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Plan Commission reaffirms Backspace permit and orders fixes after neighbor says gutters flood her yard
Summary
After a neighbor complained that downspouts and an unfinished dumpster enclosure were causing flooding, the Plan Commission reaffirmed the conditional‑use permit for the Backspace leasable space, required the permittee to finish the dumpster within 90 days, and asked the city engineer to inspect drainage and recommend downspout corrections.
The Cedarburg Plan Commission on Feb. 2 reaffirmed a conditional‑use permit for a 2,800‑square‑foot flexible lease space known as Backspace after resolving disagreements about strikeouts in the recorded permit and neighbor complaints about drainage.
Planner Mary told the commission the CUP recorded in April had been returned to the county with strikeouts and initials by the permittee that removed language requiring a dumpster enclosure to be completed prior to occupancy and language intended to prevent roof runoff from flowing onto the adjacent property. Mary said those edits were not consistent with the commission’s original approval and that the exhibit showing the approved parking/landscaping arrangement had not been attached when the document was recorded.
Heather Robert (speaker 13), the property owner to the south, told the commission the building’s downspouts currently direct water onto her garage and driveway and that seasonal snowpacks make the runoff worse. “The downspouts were installed … but no directional spouts or anything like that were also installed so the one gutter comes directly down the side of the building and shoots right onto my garage,” she said.
Jeanne (speaker 5), a permittee representative, said the dumpster enclosure is under construction and that smaller, self‑contained dumpsters are in use now. Jeanne acknowledged plans had been modified and said the permittees did not intend to evade requirements.
Commissioners said unilateral strikeouts and initials are not enforceable without the city’s counter‑initials and urged the permittee to work with staff. The commission voted to reaffirm the CUP as originally approved, with three explicit directions: submit a complete landscaping plan consistent with section 13‑1‑182 of the code, complete the approved dumpster enclosure within 90 days, and have the city engineer inspect the site and recommend corrective action for downspouts so roof runoff does not continue to impact the neighboring property.
Planner Mary said staff will seek legal counsel as needed to ensure the recorded document accurately reflects the commission’s action and that the exhibit showing parking and landscaping is attached to the CUP record. The commission set a deadline for the permittee to return amended documentation and for staff to report back on engineering recommendations.
The motion to reaffirm passed unanimously.
