LAKE VERMILION- Christine Wyrobek, owner of the partially developed Rough-N-It campground for disabled veterans on Lake Vermilion’s Black Bay, and Lance and Kari Kuhn have reached a voluntary agreement to dismiss their lawsuit against St. Louis County over missteps in the zoning and conditional use permit processes. That decision comes after a judge determined last month that the arguments presented in the suit lacked “legally sufficient grounds for relief.”
Wyrobek, who initially filed rezoning and conditional use permits for the property last February but then withdrew and re-filed them on March 3, contended that both should be automatically approved under state law because the county failed to act on them within the 60-day time period specified in statute. The lawsuit also sought relief on the grounds that the Planning Commission’s decision to deny the applications on May 11 was not based on legally sufficient grounds and was arbitrary, capricious and unreasonable. The properties in question are currently zoned as Residential-5 and Residential-7, which does not allow for commercial planned developments like the campground.
As recorded in court filings and Planning Commission minutes, the commission dropped the ball on two occasions. First, the commission did not act on a citizen’s petition filed March 20 with the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board requesting an Environmental Assessment Worksheet be prepared for the proposed campground. Then, after denying Wyrobek’s applications on May 11, the commission failed to pass their recommendation on for review and action by the county Board of Commissioners, which is the only body with the legal authority for making zoning map amendments under state law and county ordinance.
60-day ruling
In her responses to the county’s motion for judgment filed with the court on Dec. 21, Sixth District Court Judge Jill Eichenwald found that the county had not violated the 60-day rule because the clock stopped ticking “at the precise moment” the petition for the EAW was filed on March 20. Eichenwald cited a statute that reads, “The time limit … is extended if a state statute … requires a process to occur before the agency acts on the request.” The EAW is required under the Minnesota Environmental Policy Act (MEPA), which also requires that the stoppage remain in place until “60 days after completion of the last process required.” Eichenwald noted that no evidence was submitted showing the environmental review process has been completed.
In dismissing the first three counts of Wyrobek’s lawsuit, Eichenwald stated that the county is “prohibited from granting the applications until the MEPA review is complete.”
Eichenwald’s ruling also undercuts the legal grounds for the other two counts in the lawsuit, finding that the St. Louis County Board of Commissioners is the final authority on zoning decisions, and not the Planning Commission, and the board has yet to review or act on the applications. Additionally, the board’s deadline for action is paused due to the incomplete MEPA process.
Contacted by the Timberjay via email on Tuesday, Wyrobek provided a brief statement.
“The parties agreed to a voluntary dismissal while they work to resolve the dispute. The dismissal is without prejudice, meaning that the lawsuit could later be reinitiated,” Wyrobek wrote.
The Timberjay also asked the county attorney’s office for a statement, but had not received one by press time on Wednesday.
What lies ahead
While the matter of the lawsuit is settled, the status of the Rough-In-It campground is not.
One question to be resolved is the status of Wyrobek’s rezoning and conditional use permit applications submitted in March. At its Nov. 9 meeting the Planning Commission voted to require an EAW for the project, and it was indicated that the rezoning request could be acted upon after that.
However, according to the meeting minutes, Wyrobek asserted that because the conditional use application was canceled on June 2 and a refund check was issued on June 8, her request was effectively denied, meaning that there was no longer an active proposal for the commission to act on.
Wyrobek has also partially developed the campground, marketing camping availability on the Rough-N-It Facebook page beginning last August. A “glamping” tent site is also currently advertised on Airbnb. Wyrobek stated at the Nov. 9 meeting that the parcels she owns have been developed as individual residential dwelling sites under Residential Use-Class I zoning, which she said allows temporary or moveable shelters under the definition of dwelling sites. The sites Wyrobek has developed do not defy any ruling by the Planning Commission, she said.
After Wyrobek began advertising the campsites, a citizen complaint was filed with the county Planning and Zoning Department. Senior planner Mark Lindhorst confirmed for the Timberjay that the department was following its standard complaint process and that “Resolution often does take some time.” Once the complaint process is initiated, department personnel cannot comment on the matter until it is resolved.
However, a statement on the Planning and Zoning Department’s fact sheet for short-term rentals might be applicable to Wyrobek’s sites and require that they be considered under a different classification. The statement reads as follows:
“If a property is used primarily for rental purposes, then it shall be deemed a Commercial Use-Class II as a commercial short-term rental and subject to ordinance requirements.”
The Timberjay attempted to obtain additional information about the statement from the department but did not receive a reply prior to press time.