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Planning commission continues drafting personal‑campground definition to allow limited on‑property camping while limiting commercialization
Summary
At a second workshop, Madison County planners continued work on a proposed definition for "personal campground" to permit short-term, noncommercial camping on private property while preserving health, sanitation and enforcement standards. Draft language sets a 30‑consecutive‑day maximum for any single occupancy and leverages existing
The Madison County Planning Commission continued a second workshop on a proposed ordinance amendment defining "personal campground," intended to allow private-property owners limited, noncommercial use of recreational vehicles, campers and tents for short-term recreation while reducing pathways to permanent occupancy or unregulated commercial camping.
Planning staff presented a draft that borrows many dimensional and siting standards from the county's commercial campground rules. Key draft provisions discussed by commissioners and staff included a maximum 30 consecutive days for any single occupancy without establishing permanent residency; a pad-site minimum of 1,000 square feet and 25-foot minimum width for a campsite footprint; and a suggested ratio of two pad sites per five acres for larger properties. Staff also noted that the health department requires a permit when three or more campsites exist on a property, and the draft includes cross-reference language to aid enforcement.
Commissioners debated minimum acreage thresholds for different zoning districts. Planning staff proposed at least 10 acres in R‑1 (residential) before multiple pads would be allowed, while keeping lower minimums or none for A‑1 and C‑1 in recognition of smaller, recreationally used parcels in parts of the county. Commissioners expressed a range of views—some favoring minimal regulation to allow property owners informal weekend use, others wanting clearer limits to prevent quasi-commercial or permanent uses.
Several practical issues surfaced in the discussion: how to distinguish short-term recreational use from residency, whether to limit total days per year (for example a 180-day aggregate cap), and how the ordinance would interact with private covenants and HOA rules. Staff noted that private deed restrictions and covenants take precedence and that the ordinance would not override private contractual restrictions.
Allen Nichols said the purpose is to create an enforcement tool for zoning administrators, not to upend established uses; if a property owner is clearly engaging in commercial activity (renting campsites) or operating more than three sites without health-permit compliance, the health department and zoning staff would step in. Commissioners asked staff to refine the language and bring a revised draft back; staff agreed to another workshop rather than moving immediately to public hearing.
Ending: The commission preserved the working principle that camping on one's own property for short-term recreation should be allowed, but asked staff to refine minimum-acreage rules for different zoning districts, clarify consecutive-days versus annual caps and reconcile the draft with Article 15 commercial campground standards and health-department thresholds.
