Town Board Neglect Could Cost YOU

Following is the email I just sent to the Eureka Board and Planning Commission members, my 4th reminder over the past 24 months of unfinished Ordinance update work to be completed. I have consistently offered to draft (and have done at no cost to Board) needed changes but now have been ignored and actually blocked from helping.

                                                                           January 27, 2025

Hi Liz,

 Please forward as information to all Board and PC members.  Thank you.

 Jeff

 

 To all Board and PC members:

The property owners of Eureka Township are at risk of authorized zoning-related opportunities being mishandled because unfinished Ordinance language updates have been left in a confused and self-contradictory state.

Ordinance Chapter  216 Subdivision of Land has duplicative and contradictory language to the more carefully constructed and vetted language in Chapter 240 Zoning.

Chapter 240 Zoning has confused and contradictory definitions left unfinished.

The definitions review that was dumped in the laps of then-new clerks in 2022 working to learn their responsibilities has clearly not been completed. It was unrealistic for the Board to hand off this responsibility to clerks who did not have the benefit of hearing discussions of which definitions had been vetted and the key language nuances involved.

Just in Chapter 240, there are definitions tacked on the end (Article X.240-64) that include inconsistent definitions already covered in Article III.240-9. There is even a question as to how and when 240-64 was added or moved (by General Code, perhaps?).

It appears the Board does not understand the practical limits of an outside firm to “review” Eureka language and intent. Instead, Boards continue to waste $995 a year to use GC’s overrated software because you don’t understand how simple and easy it is to link to Ordinance pdf files as had been done for a couple decades previously. Do you not wonder why there are only 3 other local governments in Minnesota, among the hundreds, that pay to use GC?

Chapter 216 Subdivision of Land has definitions contradicting the more carefully vetted definitions in Chapter 240.9.

There was already a property change request that was more than a simple lot split that the PC and then Board didn’t know how to handle, in part because the new updated form created in the Fall of 2022 had not been adopted by the Board.

216 Subdivision also refers to a form that does not exist because the 2022 form was designed to easily handle all types of land boundary changes as described in Chapter 240 Zoning and aligned with the reporting requirements of Dakota County.

This is the fourth time I have brought this need for finishing work to be done in both 240 and 216.  Neither the PC nor the Board have even had any discussion on this need identified the 3 previous times.

I have been the primary author of the unique housing right transfer features and, based on observing and understanding examples since 2013, realized what improvements could be made to clarify how to handle unusual circumstances. The Board abruptly terminated this update, and blocked me from continuing, as it neared completion in early 2023.

The proper recognition of Grandfathered protection of housing rights only occurred in 2010 when I was Board Chair, despite approximately 200 properties being in this category since April 12, 1982.

It is apparent and proven that I have the most complete and practical understanding of what makes Eureka zoning special for the benefit of property owners.  I have devoted hundreds of unpaid volunteer hours to property research and analyses, creating language and related forms, and directly helping resolve individual situations for the benefit of property owners.

Why won’t you allow me to again provide, at no cost, draft language for your review and implementation?  It has now been two full years of Board and PC neglect, this being the fourth time I have reminded everyone of some of the unfinished issues

The only conclusion is that there is a lack of Board and PC understanding of current language issues, let alone how to fix them. This is a clear responsibility of any town board. Why not you?

Jeff Otto