Eaton County Planning Commission tables Sherwood Forest Campground expansion after health and map concerns

The Eaton County Planning Commission on Dec. 3, 2024 moved to table a conditional use permit application by Jeff and Carrie Wills for changes at Sherwood Forest Campground, citing concerns about septic capacity, unclear site plans and unpermitted portable bathroom facilities.

Staff presented the application for the 55‑acre property at 8240 Campground Drive in Walton Township and outlined 11 requested changes. The applicants seek to convert several existing rustic cabins to ‘resort cabins’ that include plumbing, add future sites where resort cabins could be placed (sites 65, 67, 68 and 107–114), allow a roughly 300‑square‑foot addition to an existing resort cabin at 8353 Campground Drive, permit outdoor storage for campground equipment, construct playground equipment (a “jumping pillow”), build a 400‑square‑foot woodshed, allow a not‑yet‑constructed manager’s house to be rented, and retain portable bathrooms and showers with the required permits.

Why it mattered: neighbors and the county health department warned that the proposed conversions and new resort cabins look more like residences than primitive camping units and could require separate septic systems. A written letter from an adjoining landowner, Diane Miller of 5447 Sherwood Highway, said she opposes further expansion and called the proposed 1,000‑square‑foot, two‑ to three‑bedroom cabins “a house” rather than a cabin: “I am not in favor of any further expansion to the Sherwood Forest Campground.”

The Barry‑Eaton District Health Department, represented at the meeting by environmental health supervisor David Como, cautioned that the septic tank permits recently issued were sized for campsites and would not support full ‘resort cabin’ plumbing hooked to the existing campground system. Como told the commission the existing drain field is "clean and dry at this point" but said his primary concern is that "we're going to overload that system at some point" if multiple full‑service cabins were added without separately sized systems.

Applicant Jeff Wills told the commission the owners are not seeking to build 11 resort cabins immediately but are requesting approval of potential future sites so they can work with engineers and the health department. "We're not looking to build 11 resort cabins right away. It's basically just approving future sites for the potential to put a resort cabin," he said, adding the owners would evaluate capacity and add cabins gradually only with health department approval.

Commissioners pressed for clearer documentation. Multiple members said prior conversations about which sites are ‘rustic’ (no plumbing) versus ‘resort’ (with plumbing) did not consistently appear in meeting summaries and asked the applicants to submit revised site plans that number and label each area to correspond to the 11 requested items. Commissioners also discussed whether limited approval could permit the applicant to pursue plumbing permits for the camp store hookups while tabling other items; staff said plumbing permits attached to the camp store could be pursued but building/trade permits for the currently installed portable restrooms and showers cannot be issued until the Planning Commission grants approval.

The commission emphasized coordination with Walton Township after staff reported that Walton Township had concerns arising from a prior meeting due to an outdated summary read at that township hearing. The township requested that the applicants appear at the Walton Township meeting on Dec. 10 to clarify the request and asked staff to attend.

Decision and next steps: The commission voted to table conditional use application CU 101525 to the January Planning Commission meeting (the commission noted Jan. 14 as the next January meeting) with the expectation the applicants would present clarified, larger maps (including a blown‑up pavilion area and a legend tying items 1–11 to map locations) and make a good‑faith effort to present the revised plan to Walton Township on Dec. 10. The commission recorded the motion as carried.

What remains unresolved: The applicants did not receive planning approval at the Dec. 3 meeting; outstanding matters include final site labeling, whether seasonal rental limits will be attached to any approved resort cabins, and whether individual septic systems will be required for each full‑service cabin or whether the existing system can be safely expanded. The Barry‑Eaton District Health Department noted that if resort cabins are proposed in the future they may require separately sized septic tanks and drain fields rather than connections to the campground’s current septic configuration.

The Planning Commission also heard reports on zoning board activity and upcoming cases and adjourned after the Dec. 3 agenda was completed.