SET YOUR "SITES" ON THIS...

One of the most common requirements for permits that require zoning approval, and also the one which is most often submitted as incomplete or not submitted initially at all, is a site plan. Without this documentation, an application is incomplete and should not even be accepted by the Clerk until the information is provided.

By requiring zoning approval, I mean the applicant must go before the Planning Commission and the Town Board for approval before moving forward with a building permit. Once the permit is issued by the Building Official, then he is in play and takes over the process. The Building Official does all inspections and files reports with the Township. He is NOT able to okay changes in what was approved by the Town Board, however. If you apply, be sure that what you have on your site plan and application is exactly what you want to do. If certain things change, the applicant must go back through the zoning approval process to receive approval of the changes. Again, the Building Official does not have zoning authority and would be beyond his scope to approve a change in setback, for example. His purview lies with the Minnesota Building Codes, not zoning. He could approve a change of material inside a structure, for example, but not where that structure is located on a property.

All this is not to say that zoning approval for certain changes would be withheld, but the applicant must go before the proper authorities for the different aspects of permitting. This has come up recently in a few situations. It may seem like splitting hairs, but the various officials must not act outside of their scope of jurisdiction. And applicants must be clear on what they are requesting.

The site plan is to provide the Planning Commission and the Town Board with the information they need to determine that all setbacks pertinent to Eureka's zoning are met and that the proposed uses are allowed. This is the reason, for example, that applicants for pole buildings are informed of the Ordinance restriction for use of that pole building. No business use of any kind is permitted in accessory structures, even business storage. The business use allowed within Eureka is a home occupation. Such a business must be located within the primary structure only, along with some other parameters found in the Ordinances.

Please note that,whether the applicant is informed in person or not, the Ordinances/laws of our community still apply. The current Commission tries to make things as clear as possible for everyone's benefit as there has been some "confusion" in the past as to what are allowed uses and what aren't.

Please also note that decks, pools, and rebuilds after a fire also require zoning approval, but that process due to the circumstances involved has been streamlined for time concerns. HOWEVER, that streamlining process still includes approval by the Clerk as Zoning Administrator and the Planning Commission Chair, under the rules adopted at the time.


To assist you in becoming more informed about site plans and what makes a complete site plan, you are provided this link: site plan, page three of four

AND A BIG THANK YOU TO ALL THOSE APPLICANTS WHO HAVE SUBMITTED CLEAR AND COMPLETE APPLICATIONS! Doing so makes it easier and faster for all.