Dunn County committee approves rezoning for Witzel lot split in Town of Red Cedar

The Dunn County Planning, Resources and Development Committee on Aug. 20 approved a request to rezone 3.77 acres in the Town of Red Cedar from the General Agriculture district to R‑2 to allow a second single‑family dwelling. Staff planner Tammy reported the parcel, identified as Lot 1 of a certified survey map originally created in 1985, sits in Section 31 and is in the county’s and the Town of Red Cedar’s future land‑use areas designated for residential use. Tammy told the committee the parcel “is less than 8 acres” and under the General Agriculture district “the additional residential density is unavailable,” which prevents the owners from creating an extra dwelling without rezoning. She said soils on the site are mapped as farmland of statewide importance, slopes are roughly 10–20 percent, the parcel showed no active cropland production, a mound septic system was evaluated as suitable, and access approval was obtained from County Road J. Applicant Eric Witzel, sworn to give testimony during the public hearing, said the reason for the request was family caregiving: “my parents are getting up in age and a few years ago, my dad had a stroke, so he’s partially disabled. . . . I’m building a home next to them to to take care of them.” After the public hearing the committee moved the rezone forward, a committee member made a motion to rezone the property to R‑2 and Michael seconded; the committee voted to approve the rezoning. The committee then directed that, upon approval, the applicants must obtain a certified survey map to create the new lot. The county staff report recommended approval based on consistency with Dunn County’s comprehensive plan and the Town of Red Cedar plan, surrounding land‑use and zoning patterns (R‑1/R‑2 and general agriculture adjacent), the extraterritorial zoning influence of the City of Menomonie, and an analysis that the rezone would not create an isolated zoning district or cause unreasonable adverse impacts to surrounding property uses, public health, safety, or the environment. The staff report also noted no known historic resources on the parcel. No written objections or competing public speakers were recorded in the hearing record. The committee closed the public hearing before voting. The approval allows the landowners to proceed with the lot split and later building permits, subject to the certified survey map and all other applicable county and town requirements.