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Town Board schedules public hearing on updated campground law with new limits and sanitation rules
Summary
The Town of Richland board scheduled a May 26 public hearing after approving revisions to a proposed Campground Law that set a five‑site‑per‑acre cap, a five‑acre minimum, quiet hours and stricter sanitation and emergency‑access requirements.
Supervisor Robert North convened the April 27 special meeting where Councilman Larry Atkinson presented a revised draft of the town's proposed Campground Law and the board voted to schedule a public hearing for May 26, 2026.
Atkinson said the revisions "have increased the number of sites per acre to 5, must have a minimum of 5 acres for a campground," and outlined other limits intended to balance tourism and neighbor concerns. The draft sets quiet hours from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., allows travel trailers to be parked and hooked up on the owner's parcel but bars year‑round habitation and short‑term rental use like Airbnb without separate regulation. Atkinson noted builders actively constructing a home may reside in a camper on their parcel for up to two years with a permit, and a 15‑day special permit will allow guests to stay for up to two weeks.
CEO/ZEO James Sprague clarified expectations for private parcels, saying campers on an owner's property must be registered to that owner and be "in good repair," and the board amended the draft to require a dump station where full hookups are not provided. The board noted a public‑health requirement when discussing sanitation: "This is a Law per the Department of Health, that campers must dump prior to exiting a campground."
A motion by Councilman Larry Atkinson, seconded by Councilman Eric Pappa, to schedule a public hearing on May 26, 2026 at 7 p.m. carried on a unanimous roll call vote (Haynes, Gilson, Pappa, Atkinson, North voted Aye). The hearing will be the next opportunity for public input; the board said it plans to refine the draft before final adoption.
