After court remand, Adams County Board of Adjustments approves Barnum Bay campground permit with town conditions and written fire-department signoff

The Adams County Board of Adjustments approved a conditional-use permit for Barnum Bay campground on April 2, 2025, after reconsidering the application on remand from the circuit court. The board adopted the Town of Rome’s recommended conditions and voted to add a requirement that the local fire department approve the campground sites in writing.

The hearing reconvened after a circuit-court remand. County counsel advised the board that the judge had found the board’s prior denial relied on matters of personal preference and speculation rather than substantial evidence tied to the ordinance’s environmental and shoreline-protection factors. Counsel described the remand as an instruction to reassess the original record and determine whether the evidence presented at the original hearing supported denial or supported approval with appropriate conditions.

Malia Malone, an attorney advising the board, told members the judge “determined that this board, instead of applying the factors in your ordinance ... imposed its will, rather than judgment” and emphasized that no new evidence would be taken on remand; the board should base any decision on the original record and on conditions that could address identified concerns.

Shane Vanderwall, attorney for the applicant, asked the board to consider recusing two members whom he named (Mr. Caldwell and Mr. Benkowski), arguing those members had previously spoken in ways that suggested prejudgment. One member did recuse; the board seated an alternate (Bruce) for the remand discussion. Vanderwall also noted that the DNR had approved Barnum Bay’s plan of operation and urged the board to adopt the Town of Rome’s carefully drafted conditions.

Board members debated whether they could consider testimony or information they personally knew outside the record and whether permitting the applicant to answer clarifying questions would constitute new evidence. County counsel cautioned that allowing back-and-forth with the applicant without reopening the public hearing could create a procedural basis for a renewed court challenge.

The board voted first to attach the Town of Rome’s conditions to any approval, then voted to add a written-fire-department-approval condition. Finally the board voted to approve the conditional-use permit for Barnum Bay with those conditions. At the meeting the record included several suggested conditions discussed on the record that the board tied to the town’s conditions: a six-foot privacy fence (except at the entryway), planting of trees meeting the town’s size specifications, no outdoor speakers, restrictions on pets, solid trash and sewage-dump location requirements, a 10 p.m.–7 a.m. quiet period, and an enforcement provision tied to multiple noise or disruptive-behavior complaints.

During the vote the board members who explained their reasons cited the town’s exhaustive review process and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources approval as factors supporting approval with conditions. County staff said the town had conducted multiple plan-commission meetings and a town-board meeting and had drafted conditions to address neighborhood concerns.

The board directed staff to prepare findings of fact and conclusions of law reflecting the new decision; staff said it would draft those documents and circulate them for signatures.

Votes at a glance: the board voted to attach the Town of Rome conditions, voted to require written fire-department approval of the site, and approved Barnum Bay’s conditional-use permit with those conditions. The transcript records recorded roll-call votes and individual brief explanations of votes in the meeting record.