Planning commission approves artisan-workshop permit for South 15th Street with new limits on outdoor storage

The St. Helens Planning Commission on April 14 approved a conditional use permit to reactivate a longtime vacant building on South 15th Street as an artisan workshop, adding a clarifying condition that any outdoor storage be limited to supplies, materials and operable equipment associated with the business.

Staff told the commission the building and paved parking have a lengthy history of nonconforming use and that the outdoor storage component is what required a conditional-use review under Holton Business District rules. Staff highlighted screening, walkway connections and calibration of the site plan to official survey marks as key issues. “Because it’s the outdoor storage component, this is why we have this before you,” staff said during the report.

Al Peterson, the architect representing the property owner, urged approval of the site plan as presented and objected to staff language that would require a wholesale redesign of the existing parking. Peterson said the paved parking has been in place for decades and that the practical fix is to restripe stalls slightly wider to improve maneuvering rather than rebuild the lot. “All we’re asking is to restripe it in a reasonable manner for parking,” he said.

Neighbors and civic groups raised competing concerns. Aaron Sollessbury, executive director of the St. Helens Main Street Alliance, supported reactivating the downtown building and warned that overly burdensome conditions could keep the property dark. A speaking resident urged strict limits on permitted outdoor storage to prevent a return to vehicle or RV storage in the corridor. Lena Koy, a nearby homeowner, described site work after the change in ownership that she says exposed barrels and created new drainage and runoff problems onto her lot; she asked the commission to require repairs and address potential contamination.

In rebuttal the applicant’s representative said the application does not request automobile storage and that the proposed outdoor storage would be for materials and products tied to a small woodworking operation. Staff and the commission discussed walkway and ADA requirements, survey calibration to confirm property lines, and practical parking layouts that would retain accessible circulation.

After deliberation commissioners approved the permit with the recommended staff conditions and an additional, explicit condition limiting outdoor storage to supplies, materials and operable equipment related to the occupying business; the motion carried on roll call. The commission’s written decision will be mailed to participants and may be appealed to the city council.

Next steps: staff will prepare final written findings and conditions; the decision can be appealed within the notice period, and any required building or right-of-way permits must be obtained before work begins.