Muscatine County sets Oct. 6 public hearing on zoning changes for detached accessory structures

The Muscatine County Board of Supervisors voted Sept. 22 to set a public hearing for 9 a.m. Oct. 6 on proposed amendments to the county zoning ordinance concerning detached accessory structures.

County Development Director Eric Furnace said the zoning commission had already held a public hearing and recommended a few amendments to bring the county ordinance into alignment with recent state legislation on accessory dwelling units. “Without getting into too many details, the zoning commission did hold public hearing on this,” Furnace said, adding the changes are intended to “clean up our ordinance to be consistent” with state-mandated rules.

The proposed amendments are intended to address how detached accessory structures — structures separate from a primary dwelling that may contain accessory dwelling units — are regulated under the county zoning code. The board did not vote on the substance of the amendments on Sept. 22; it approved only the date and time for the county-level public hearing.

Setting the hearing starts the county’s formal public-notice and comment process; Furnace said county staff would present additional details to the board at the Oct. 6 hearing. No specific sections of state law were named during the Sept. 22 discussion.

The board’s action was procedural: a motion to set the hearing was made and seconded and carried by voice vote. The board did not adopt changes to the ordinance at the Sept. 22 meeting. Public testimony and the full text of any proposed ordinance amendments will be part of the Oct. 6 record.

The hearing is scheduled during a regular Board of Supervisors meeting and will be held at the Muscatine County Courthouse.