Board denies wetland-setback variance request for Hayward lot

The Sawyer County Zoning Board of Appeals denied a variance request for a Hayward-area lot after concluding the applicants had not shown the three-part test required for a variance: unique physical hardship, no harm to the public interest, and lack of alternative reasonable use without the variance.

Applicants Brent and Joan Heinrich asked to build a 54-by-42 two-story dwelling with tuck-under garage that would be 19 feet from a mapped non-navigable wetland; the county’s shoreland/wetland protection ordinance requires a 40-foot setback from that wetland complex. Zoning staff reported that a wetland delineation performed after the owners purchased the lot revealed a deeper wetland than the applicants expected, leaving approximately 25–30 feet of true buildable depth under current setbacks.

Public commenters and neighbors raised practical concerns about construction impacts, potential wetland fill, heavy equipment access, and loss of wetland habitat. One neighbor said the driveway area and site access would make construction equipment maneuvers difficult and increase risk of wetland disturbance.

Zoning staff told the board that the lot does have a buildable area that would meet minimum dimensional standards for a dwelling without the requested variance; staff also noted a 1994 permit on an adjacent lot and a 2001 garage that encroached near the wetland on earlier documentation but said the present setback rules are a county regulation rather than a DNR setback issue. The town of Hayward had tabled the matter and recommended obtaining DNR input before further processing; staff told the board the DNR would not comment on a reduced non‑navigable wetland setback because their jurisdiction is different and they address filling and grading within wetlands rather than county setback distances.

After questions and discussion the board applied the standard three-part variance test and concluded that the applicants had not demonstrated an unnecessary hardship and that granting the variance would risk public-interest harm to the wetland. The board denied the variance by a 5-0 vote.

The zoning administrator and staff noted opportunities to redesign the project to fit inside the existing 40-foot wetland setback or pursue other permitted building layouts; the board recorded findings that included that buildable area existed without the variance and that public-interest impacts weighed against granting the request.

The decision was recorded as a denial; applicants retain the option to resubmit an application with revised plans or seek other local approvals.