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Council lifts stop‑work order for Ryan Farms after appeal; citations remain under review
Summary
After an appeal and lengthy public and staff testimony about topsoil deliveries and right‑of‑way erosion, Franklin Common Council voted to remove a stop‑work order issued to a property owner who brought large volumes of topsoil to farmland; the council did not dismiss citations tied to land‑disturbing and filling ordinances.
Franklin Common Council late Tuesday voted to remove a stop‑work order that had been issued to a property owner who had accepted bulk topsoil deliveries to a farm parcel, after a representative for the property owner argued the activity was an exempt agricultural practice.
What the council decided The council voted to remove the stop‑work order; the motion passed on a roll call (6–0). Council members made clear the vote did not vacate municipal citations that remain pending under the city’s enforcement process; council members and the city attorney explained later that while the council could direct staff to remove the administrative stop‑work order it does not have procedural authority at that moment to void a citation issued under the municipal code.
What brought the matter to the council The dispute began when the city issued a stop‑work order and multiple citations related to land‑disturbing and filling activity at a farm property at 5250 W. South County Line Road. City staff said they observed large piles of imported material, evidence of fill reaching the city right‑of‑way, and runoff into a nearby ditch; staff also said the volume of the material and the way it was staged raised erosion and public‑safety concerns. The stop‑work order prohibited constructing or grading activity on the parcel until the matter was investigated and resolved.
What the appellant said Attorney Delaney Brewer, representing the property owner, told the council the soil deliveries were “clean topsoil” intended as a soil amendment and that agricultural activity is exempt from the local ordinances cited by the city. Brewer said the land was being farmed, the soil was being incorporated into fields for crop production, and that state and federal law provide exemptions for agricultural nonpoint runoff that preclude local regulation in many circumstances. She asked the council to lift the stop‑work order so the landowner could finish preparing the field for winter wheat.
What staff and engineers said City engineering staff and the police reported they had observed trucks delivering material in dense sequences and that they saw sediment and fill in the city right‑of‑way and drainage ditch. The city engineer noted that the state Department of Natural Resources (DNR) had been consulted and that agency staff expressed concerns about whether the activity was a construction‑type fill operation rather than routine agricultural land‑spreading. City staff said they issued the stop‑work order in part to prevent further potential erosion and sediment discharge to the Root River watershed while the matter was investigated.
Why the council lifted the stop‑work order Council members heard competing legal and factual arguments. Several council members expressed sympathy for the farmer’s need to use topsoil to improve fields and acknowledged the state’s broad agricultural exemptions; others said city crews had documented sediment in the right‑of‑way, visible piles of fill and frequent trucks that created safety and maintenance problems for nearby routes.
After hearing testimony, the council voted to remove the stop‑work order so the landowner could resume agricultural operations pending resolution of the citations. The record shows the council’s removal applies to the administrative stop‑work order only; staff and the city attorney said the citations remain subject to the city’s enforcement process and that the appellant can pursue those remedies through the municipal appeals process.
What to watch next The citations and any additional enforcement actions remain active. City staff said they will continue to investigate the disturbance, coordinate with the DNR if necessary, and return to the appropriate administrative or judicial processes for resolution. The farm owner indicated the intention to resume soil incorporation and to plant winter wheat in the coming weeks.
Ending The council’s action resolved an immediate administrative restriction so the property owner can resume field work, while leaving unresolved the municipal citations and the city’s separate enforcement review. That combination — short‑term resumption of activity paired with continued citation review — may prompt further follow‑up by neighbors and staff.
