Commission tables Lakes Premier Storage variance after members object to 90% setback reduction

The commission on Aug. 21 tabled a variance and conditional-use permit for Lakes Premier Storage, Deerwood LLC, after several board members said the requested 90% reduction in a 100-foot side-yard setback (to 10 feet) was too extreme for a parcel adjacent to a residential lot and constrained by lake and wetland setbacks.

During public comment, Roland Hill, representing tribal concerns, recommended a tribal cultural survey for shoreland excavation near Rice Lake, noting "there could be, a possibility of findings of possible shards, artifacts, and whatnot"; local business owner Luke Spile urged the board to require any needed turn-lane or traffic modifications because of existing heavy traffic on County Road 12. The applicant, Bronson Lake, argued that a storage facility would generate minimal daily vehicle trips based on his other properties. Board members, citing the on-site visit and multiple overlapping setbacks, said they were unwilling to approve a 90% variance; they offered the applicant the option to rework the plan with staff and tabled the item to the next meeting, voting unanimously to table.