Application for motocross track zoning, permit withdrawn
- Charlene Sims, Journal staff
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
By Charlene Sims, Journal staff
MOUND CITY – After the Linn County Planning and Zoning Commission conducted three hearings over the past couple months on whether to issue a zoning change and conditional use (CUP) permit for a motocross track east of Trading Post, the applicants have withdrawn their application.
The move by property owners Eric and Emily Thies, 16349 Young Rd., was announced at the Linn County Commission meeting on Monday, March 2. The Thieses’ application to operate a motocross training business on the property would have required a zoning change from the current Agricultural zoning to Commercial.
The planning commission had already voted to recommend to the county commission to approve the zoning change and the CUP with several conditions. The Theises have operated the motocross track on the tract – about 40 acres – for the last several years without a permit.
Planning and Zoning Director Jennifer Cummings announced the withdrawal in her report Monday to the county commission.
Both cases, rezoning and CUP having been approved at the Feb. 10 planning and zoning meeting, would normally have been on the commission agenda on March 2 but were not listed.
Commission chair Alison Hamilton asked Linn County Counselor Jacklyn Paletta for any comments that she had on this.
“Since the applicants have withdrawn their application and any types of issues or complaints or whatever,” Paletta said, “those go through the codes process, which means that in the same way that anybody has a complaint about any other type of codes violation such as the sewage dumping or that sort of a thing. The process is they make a complaint to the planning and zoning/codes enforcement officer.
“They do an investigation. If they find there to be a violation, they ultimately send a letter giving the alleged violator an opportunity to become compliant. After those days for compliancy elapse, they can ultimately issue a citation to them to appear in codes court in front of Judge Purvis, at which case it would commence as a legal proceeding for those code violations.
“Codes violations are not bailable. They are subject to sort of fine penalty type of thing. If the judge ultimately finds there to have been a violation beyond a reasonable doubt. Codes court does not have a jury. I has a judge only so evidence is presented to the judge and ultimately he makes, you know, the determination about whether or not there is a violation.
“But any alleged violators have their due process to retain an attorney to present their side of the story and it would be the county vis s vi the codes enforcement officer and the county counselor to present any evidence of any alleged violations.
“So, I just wanted to make sure that folks understand that that is how the process goes. The planning and zoning board doesn’t have any jurisdiction and neither does the commission if there’s no application pending.”
In the Linn County Zoning regulations. Section 22-5 lines out the penalties for violation of any provision of the zoning regulations. The violation is punishable by a fine not to exceed $500. Each day’s violation constitutes a separate offense, according to the regulations.
Hamilton asked if there was a complaint form online or does the person have to come in.
Cummings said there was a complaint form online under planning and zoning department’s page on the county’s website.
To find the form, you can click on “County Codes” on the main county website and it will take you to the planning and zoning page. Under a section that says “County Applications, Resolutions, and Additional Information,” a person can then scroll down to “Nuisance/Sanitation Complaint Form” and click on that for the form.
In a phone call on Monday, March 2, with Emily Thies, she said that the couple’s attorney had told them to withdraw the application because the conditions citing the noise levels and lighting conditions listed on the CUP were unconstitutional.
The conditions put on the application were in brief:
Site location and track configuration
Dust control plan.
No lighting for commercial events 30 minutes outside of business hours either direction.
Sound testing and noise standards.
Hours of operation.
A separate permit will be required if over 300 or more persons are going to attend an event.
Time schedule for trainings.
Sanitation and facilities.
Regulation on public address systems and loud speakers.
Public safety and notification.
Sound mitigation to protect neighbors was optional.
Maximum number of cycles running during a training session was 10.
On special events, like a racing event the Thieses host annually, the planning commission wanted the couple to apply for a separate permit.
The Thieses’ son runs the motocross training school at the location.