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Committee sends Martins & Sons duplex request back to township after residents cite covenants
Summary
Adams County planning committee voted 4–3 to return a conditional-use request to the Town of Del Prairie for clarification after multiple residents cited subdivision covenants that restrict the area to single-family homes; county counsel said covenants are private agreements enforceable by property owners rather than the county.
The Adams County Planning and Zoning Committee on March 5 voted 4–3 to send back to the Town of Del Prairie a conditional-use request from Martins and Sons Construction LLC to build duplexes in the Del Prairie Meadows subdivision, after residents and correspondence asserted the subdivision’s covenants restrict lots to single-family residences.
The application sought permission under Section 40534(c) of the Adams County comprehensive zoning ordinance to allow duplex construction on several lots in Del Prairie Meadows (lots 18, 19 and 20 and associated parcel numbers). County staff reported the town did not object at its February meeting but suggested a condition that any approval “must follow all covenant restrictions.”
A written letter from Dan and Laura Reager, owners of Lots 8 and 9, said they purchased in the subdivision because it was single-family and cited the declaration of covenants filed in the Adams County register of deeds. The correspondence notes “item 6 of the declaration of covenants states all lot shall be used for single family residential purposes only” and that “item 38 … states this declaration shall run with the land and shall be binding on all persons having an interest in the plat for a period of 25 years.” The letter as provided to the committee included a line stating the covenant “does not expire until 02/1931.”
Several residents spoke at the public hearing in opposition: Scott Sheer (1182 South Gale Lane), Denise Katke (W3769 Parker Drive, Lake Geneva, Wis.), Ron Scribe (Lot 10), and Mike Rule (3690 West Eleventh Lane). Speakers said they purchased with the expectation that lots in the subdivision would remain single-family and that duplexes would change the character of the neighborhood.
A representative for Martins and Sons told the committee the company purchased the lots last month and had not prepared full drawings because it wanted to confirm the application could proceed first. The applicant said, “That’s what I’m trying to do,” when asked why there were no plans in the packet.
County court counsel advised the committee he had not reviewed the covenants and said he had taken the written correspondence at face value. He told the committee that covenants are private agreements between landowners (and originally the developer) and that “neither we nor the town has the right to enforce the covenants,” adding that property owners may pursue civil enforcement against a developer or builder. Counsel recommended, if the committee was considering approval with the town’s suggested condition, that the item be returned to the town so it could remove or clarify that suggested condition because a town cannot unilaterally impose private-covenant enforcement as a prerequisite to county approval.
After discussion, a motion to send the item back to the Town of Del Prairie for clarification passed on a 4–3 roll-call vote. Recorded yes votes and no votes during the roll call are listed in the action record below. The committee did not make a final decision on the conditional-use request.
