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Commission recommends conditional use permit for seasonal 'glamping' camp for student trips
Summary
The Kane County Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval of a conditional use permit for Third Mesa LLC to operate a seasonal glamping campground serving Grand Classroom student groups, with conditions including health-department approval for utilities, non-barbed fencing, and on-site bus parking.
The Kane County Planning and Zoning Commission on July 9 recommended approval of a conditional use permit allowing Third Mesa LLC to operate a seasonal glamping campground on Parcel 3-5-24-3A, a 107.1-acre RU-zoned property, primarily to host student trips run by Grand Classroom.
Applicant JT Maxwell told the commission Third Mesa has worked with Grand Classroom for about 24 years and said the campground would be seasonal, with roughly 80% of activity between March and June. "We bring groups of students really all over the world... Grand Classroom started with Grand Canyon trips," Maxwell said, adding the site would remain largely grazing land when not in use.
County planning staff (Shannon) told commissioners staff and the county engineer reviewed the proposal against chapter 15 conditions and that most items could be mitigated but required commission direction on several site-specific items. "We have all of the conditions in our ordinance in chapter 15," Shannon said, explaining staff uses a checklist to ensure consistent review.
Key conditions discussed included fencing type, the location of bathroom facilities relative to the camp, a utility plan and septic expansion, on-site bus parking and driver accommodations, and road standards. Staff and the county engineer recommended avoiding barbed wire fences near the camp for safety reasons; commissioners favored a compromise such as smooth wire or a screened fence. Maxwell said the camp can accommodate fence alternatives and noted neighboring properties are distant.
The applicant agreed to revise the site plan to ensure bathroom facilities meet the health-department requirement that they be within 300 feet of camp functions and to expand the septic field as needed. Maxwell described a circular drive and an on-site parking location for the bus and said the design includes a small sleeping room for the driver so the bus will remain on-site overnight.
After discussion, Commissioner Cox moved to approve the conditional use permit adopting the staff findings and conditions and requiring compliance with health department, county engineer and utility specifications; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote.
Next steps: the applicant must finalize a utility plan and site-plan amendments to meet the conditions described by staff before building permits are issued.
