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Oneida County committee approves conditional use permit for proposed Cassian sawmill with expanded buffer
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Summary
The Oneida County Planning and Development Committee approved a conditional use permit for John Lawrence’s Stettin Properties LLC to operate a sawmill in the Town of Cassian, adding a 200‑foot vegetative buffer and requiring log‑watering from an on‑site retention pond; the permit includes standard WDNR and county zoning conditions.
The Oneida County Planning and Development Committee on March 4 approved a conditional use permit for John Lawrence of Stettin Properties LLC to develop and operate a sawmill on vacant property in the Town of Cassian.
Planning staff (Karl Jennrich and Land Use Specialist Scott Ridderbusch) presented the application, read the public hearing notice and staff report into the record and outlined required state and county permits, including WDNR stormwater and grading permits for land disturbance over one acre and DNR Managed Forest Law (MFL) withdrawal paperwork. The file includes proof of publication and an affidavit of mailing; staff reported no written public comments and said the Town of Cassian had indicated no concerns to staff.
During the public hearing three members of the public — Al Frost, Robert Conchetta and Molly Petts — spoke. The transcript records their participation but does not provide verbatim testimony in the meeting record.
Committee members and staff reviewed recommended conditions. The committee amended Condition #12 to require a 200‑foot vegetative buffer along the south and west property boundaries (the condition as drafted referenced 25 feet and 200 feet; the committee explicitly changed the required minimum to 200 feet). The committee also added a condition specifying that any watering of logs shall draw from the proposed retention pond and not from a private well. Other permit conditions as stated in the staff report — including compliance with Oneida County sign and off‑street parking rules (a minimum of 35 parking spaces), downcast/shielded lighting if installed, screened dumpster and recycling requirements, submission of proper zoning and sanitary permits, and placement of outdoor storage within designated site plan areas — remain conditions of issuance.
Motions were recorded in the meeting: the vegetative buffer amendment was moved by Chair Scott Holewinski and seconded by Dan Hess and carried unanimously; the log‑watering condition was added on a motion by Chair Holewinski, seconded by Dan Hess, and carried unanimously; the CUP as amended was approved on a motion by Mitchell Ives, seconded by Bob Almekinder, and carried unanimously.
The permit approval is conditioned on the applicant meeting all state and county permit requirements and submitting required paperwork (stormwater/grading, MFL withdrawal documentation, sign permits, sanitary approvals) to the Planning and Zoning Department prior to construction. Staff indicated erosion control must be in place prior to excavation. Next procedural steps are filing required permits and compliance monitoring by county staff.
The committee’s action concludes the local approval step for the proposed sawmill; implementation is contingent on the applicant obtaining the listed state and local permits.