Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning Ordinance topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council removes well‑head prohibition from gasoline‑sales conditional‑use standards; delivery‑time and repair‑hour changes not adopted
Summary
After a public hearing, the council deleted a zoning provision that banned gasoline stations inside a well‑head protection area but did not adopt broader proposed changes to delivery times or extend vehicle‑repair hours.
The Common Council on April 15 opened a public hearing and considered amendments to conditional‑use standards for gasoline sales and vehicle service and repair in the city zoning ordinance. The text changes proposed included (1) removing a prohibition on gasoline sales within the well‑head protection area, (2) clarifying hours when deliveries to gasoline stations are prohibited, and (3) extending permitted customer service hours for vehicle service and repair from 8:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
City planner Jason Gallo said the well‑head protection ordinance already governs storage and pollution‑prevention requirements and that staff recommended striking the separate conditional‑use ban (subsection 17.108.8.c) so the city's well‑head protection rules, rather than a separate zoning prohibition, control location decisions. Gallo also said staff heard requests from businesses to allow after‑hours fuel deliveries in locations where a quiet tanker operation could be done, but retained the existing prohibition on deliveries between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. because of noise and safety concerns.
No public comments were submitted on the proposed revision to well‑head language, and no speakers opposed the specific text change at the hearing. Council members debated the other suggested changes (delivery-hour relaxations and a half‑hour extension of vehicle‑repair hours) and some said they were reluctant to extend repair hours beyond 8 p.m. without further public input. The council adopted an amendment to delete subsection 17.108.8.c — removing the blanket zoning prohibition on gasoline sales within the well‑head protection area — while leaving the delivery‑time prohibition and the 8:00 p.m. limit on vehicle service hours in place.
Votes at a glance: The motion to delete the well‑head provision passed on a roll call with all members present voting Aye; the other proposed changes were not adopted at this time.
Ending: The council’s change defers to the city’s well‑head protection ordinance and allows staff to consider fueling‑station applications in well‑head areas subject to environmental and well‑protection requirements; any business seeking later delivery‑time or service‑hour extensions would need further review or a separate amendment.
