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Planning and Zoning gives nod to campground at Lake

Lead Summary
By
Lori Sorenson

The Luverne Planning and Zoning Commission conducted a public hearing Monday night to consider a conditional use permit for a commercial campground at The Lake.
Mike and Traci Davis, who own property adjacent to the lake, are proposing nine to 10 campsites with cement RV pads (not pull-through) and full hookup — water, sewer and electric.
The sites would be across the street from The Lake, north of Edgehill Street along a private service road that would loop off from Edgehill.
According to Planning and Zoning Director Chad McClure, a campground is an allowable conditional use in that zoning area, which is I-1, general industry, and affected neighbors have been notified and have not objected.
“They provided me with everything they need to apply for the conditional use permit,” McClure said.
The area has residential neighborhoods to the north and east, city-owned green space to the south and industrial properties to the west.
DGR engineering has surveyed the potential camp area, and it meets licensure requirements for DNR with regard to flood plain drainage and the Minnesota Department of Health for safety.
Each site would be 2,000 square feet with room for an RV and a vehicle. Adequate designated off-street parking is available for additional vehicles.
Noise rules fall under the same city ordinance, such as quiet times between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m., and a likely 10 mph speed limit would be imposed through the campground.
The Davises attended Monday night’s hearing to answer questions about their plans.
Mike said licensure also dictates night lighting, garbage management, rodent and pest control and other requirements, in addition to a 24-hour contact for the Sheriff’s Office in the event of an emergency.
“The Department of Health protects a lot of stuff, to make sure everything is clean and safe,” he said. “And this will be small.”
He said they don’t intend to sell supplies to campers.
“We figure Luverne has everything to offer that they need,” he said. “We plan to get them into town, take their buck for staying the night and the rest they can find in town.”
The board asked about the type of campers Davis envisions and the duration of stays.
Davis said he envisions overnights, weekenders — such as ball tournament families — and weeklong visitors, but he also said long-term visitors — such as construction workers — would be welcome as long as they comply with campground requirements.
“This ain’t no trailer park,” he said. “This isn’t a place for people to live.”
And at the end of the season, before frost sets in, the water lines get winterized and disconnected, effectively closing the campground until spring.
McClure added that because of DNR floodplain requirements, campers aren’t allowed to attach semi-permanent decks to their campers or other amenities that would make it difficult to evacuate in the event of a flood.
When asked about staffing, Mike said after hours campers would fill out a card that would be checked later, similar to many small municipal campgrounds.
“We’re around, but we’re not big enough where we can staff it,” Mike said.
“If our second half of this goes through with the old Boy Scout Camp, then we can be a little more clever with how we work together.”
He also mentioned future plans for small cabins on the south side of the road out of the flood plain, and possible asphalt paving.
 
‘Economic boon’ when people stay in town overnight
Luverne Chamber Director Jane Wildung Lanphere attended Monday’s hearing to offer support for the Davis campground.
“Speaking for the Chamber and CVB, having a campground with all hookups would be a really great thing for the community,” Lanphere said.
“We get calls at the Chamber all the time, and that’s one of the questions we get asked, ‘Do you have a campground with hookups?’ And that’s one thing we’ve never been able to say yes to.”
She said the proposed campground would be a benefit to travelers, to tourists, and a place for visiting workers.
“When the wind towers came through, we lost a lot of business because we weren’t able to provide these things for them,” Lanphere said. “It’s a great economic boon to the community all the way around if we can get people to stay at night.”
City Administrator John Call remarked about the welcome improvements to The Lake neighborhood in recent years.
“If you can remember what it looked like five to seven years ago, it was kind of a junky sort of area, out of sight- out of mind,” he said.
“With the partnership between the Davises and the city we have cleaned that up down there and it’s really something to be proud of.”
He pointed out the green space, Sioux quartzite boulders and the DNR fishing jetty
“We couldn’t have done it without them, and they probably couldn’t have done it all without us,” Call said. “It’s definitely an area to be proud of.”
 
Possibly ready by spring
With the Planning and Zoning Board’s approval, the matter will come to a future City Council meeting for final approval.
The next step, Davis said, is to turn his paperwork in to the Minnesota Department of Health, which has eight to 10 weeks to act on it.
If the MDH approves, campground construction can begin, and the MDH will return for final clearance.
“I would love to have something up and running by spring,” he said, “But lots of little things can slow you down.”

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