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August 23, 2005 Planning Committee
Town of Lebanon Planning Committee Meeting Minutes August 23, 2005 Present: Sharon Feucht, Kathy Bero, Scott Theder, Mary Welles Also present: Lohny Fredrick, Leroy Tietz, Todd Wilson, Ben Gomez The meeting was called to order at 7:00 pm. The posting of the meeting was verified. The minutes were read and a motion was made and seconded to accept the minutes as read. The motion carried. The committee discussed land division request 05-09 for Kelly and Heather Dykema located at N801 Midway Lane, Watertown, WI 53098. The buildings are split with 14 acres and the remaining undeveloped agricultural land would total 57 acres. The Dykemas addressed previously expressed concerns by the Committee through the Town Supervisor. Brent Boyd designed a cul-de-sac, which would be paid for by the Dykemas and then deeded over to the Town for maintenance. A motion was made and seconded to accept the division as proposed. The motion passed unanimously. Land division request 05-10 for Reinhard Wille at N2480 Hwy R, Watertown, WI 53098 was considered. At the corner of hwy R and ME, five acres would be split with residential zoning and the remaining 33 acres would continue as agricultural. Concern was raised over ownership of the section of road continuing ME east of hwy R. The committee asked for a staff report on the ownership of that road and on the County’s rules pertaining to additional driveways on hwy R at this location. A motion was made and seconded to table a decision until more information was obtained. The motion passed unanimously. The land division request 05-11 for Michael and Deborah Scheiber was considered. They proposed to split 3 acres from the existing 6.5- acre property for their daughter to build a house. They acquired their land approximately 30 years ago from two different adjacent farms. The property has remained wooded and would continue that way with minimal tree removal. Two neighbors were present supporting the land division. No one came to oppose. The Committee pointed out that the driveway design would have to be approved by the Town. A motion was made and seconded to accept the division. The motion passed unanimously. The Committee along with approximately 15 audience members heard a presentation from John Siepmann of Siepmann Realty. He discussed the benefits of conservation subdivisions, which preserve large tracts of open space. These types of developments are both beneficial for the land and for the value of the properties. In total, Siepmann Realty has developed over 1700 acres and has left 44% in open space. In a single development they built on only 30% of the land and left the remaining 70% open space. This created a very high value neighborhood. He outlined six ways to encourage conservation development: Conservation development by right Density bonuses Relaxed lot coverage ratios Simple conceptual plans Proactive approach to buffers and set backs based on existing natural features Resource Inventory In addition Mr. Siepmann gave four basic steps for the process: 1.Plan Committee and Town Board do a walk through 2.Identify problems/concerns/amenities 3.Conceptual plan is a “sketch plan” 4.Continue on through the Town and County process For more information their website is www.siepmannrealty.com The next meeting will be September 27 at 7 pm. The meeting adjourned at 8:45 pm. Respectfully submitted by Kathy Bero on August 23, 2005