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Residents, contractors press Winnebago County to accept DNR-issued boathouse repair permits; committee debates jurisdiction
Summary
Property owners and contractor Ty Johnston told the county planning committee that DNR and Army Corps permits have been issued for repairs to existing wet boathouses but county zoning staff have withheld local permits citing a 50% floodplain-value limit; the committee debated whether such rebuilds qualify as repair under Wis. Stat. 30.1213(c) and reached a general consensus to avoid starting new county-level permitting without legal clarification.
Ty Johnston, owner of Johnston Pile Driving, told the Winnebago County Planning & Zoning Committee during public comment that four landowners have DNR and Army Corps permits and are waiting months for county action. "According to the Wisconsin state statute, 30.1213 c, if the lehi floor houses was built prior to 12/16/1979 ... we meet the exception," Johnston said, adding that one submitted application was paid for five months earlier with no answer from the county.
Tom Contos, a property owner on Lake Biedelmore, described a historic boathouse with a failing foundation and told the committee his DNR permit expires in August and "it's not renewable," urging staff and the committee to resolve the delay so repairs can proceed.
Planning staff summarized the legal tension the committee must resolve. A staff presenter explained that DNR chapter 30 permits have been…
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