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Plan commission backs PUD amendment to allow one short-term rental unit at Riverway Marina clubhouse
Summary
The Plan Commission recommended Jan. 7 that the Village Board amend the Southern Riverfront PUD to permit one short-term rental unit in the Riverway Marina clubhouse at 457 Marina Lane, subject to staff conditions and required building-code improvements.
The Village of Ashwaubenon Plan Commission on Jan. 7 voted to recommend an amendment to the Southern Riverfront Planned Unit Development ordinance to permit one transient residential (short-term rental) unit in the Riverway Marina clubhouse at 457 Marina Lane.
Planning staff explained the property is currently zoned P (Public Use) with a PUD overlay and that residential uses are not permitted in the P district or within the existing PUD ordinance. The requested amendment would allow the clubhouse to be used "for calling transient residential use, basically as a short term rental," a staff member said, and staff recommended that any approval include a condition requiring the owner to work with design professionals to ensure applicable building codes and necessary improvements are completed.
Owners and applicants described the clubhouse as previously unused since before the COVID pandemic and said their intent is to add one short-term rental unit to provide year-round cash flow to help maintain the marina. "All we would need to do is get our permits and go through the committee and change 1 of those bathrooms or both of them," owner Don Kettles said, describing restroom and accessibility work under consideration. Owner Lori Feier said, "We've owned the marina since 2011. We had the clubhouse open until right till COVID hit...the interior part of the clubhouse was not utilized that's why we closed it."
Commissioners raised questions about how renters would affect marina users' access to the clubhouse and restrooms, the size and usability of the building, and whether short-term rental limits that apply to R‑1/R‑2 properties (180-day/half-year limits) would apply. Staff replied that the property is not zoned R‑1 or R‑2 and so the 180-day restriction referenced by one speaker would not apply.
Commissioner comments varied: some suggested the building historically functioned as a boaters’ gathering place and worried about losing that use; others said short-term rental use at marinas is common in the region. After discussion, the commission voted to recommend approval of the PUD amendment "within staff conditions." The item will go to a public hearing and Village Board meeting at the end of the month.
