DETROIT LAKES – The proposed new comprehensive land use plan for Becker County is on the minds of many people, according to turnout at the Becker County Planning Commission meeting Wednesday night.
David Mjolsness of Cotton Lake, Jeanne Kauffmann of Lake Eunice and Vicky Williams of Lake Melissa were among those concerned about a new land-use map that shows large swathes of agricultural land in southwest and central Lake County in Becker County being replaced by residential development.
If all the planned residential land is filled in, it could lead to light pollution, noise pollution and problems with sewage disposal, said Mjolsness.
“Please don’t turn this area (Cotton and Pickerel Lakes) into a couple of particularly busy lakes,” he said. “Why are so many housing developments being built around lakes and not somewhere else?”
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Kauffmann noted that under the draft plan, the largest land use change from agricultural to residential will occur in the communities of Cormorant, Lake Eunice and Lakeview.
“Three townships will take up most of the living space,” she said. “Our quality of life will change dramatically as a result.”
David Oberlander, chairman of the Becker County Coalition of Lake Associations, told the planning commission, “I just want to make sure our concerns are heard.” The draft plan does not mention a number of concerns that lake association members had expected to be addressed, he noted.
Erica Jepson, Becker County Commissioner and member of the Planning Commission, went out of her way to answer questions and concerns.
“No changes have been made to the land use plan,” she said. “Agricultural land remains agricultural land until they come and request a change to the land use plan.”
The new residential areas around the lakes would require plots of 8,000 m² each, which is not significantly different from the 1.02 m² plots on agricultural land, she said.
“I just wanted to clarify that for those who are concerned,” she said. The higher-density R-3 zone is not used in rural areas. It is used along highway corridors and in certain areas around Detroit Lakes and on the outskirts of smaller cities, she said.
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Willis Mattison, David Henke and Erika Gilsdorf, members of the local Izaak Walton League, were among those concerned about the impact of the location of industrial feedlot operations in Becker County on local land and water.
Large feedlot operations could harm water and soil in Becker County, Henke said. Gilsdorf added that public waters, public health and livestock health are at risk from the influx of large feedlot operations in Becker County. “The master plan is the only way to address these issues in our zoning code,” she said.
Mattison noted that the local Izaak Walton League has submitted comprehensive reports on industrial-scale mast operations and wakeboard boats, along with “formulating proposals and ordinances to address these issues,” he said.
He urged the Planning Commission to wait to approve the draft comprehensive land use plan until the county has sought and received feedback from agencies such as the Department of Agriculture, DNR and Environmental Protection Agency, which he said is required by state law.
The compensation plan is intended to provide solutions to a number of problems, including E. coli contamination of the Toad River by cattle, high nitrate levels in 200 private wells in three Becker County communities and extremely high nitrate levels in the Straight River, Mattison said.
He and others also worried about potential damage to lake shores and lake bottoms from wakeboard boats. “They’re becoming a bigger and bigger problem,” one man said.
Jacob Hein, Audubon Township supervisor and a seventh-generation farmer, said there have been many interesting conversations about farming and agricultural land use, but noted that “people aren’t moving to rural Becker County to be more densely populated and have more development – they’re not moving there to have lots and lots of people around them. They’re moving there because it’s pristine. We don’t need high-density housing and more development on the lakeshore.”
Bob Backman and Sue Sonnenberg simply wanted to give people more time to engage with the county before it approved its draft master plan.
“As you can see from the audience here, there is a lot of interest in this plan,” Backman told the planning commission. “I would like more time for people to look at it in more detail. I’m asking for more time.”
Sonnenberg agreed. “Even if some of us are slow to come to meetings, it’s important that we all feel like we’re being heard,” she said.
Before the public was heard, the consulting firm Bolton and Menk presented an overview of the draft plan.
After the testimony, Planning Commission Chairman Dave Blomseth thanked people for their input. Planning Commission member Steve Lindow said, “I like the conversation tonight, it should have happened a while ago. We should try to have more of these where people can come together and talk.”
Any further public meetings would have to be organized by the County Board, Blomseth said.
The Planning Commission approved the draft zoning plan and sent it to the Becker County Board for review on September 17. Lindow cast the only dissenting vote.
Public comments on the zoning plan are open until Sept. 9. Jepson said, “I want to be clear that sending it to the County Council does not mean that changes are no longer possible. The Planning Commission’s role is only to review the plan. That’s not a requirement, it’s simply what we’ve done. The next step in the process is to seek approval from the County Council after we’ve held public hearings.”
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Bowe covers the Becker County Board and the court system for the Tribune and oversees the opinion pages for the Tribune and Focus. As news editor for both newspapers, he is the go-to guy for readers and the general public: breaking news or critical news tips, article ideas, questions and general feedback should be directed to him.
