um tonight's Planning Commission to order um and we'll start with approving the agenda and the minutes from last [Music] month I did I did have one uh correction to note I believe uh I believe you
abstained um in the vote on Item B when you're looking at the ordinance revisions and that was the that was what we brought to the um County Commissioners as well so instead of 33510 it would be
230 or 2 231 411 just a minor correction otherwise I would make a motion to approve the agenda in minutes do we have a second second all in
favor opposed hearing none uh we'll start with new business um uh Dean Berglund uh file 2025 one iup Nea thank you Mr chair this
is a request for a renewal of an interim use permits for the firewood processing operation at 1334 Gunflint Trail in Grand marray the property is zoned F3 Mr Bergland is the property owner of
the parcel the agent for the application is Dave how and he is the owner of the business which is Northshore Timber LLC so those are the different names and entities involved with this request the applicant's property is 71 acres and has an unnamed public water course running
through the property it's entirely within the F3 Zone District which lists a conditional use in that zone district for temporary chipping debarking and Sawmill operations there is a unnamed as I mentioned unnamed public water course
there we go so Northshore Timber LLC represented by Mr how with the landowner Mr Bergland are requesting renewal of the interim use permit that was issued in 2016 for firewood processing operations at the existing permitted Gravel Pit the permit requests to allow
processing drying and storing firewood the applicants are requesting the interim use permit to be reissued for 10 years during which time the renewal iup would need to be appi reapplied for this is a yearr round operation with a kiln operating all year the applicants
clarify in the iup application that cutting activities will only occur during regular business hours Monday through Friday from 8: to 5:00 the applicants have clarified that there will be no cutting activities on weekends nights or holidays for zoning considerations the principal purpose of
this Zone district is to provide for permanent and seasonal areas at medium density farming and other rural activities are also allowed this application is being processed as an interim use permit an interim use is a temporary use of a property until a particular date until
the occurrence of a particular event or until zoning regulations no longer permit it on page six of the packet I listed out the requirements from the Cook County zoning ordinance that outline the standards for reviewing these types of
permits for backgrounds the parcel is a longtime Gravel Pit owned by Mr Bergland in 2001 a conditional use permit was approved by the Board of Commissioners which established the infrastructure for a wood chip processing facility that operation was shortlived and the focus
on chipping gradually eroded in 2013 Mr Big Bergland had a cup request for gravel crushing formally removed from the wood chipping as a conditional use on the site in 2016 Mr how and Mr Bergland requested an interim use permit
to allow the firewood processing operation at that time the parcel was 80 acres and has been an active permitted Gravel Pit the firewood processing is a Cooperative Arrangement the description of the operation is included in the staff report which I'll read here as well the firewood processing operation
involves the stockpiling of Bolt length Birch and maple the Bucking to wood stove lengths followed by Des ation and a wood fired Kil operation of the Kil extends Beyond a 12-hour period the operation has been in place at Isaac Hansen for several years keep in mind
that this was written in 2016 during that time uh the planning and zoning office received several calls about the noise from the Kiln and they constructed a series of exhaust baffles that effectively removed impacts from the adjacent residences the Bergland pit is
situated within a landscape more conducive to commercial type operations and those experienced in Luton the nearest Residence in 2016 at least was over 1,000 ft away uh with a marked contrast to where it was in Len at the time for conditions of approval in the
2016 permit there were four the first condition was that it was a 5-year interm use permit which expired in 2021 the baffles were to remain on the exhaust system while the Kil was operating the permit was only for the preparation storage and delivery of firewood and upon sale or transfer of
the property the new owners would have 60 days to reapply for a new iup due to staff turnover in 2021 the plan former Planning and Zoning administrator retired and I was being brought on board uh coincided at the same time with this iup um retiring in
its Effectiveness so our office missed that fiveyear deadline ending and we failed to notify the applicant the need to reapply so this came to my attention frankly when it was Mr Bergin's annual Gravel Pit renewal and so I reached out to him and him and Mr how were extremely
responsive been getting uh this new permit application up and running for Sight conditions and considerations the lot is well vegetated with existing wetlands and the open area is within lot coverage allowances as well as the open Gravel Pit area for
Wetlands the site has a stream flowing through it with Wetlands the site has been developed to avoid impacts to Wetlands and the Gravel Pit is reviewed annually for compliance with a conditions of approval the access driveway crosses Wetlands the operator should note to be cautious of unintentional Wetland imp PS during the
growing season and consult with the county Wetland specialist with any questions for noise written comments indicate that noise is generated from this use causing complaints when occurring outside regular business hours staff conducted a site visit while three pieces of Machinery were in
operation and a tractor with forklift with moving logs the Kil was also running at that time although noise levels were noticeable they did not require hearing protection for a bystander walking around the site however hearing protection is required and used by the equipment operators staff also drove on the neighboring
roads and didn't observe any observable uh noise during those drives although the activity does generate noise it doesn't appear to exceed the state Noise Pollution Control standards a condition could be placed that the property shall comply with the state Noise Pollution Control standards outlined in Minnesota
rules for lighting lighting has not been identified as an issue by Json Property Owners but the Planning Commission could discuss if that's being used outside of those hours uh there is safe access from the gunin trail and for other I noted the Residential Properties um on the
screen is a map to where I identified the neighboring residences that identified noise complaints with the operation um about 800 ft I think is the closest one to where the operation is located we publicly noticed this in the Cook County News Herald we mailed out 29
letters of notification to adjon Property Owners as well as County departments and the DNR hydrologist we received uh the following written correspondence Daniel and Rachel Bergland Roden opposed to the request due to the noise from current operations
occurring outside the typical working hours on weekends holidays and early morning and late evening and then another letter that was jointly written by Bev woli Jaden Max alitz and Virginia Bergland they and they are on the gulf course Road and they would like discussion on the hours and days of
operation they consider that the operation be moved to Mr how's property instead and then the Cook County Soil and Water Conservation District provided a memo with details regarding invasive species associated with these trees and provided resources for the land owner to reference I also provided draft
consideration for facts and findings for conditional use permit we review certain standards as outlined in the Cook County zoning ordinance the first is that the use conforms to the land use or comprehensive plan of the county in my staff narratives I often will put in draft findings for your consideration
that you're more than welcome to amend after we hold the public hearing and hear from the applicant of after your discussion so the draft findings at this time at the Cook County land use guide plan describes the Maple Hill East End as these areas have a history of productive agriculture remain dotted with various types of Agriculture
Enterprises there's a commercial goal to provide commercial facilities to meet the needs of residents and visitors which includes policy 45 encourage farming fishing and logging Enterprises and a general land use school to have an inventory of land suitable and appropriately located for the
anticipated types of land uses compatible with natural resources and proximity to existing infrastructure to protect protect non-compatible land uses from one another which includes policy number 11 potentially incompatible adjacent land uses shall be buffered from one another means to accomplish
this may include open space bming plant material building design hours of operation noise control and other means the second finding for a conditional use permit is that the use is compatible with the existing neighborhood this use is located at an existing gravel pit and is located over 800 ft from residential
use es hours of operation were not established in the 2016 permit establishing reasonable time restrictions should address noise concerns finding number three the use will not impede the normal and orderly development and Improvement in the surrounding area of uses permitted by R
in the zone District this use is aligned for the purposes of the F3 Zone district and number four the location and character of the proposed use is considered to be consistent with a desirable pattern for development in the area the proposed use is consistent with
the more rural activities of this area and conditions can be established to address any concerns raised by residents for staff recommendations for consideration comment letters from neighboring property owners have raised concerns about noise occurring outside typical working hours however no specific operating hours were
established in the 2016 conditions in recent years Land Services has not received any complaints about this operation except following the public notice for this interm use permit being sent to adjacent Property Owners staff recommend the Planning Commission consider a shorter interm use permit renewal period than the 10-year proposed
by the applicant to provide a period of time to evaluate how the new time restrictions address noise complaints I'll take this moment to add that Mr how is unable to join us today he is stuck in a driveway uh in a remote area of the county I did speak with him before he got stuck in his truck and uh he said
that he would be fine with a five-year interm use uh period of renewal for your consideration he would have added that if he was here in person I provided some findings for your consideration as well that incorporates the 2016 permit uh conditions as well as some additional
ones to talk about the noise the hours of operation And to clarify that renewal period that's what I have Mr chair and then Mr Bergland is here to represent the application all right um Mr berglin would you like to add anything
to no I'm I'm pretty good with everything um I like him there it's uh you know it generates some income for me uh he does a good job he's a hard worker you know if he ever fails it won't be for lack of trying um I I'd like him to
be there I I I do believe there's some constraints and I put some on him already um but you know I heard from the neighbors you know one of the neighbors that you saw there's my own brother and one of the other neighbors is my stepmother Ginger Bergland um and
you know Bev and you know the they're they're my you know they're my steps but I told all them I said if you got something to say I said now is the time and now voice your opinion um I was surprised to see my brother say he wanted operations to stop because he
hasn't conveyed that to me but they do want some constraints and I and I fully understand I mean when they're telling me that Dave was up there uh cutting wood at you know 9:00 on a Sunday in the summer yep that's overboard um coming in at 4: or5 in the morning if it's summer
and it's light and start to cut yeah no there that that's overboard and so some good you know time structure you know but time that let lets him operate his business um you know I think that's appropriate and one thing I I've kind of
had to laugh over time I I've told people this I go you know we all deal with noise I don't care who you are we've got some neighbor somebody's doing this I mean I live on Devil's track Lake and I'm surrounded with retirees down one end to the other and and my in the summer my all my neighbors
are so busy being retired that there's only one time they can mow their lawns and that's Sunday morning or Sunday afternoon when I have that one day to rest so we all deal with it and you know I've talked to you know all the people around the neighborhood about this too
and they all agree but the chainsaw does need to be restricted and and I'm good with that and the dry kilm I never hear it make any noise I mean it's just you you could stand 200 feet away and you're not going to hear it it's whatever it
was um before it's changed so he's doing a pretty good job um but he said you know he wouldn't do any chain sawing on the weekends uh so so I I think I think we're you know pretty much in a line with what'll make it
successful thank you yeah anyone else from the public wish to speak on this application uh hearing none we'll close it to the public and uh discuss it as board start on my on my right you guys Sheila yeah I think it's fine sounds
like if you put those hours in place it will make the neighbors happy Mr Berglund you had said that you put a couple restrictions on him in the past was he fairly compliant with those restrictions and he might have veered to the left once or twice but I crack again
he uh yeah he I mean it was just I I had never known there was a problem then all of a sudden uh I think we were at some Gathering and my brother two three other neighbors were like they all just confronted me and I was like why didn't you tell me this sooner I would have
done something about it and uh so I did the very next day and but I suppose all of a sudden you know maybe he was in a panic or he needed to get something done um but it's like the discussion I've had with him since we renewed this application and stuff I said it's yours
to lose I said if you don't comply I saidou just going to lose it and then you're out and that that's how it's going to be so I saidif you want to be here you want to be here for 5 years 10 years what have you I said it's all going to be in your court so I think he's pretty well dialed in and he does have one little small part where he can
go do some work over by headstrom but that's just this one little spot and they won't give him anymore so he he needs this and you had said in your thing you know my brother had said well why doesn't he go and do it at his own property he did apply to do it on his own property which is right on the gunun
trail that big A-frame as just before you get to headstrom but it's almost all Wetlands so he got shot down instantly otherwise he would have been there so um but no I I don't think you have anything to worry about um the hours the future I
mean I I think he gets it now and it's he wasn't like a huge violator he was just not really understanding that neighbors were listening and he's just this hard worker what were the restraints that you put on him well I just said you're going to go with you're going to go with the
times that are set forth by this board and that's just how it's going to be I mean he'll come in maybe at 5: in the morning he might pile wood but you know nobody's listening to that or he might load his pickup for a 7 in the morning delivery but I mean who cares about that that's
nothing and then uh you were mentioning lighting there is no lighting there the only Lighting in the place is just in the building itself and I don't see anything anymore I don't see anything happening with lighting and the only one that would ever see that the only person is my brother and he's got some pretty
good lights of his own up at his house so uh pretty straightforward to me staff recommendations seem pretty sound I think the five years is a good limit um uh you know even would entertain the three because we've got this this you
know compliance question that seems to be manageable they seem to have his attention but you know it would give us the opportunity to snap the chalk line again if we got the same complaint yeah it non problematic to me I think codifying the hours in the
conditions is what we need to do and that gives us some enforcement ability yep I agree no operating Machinery during those hours um I'm a strong supporter of the hours because when Mr H started his
operation adjacent to my property we had chain sign 7 days a week 12 to 14 hours a day so yeah we need I think for the Neighbors perspective the hours are the most important part for especially chainsaw
operation um I I I think five years it would be my my thought on it allows them the a little longer time frame if he wants to invest in upgrade equipment and stuff a little more more time for that but definitely um it sounds like sounds like he was in favor of the timeline and
if so I think uh look to entertain a motion I'd move for approval uh with the um the time restrictions and the fiveyear all the rest of the conditions yes yes the B conditions yeah no
weekends no nights no holidays correct so we got a motion do we have a second I will second that motion any more discussion call for a vote all in favor I
I opposed hearing none this will be at the Commissioners at their next Action meeting okay thank you all right thank you all have a great day for a motion to adjourn the Planning Commission so I'll make a motion second
that motion and a second all in favor Planning Commission is a jerked we're going to take a short break um for the feeds to get changed and then we'll start the board of adjustment