for a riverway permit is not
deemed to have been accepted by the Town until an application has been
submitted following concept review that addresses all parts of the project
proposed for concept review and that submits all required application materials
except those specifically waived by the Plan Commission.
(2) Procedure. A public hearing is held by the Plan
Commission on each riverway permit application.
The Town Clerk must verify that the applicant has provided written notice
to all landowners and residents of land contiguous to the property affected at
least 24 days before the meeting at which the application will be heard by the
Plan Commission. The applicant shall
provide stamped, envelopes enclosing notices of the public hearing concerning
the application plus copies of all application materials to the Town
Clerk/Treasurer for submittal to the Town attorney
and Town engineer at least 30 days before the public hearing on the
permit application. After the public hearing before the Plan Commission has
taken place, the Plan Commission shall recommend approval of the riverway
permit application, approval of the application with changes, or denial. Any conditions to a recommended approval and
the reasons for a recommendation of application denial shall be recorded in the
minutes of the Plan Commission. Plan
Commission recommendations are advisory in nature. The Town Board takes action to issue or deny
the issuance of riverway permits for which application has been made. The Town Board acts on riverway permits at
its next regular meeting following receipt of the Plan Commission’s
recommendation.
(d) Riverway Permit Application Requirements. All applications for riverway permits shall
include the following information unless specific items are waived by action of
the Plan Commission following concept review and with specific reference to the
application under review:
(1) A scale drawing or survey showing the property
location, boundaries, dimensions, elevations, blufflines, slope preservation
zones, utility and roadway corridors, ordinary highwater mark, ordinary
highwater mark setback, floodway and flood fringe boundaries, and adjoining
land and water-oriented uses/ownership.
(2) A recent aerial photograph with property lines
drawn in that shows the location of existing and proposed structures, including
height, footprint and setback dimensions.
(3) Location of existing, and proposed alterations
of, vegetation and topography, including any vegetation removal and replacement
that is being proposed.
(4) A mitigation plan, if required, plus an
affidavit in recordable form, signed by the property owner and describing the
proposed mitigation plan in sufficient detail to conform to the requirements of
section L.7(d).
(5) Photos of the site taken from the middle of
the river, slightly upstream and downstream of the property and directly
offshore.
(6) An erosion control plan.
(7) A vegetative management plan, showing where
vegetation is proposed to be removed and replaced.
(8)
Any other information that the Town
Plan Commission, the Town Board, or the Department deems appropriate in making
a decision on the Riverway Permit application.
Additional information requested by the Town or the Department shall be
submitted prior to the permit application public hearing.
(9) Permit application for land divisions, planned
cluster developments, bed and breakfast operations, home occupations, nature
oriented educational, non-profit facilities and for variances shall also
include the location of any proposed on-site wastewater treatment system and
private water supply information, including the location of any proposed well.
(10) Permit applications for filling and grading,
structural erosion control structures and road construction shall also include
a plan showing the proposed construction, reconstruction, location and design
of the filling, grading, structural erosion control measure or road
construction.
(11) Permit applications for transmission services
and wireless communication service facilities shall also include:
(a) For transmission services, a plan showing the
location of the proposed facilities and if not being placed underground,
documentation of why underground placement is technically infeasible and a plan
outlining design and construction methods to minimize adverse visual impact to
the riverway;
(b) For wireless communication service facilities,
a plan showing the location of proposed facilities and an illustration of the
methods that will be used to meet design requirements for the appropriate
stealth, camouflage and height requirements.
(12) Permit applications for stairways and lifts
shall also include a plan showing the stairway or lift locations, design,
dimensions, or, construction materials, erosion control measures and vegetative
removal and replacement. The plan shall
contain certification by a registered professional engineer or architect that
the stairway or lift components as designed will be securely anchored to
prevent them from shifting and causing erosion.
This plan as approved or modified and approved by the Town shall be
incorporated into the applicant’s permit.
(e) Public hearing decision record. The public hearing records of the Plan
Commission recommendations on riverway permits and of the Town Board decisions
on riverway permits shall contain the comments of the applicant, the public,
governmental agencies and members of the Plan Commission and Town Board.
(1) Required Contents. Decision records shall specifically address:
(a) the preservation of the scenic and
recreational resources of the riverway, especially with regard to the view from
and use of the river;
(b) the maintenance of safe and healthful
conditions;
(c) the prevention and control of water pollution,
including sedimentation;
(d) the location of the site with respect to
floodways, floodplains, slope preservation zones and blufflines;
(e) the erosion potential of the site based on the
degree and direction of slope, soil type and vegetative cover;
(f) potential impact on terrestrial and aquatic
habitat, location of the site with
respect to existing or future access roads;
(g) adequacy of proposed wastewater treatment; and
(h) compatibility with adjacent land uses.
(f) Town Action. All
plans submitted with all such applications shall be approved, approved as
modified or rejected, and included in the record as part of the riverway
permit, conditional use or variance application. The Town shall send a copy of each riverway
permit, conditional use and variance which shall also include a brief decision,
a summary of the hearing, to the Department within five working days following
the hearing at which a final Town decision is issued.
2. Variances.
(a) Standard. Variance
applications require action by the Town Board of Appeals. The Board of Appeals may only grant variances
where doing so is not contrary to the public interest and where, due to special
conditions, literal enforcement of the provisions of this ordinance will result
in unnecessary hardship, so that the spirit of the ordinance shall be observed and substantial justice done. Economic considerations alone do not
constitute a hardship, nor may the hardship be self-created. The Board of Appeals shall impose such
conditions when it grants a variance as will ensure compliance and protect
adjacent properties and the public interest, especially in regard to the view from
the river and environmental standards.
In deciding on a variance request, the Board of Appeals shall consider
whether compliance with the strict letter of the ordinance concerning area,
setbacks, frontage, height, bulk or density unreasonably prevents the owner
from using the property for a permitted purpose, renders conformity with such
restrictions unnecessarily burdensome or unduly undermines the intent of the
ordinance. The Board of Appeals shall
also consider the effect of the variance on the neighborhood and the larger
public interest, in making its decision.
(b) Application. All
applications for a variance from the requirement of this chapter shall include
substantiating information consistent with the degree and nature of the
variance request, all information required under subsection M 1(d) of this
ordinance and other information as may be requested by the Plan Commission, the
Board of Appeals or the Town Engineer.
The applicant bears the burden of proof and of persuasion in a variance
application. The completed application
shall be delivered to the Town Clerk/Treasurer at least 45 30 days prior to the next scheduled
Board of Appeals hearing.
(c) Procedure. A public
hearing on the application shall be held by the Plan Commission, which shall
forward its hearing record and recommendations to the Board of Appeals. A public hearing concerning the application
shall then be held by the Board of Appeals.
Written, stamped, addressed notices from the applicant to landowners and
residents of contiguous land shall be provided to the Town Clerk/Treasurer for
mailing 24 days prior to the Plan Commission hearing and 30 days prior to the Board of Appeals hearing.
The notice of the Plan Commission hearing and the Town Board of Appeals hearing
may be combined in one mailing. An onsite inspection by the Town Plan
Commission, Town Engineer or designee shall take place prior to or during the
public hearing before the Plan Commission.
The Town Engineer may provide background information and recommendations
to assist the Board of Appeals. The
Board of Appeals may also make an onsite inspection.
(1) After reviewing all information provided by
the applicant, considering all information received at the public hearings and
receiving the recommendation of the Plan Commission, the Board of Appeals shall
make a decision on the variance application, either on the record at its
meeting or in a separate written document, to be provided to the applicant
within 14 days of the final public hearing on the manner. A variance decision
shall address all of the following issues:
(a) whether
hardship has been demonstrated;
(b) whether and how the public interest is harmed
by granting the variance;
(c) whether
satisfactory evidence has been provided to ensure that the applicable
core concerns of this ordinance are met if the variance is granted;
(d) that any reconstructed structure or new and
expanded structure for which a variance is granted will be visually
inconspicuous from the river;
(e) that best management practices regulating
erosion and surface water degradation are required for any project for which a
variance is granted; and
(f) that the effect on the neighborhood and
property value has been considered, and that no adverse affect will occur if
the variance is granted.
3. Board of Appeals.
(a) The Board of Appeals for purposes of this Ordinance (Chapter 171)
shall be the same body as is authorized and constituted in Section 170-5 of the
Code of Ordinances of the Town of Troy and shall operate under the rules,
procedures and standards as set forth therein except that, to the extent that
the rules, procedures and standards of this ordinance differ from those set
forth in Chapter 170, the rules, procedures and standards set forth herein
shall prevail.
(b) Powers. The Board of
Appeals has the following powers:
(1) To hear and decide whether conditional use
permits under section G should be issued, following receipt of the Plan
Commission’s recommendation.
(2) To authorize variances in specific cases from
the terms of this ordinance, following receipt of the recommendation of the
Plan Commission and in accordance with the standards in Section M.2. of this ordinance.
(3) To adopt rules of internal procedure by
written resolution that do not conflict with the provisions of this ordinance,
and which shall not be considered part of this ordinance. Meetings of the Board of Appeals shall be
held at the call of the Chair. All
meetings of the Board of Appeals shall be open to the public, and minutes shall
be kept of its proceedings showing the vote of each member upon each question
before it.
(4) In exercising its powers under this ordinance
concerning conditional use permit and variance applications, the Board of
Appeals may, after receiving the recommendation of the Plan Commission, approve
or deny the application before it on the basis of the Plan Commission’s
recommendation or it may modify that recommendation, in whole or in part, and
to that end the Board of Appeals shall have all powers of the Plan Commission,
particularly with reference to requiring the submission of additional
information, and shall have the power to adjourn and reconvene in order to
consider that information prior to making a decision on a conditional use permit
or variance application.
4. Department Review.
Applications for conditionally
permitted structures and activities, conditional use permits, variances and
zoning ordinance text or map amendments shall
be submitted to the Department for review and provided to the County Planning
Department. Notice of all public
hearings and a copy of all applications and materials shall be submitted to the
Department and county not less than 30 days before the public hearing of the Town
Board or Town Board of Appeals at which the application will be heard. Comments from the Department and
received by the Town shall be included in the public hearing record to which
they relate. Where additional
information is introduced at the hearing by the applicant or where the applicant
wishes to review the Department’s or the public’s or the Plan Commission’s
opposition, the hearing record may be held open for the applicant’s review of
that information. If, at the end of 30
days following the date of the hearing the Town has not scheduled a second
hearing on the application at the request of the applicant, the Department or
the Town, the hearing record shall be closed.
The Town shall notify the Department of the final disposition, approval
or disapproval of all applications required under this section.
5. Reasonable
Accommodations for the Disabled.
Where necessary to accommodate
a disabled person entitled to reasonable accommodations under the Americans
with Disabilities Act, the Federal Fair Housing Act or the Wisconsin Open
Housing Law, the Town shall issue a special administrative permit to allow
disabled persons a necessary and reasonable accommodation that would otherwise
violate the requirements of this ordinance, provided the accommodation does not
cause undue hardship or fiscal or administrative burdens on the Town and does
not undermine the basic purposes of this ordinance. The process and requirements for obtaining
the special administrative permit shall be identical to what would be required
for a riverway permit or a variance, if that is what is requested as
accommodation, including required mitigation procedures. In addition, the disabled applicant shall
provide the medical verification necessary to determine and establish the
eligibility of the applicant for the special administrative permit.
6. Ordinance
Amendments.
Proposed ordinance amendments
shall receive at least one public hearing before the Plan Commission and before
the Town Board. The Town Board shall
receive and consider the recommendation of the Plan Commission on all proposed
ordinance amendments before taking action on them. Notice of proposed ordinance amendments and
copies of the application materials shall be provided to the Department, and
St. Croix County Planning and Zoning Department at least thirty days before the
public hearing before the Plan Commission.
The area and classification of the Town’s rural residential management
zone is not modifiable without the participation of the Department and
modification of
7. Penalties.
(a) Violations. No
building, foundation or structure shall be erected, constructed, placed, moved,
structurally altered, reconstructed or expanded, nor shall any use of land,
premises, building or structure be established or changed in violation of any
provision of this ordinance. No person
shall fail to comply with any part of this ordinance or with any condition or
qualification placed upon the issuance of any permit, other Town approval or
variance granted under this ordinance.
(b) Responsible parties.
Owners of land, occupants of land and agents of owners or occupants of
land including, without limitation because of enumeration, building
contractors, surveyors, plumbers, installers, soil technicians, landscapers,
road builders, grading and excavating contractors and their agents are
responsible for compliance with all provisions of this ordinance bearing upon
their area of competency and responsibility.
Any person who violates or who aids or abets any violation of this
ordinance shall be subject to prosecution for such violation and to legal
action seeking remedial action.
(c)
Notice. When the Town becomes aware of a condition
that is or is likely to become a violation of this ordinance, it shall
immediately notify the parties it deems responsible and potentially liable for
said violation. The notice shall provide
a brief description of the circumstances giving rise to the Town’s conclusion
of an existing or potential violation and the demand that any condition alleged
to constitute a present or potential violation be halted, prevented from
occurring or remedied. If such a demand
from the Town is not complied with within 10 days of issuance of the notice,
then the Town may act to prosecute the alleged violation or seek remedial
action. Notice may be given orally or in
written form.
(d) Violation remedies. A
forfeiture in the amount established by the Town Board in its citation
ordinance shall be imposed on conviction or adjudication of violation of this
ordinance. Each day a violation exists
or continues shall constitute a separate offense for purposes of imposing a
forfeiture. The Town may also seek
emergency or permanent injunctive relief seeking site restoration or
prohibition of an action, practice or continuing course of action. The Town shall also be entitled to recover
its actual costs of prosecution, including legal fees.
(Note: the daily forfeiture amounts in 2007 were $2,500.00 to $5,000.00 per violation.)
(e) Permit or variance revocation. Where a permit or variance has been approved subject to specific conditions, and
where reason exists to believe that such a condition is not being complied
with, the Town Board may convene a hearing, following procedure similar to
those followed when considering the granting of a permit or variance, to
consider whether the permit or variance holder is in noncompliance with the
current conditions of the permit, variance or this ordinance. A finding by the Board of noncompliance with
any condition originally imposed or any applicable portion of this ordinance
shall be grounds for revocation of the permit or variance.
171 - N. SEVERABILITY.
Should any portion of this ordinance
be declared by any state or federal court to be invalid for any reason, the
remainder of this ordinance shall not be affected. Notes shown in the body of this ordinance are
for reference only. The notes and
materials to which they refer are not to be construed a part of this
ordinance.
171 - O.EFFECTIVE DATE.
This ordinance shall take effect the
day after the Town has both enacted an Ordinance Enacting the Partial Code of
Ordinances that this comprehensive revision and amendment represents and
published the Notice called for in that Ordinance.
Ordinance
originally enacted the 30th day of November, 2004.
Effective
on December 1, 2004.
Ordinance comprehensively revised
and amended on July 19, 2007, by approval of Ordinance 2007 - 01, incorporating
Amended Chapter 171 of the Town’s Code of Ordinances by reference.
Ordinance comprehensively revised
and amended on November 13, 2008, by approval of Ordinance 2008 - 03,
incorporating Amended Chapter 171 of the Town’s Code of Ordinances by
reference.
Effective on November 21st, 2008.
Town
of
________________________________________
Raymond
Knapp, Town Chair date
Attested
to by:
________________________________________
Sharon
Provos, Town Clerk/Treasurer date