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Platte County planner recommends approval of temporary Geronimo MET tower; board adds six-month installation deadline
Summary
Platte County’s planning staff recommended approval of a temporary meteorological tower for applicant Geronimo; the Planning & Zoning Commission approved the permit with a new condition requiring installation within six months of permit issuance.
Planner Laura Bookout recommended approval of a special-use permit allowing Geronimo to place a temporary meteorological (MET) station on private property, and the Platte County Planning & Zoning Commission voted to approve the permit with an added six-month installation requirement.
Bookout told the board the station would be under 9 feet tall, solar-powered with a battery backup, require no permanent grading or foundation and primarily serve to collect roughly 18 months of consistent meteorological data; the applicant requested a 24-month permit window to allow a buffer. "The MET station is less than 9 feet above the ground and uses solar power and battery for power," Bookout said, adding GPS coordinates must be provided to the planning office so emergency services can locate the temporary unit.
The planner said there were no comments from adjacent landowners and that the county’s emergency management coordinator had no objections at this time. Board members raised a concern that, without a start date, a permit could remain unused for an extended period; the applicant said they expected to install as soon as approval was granted and anticipated installation by the end of the month or within six months.
To address timing concerns, the board added a sixth condition requiring the temporary MET station to be installed within six months of permit approval. A board member moved to approve the special-use permit with the five staff conditions plus the new six-month start condition; the motion was seconded and passed with members voting in favor.
The permit allows temporary data collection to begin when the MET station is installed; Bookout noted that if a permanent station is later proposed, a separate special-use permit would be required. The board’s action concludes this agenda item; the commission moved on to other business.
The commission scheduled no further action on this application at this meeting. Any future permanent MET station would require a new application and separate review.
