Minocqua town board approves Bangstad ARP

The Minocqua town board on Tuesday approved an administrative review permit application from Kirk Bangstad to develop a former bicycle shop  into a new location for the Minocqua Brewing Company. 

Bangstad was represented at Tuesday’s meeting by architect Christopher Naumann who presented the company’s latest plans, designed to mitigate issues and concerns such as parking and flow of traffic. 

Those had initially been discussed at the Sept. 14 meeting of the Minocqua plan commission and again at the Minocqua town board meeting on Nov. 2. 

The primary issues: the parking requirement set by Oneida County — seven spaces on the property — and a right-of-way to alleviate parking, commonly referred to as a “pork-chop.” 

At previous meetings, ownership of that sliver of land in front of the former bike shop, whether by the town or the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (DOT), had not been clear. 

Town chairman Mark Hartzheim, at Tuesday’s meeting, said he was pretty sure the town owns the triangular piece of land, not the DOT.

Naumann started the discussion by reviewing the plans. 

Revised plans include a one-way driveway off of U.S. Highway 51 leading across the front of the building and onto Front Street, crossing the right-of-way. 

Existing curb cuts would be closed and there would be closure of two on-street parking spaces, leaving Bangstad with a total of four parking spaces. 

Naumann said there is an opportunity to add a fifth and would ultimately require an exemption of two, up to three, parking spaces, given the county’s seven space requirement. 

Hartzheim said approval of the ARP at this point is all about parking exemptions. 

Oneida County zoning administrator Karl Jennrich said the county ordinance requires the seven spaces which includes four spaces for three employees and the other three for retail customers. 

He also mentioned the diameter of the parking, 220 square feet with a minimum of 10 feet in width. 

“And again, unless there is a waiver for the parking by the town of Minocqua … the proposal could not be approved (by the county),” Jennrich said.

Town supervisor Sue Heil asked if the two parking spaces on Hwy. 51, which the plans suggested be removed for the entrance point, be replaced.

Naumann said at this time there are no plans to do so, but their civil engineer believes it could be done.

It would, he said, need approval from the town and the DOT. 

Hartzheim said if the plans were to be passed by the board then the entrance point would need approval from the DOT. 

He added the DOT has indicated they would be open to it but it does require an official permit process through them. 

The majority of the discussion concerned different ideas to maximize parking with efficient maneuverability in mind. 

“To me, as long as the balance of the property is almost entirely consumed by parking, I get a little nervous and curious as to if they are trying to reserve some space for other purposes than parking,” Hartzheim said. “And say they can’t meet the number (seven) but they’re trying to keep some space that’s undesignated. I like the idea that everything they do have available is utilized for parking, and with a 10 foot wide space they could still, I believe, get that seven in here … if they can get seven in there, there’s that many fewer spaces that will spill out into other parking spaces.” 

Town supervisor Bill Stengl said he would be in favor of the five spot plan if it meant giving up a couple spots in favor of a plan which flows well and provides green space where possible. 

While concerns of visibility and safety were expressed by Mark Pertile, the town’s director of public works, Hartzheim said there would be little. 

If there were, he said visibility and safety issues would be near by the exit near Front Street, given the new plans do not provide access back onto Hwy. 51. 

“In theory, it sounds good not having access that way, but I think realistically people aren’t going to follow it,” Pertile said. “That’s what I’m saying. They’re going to enter and exit. The signs aren't going to make any difference for them, they’re going to go out that way and turn left.”

He said it would be hard to ticket consumers as well. 

Hartzheim said he thinks that instance would be unlikely given the design and if it does become a problem, the town can address it. 

Another point of emphasis discussed was a five-foot buffer, mentioned earlier by Jennrich, between the property line and the right-of-way.

This was an aspect considered because of maneuverability and traffic flow, giving vehicles enough space to park efficiently. 

After more discussion, Stengl asked Jennrich if there are any other concerns from county zoning. 

Jennrich said there weren’t, as Bangstad’s ARP application was solely retail in nature. 

Hartzheim pointed out an important aspect of the project, which was the intent to be strictly retail. 

“I think that’s a key point we have to underline in this whole thing, being that they are only pursuing an administrative review permit and not a CUP,” he said. “They have to understand that there will be no outdoor service, outdoor seating, outdoor displays, you know, conducting of business events outdoors at all under this permit. This is strictly (an) inside retail business operation.” 

The board ultimately agreed on recommended approval of the ARP with a number of conditions. 

“I do think a lot of things are being considered here,” Hartzheim said before the board voted for recommended approval of the ARP. “I believe I will vote against it, just because I do believe we should maximize the parking. There’s a way to get seven spaces and I think we should do that, but I think there is a lot of good work that has been done here to get to this point.”

He and town supervisor John Thompson voted against the ARP application’s approval. 

ARP conditions
The conditions include: 

• Bangstad provides a minimum of six parking spaces with minimum width of nine feet and depth of 20 feet. The town would waive one space from the county requirement.

• Bangstad shall provide a curb on the east lot line with the town waiving the five-foot setback. 

• Bangstad is to provide a storm water run-off plan reviewed by the director of public works prior to final approval. 

• Bangstad to enter into a revocable access permit for the access easement crossing the town property (the “pork-chop”). 

• No outdoor displays, sales, services, tables and tents which are not permitted by the ARP. 

• Site layout includes one-way traffic flow with signage to indicate said flow.

• Confirm ownership by the town of the right-of-way (the “pork-chop”) parcel with a letter from the title company. 

• Reconfiguration of parking off of Chippewa street with approval from the DOT.

The conditions listed will need to be met before final approval of the ARP application from county zoning staff. 

Trevor Greene may be reached via email at [email protected].