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Lindsborg planner John Riggs talks to members of the Ellsworth Planning Commission, including Joni Glaser, in background. Photo by Alan Rusch.
Plan will carry Ellsworth into future growth
By Alan Rusch
Last Updated: November 04, 2009
The tedious process of rewriting Ellsworth's comprehensive plan from the 1970s inched forward Oct. 28, when a draft copy of the proposal was presented to members of the Ellsworth Planning Commission by John Riggs, a Lindsborg planner who acts as project consultant.
“This is a substantial update of everything," Riggs said.
The new, 154-page document offers guidelines for long range future development and includes zoning and subdivision regulations. The goal is to have the Ellsworth City Council adopt it as an ordinance.
Once approved, the ordinance would apply to future uses, not existing ones, as a condition of state law, Riggs said.
The draft comprehensive plan is divided into 33 sections, including districts for two-family, multiple-family, light and heavy industrial and adult entertainment districts. The plan also addresses parking and traffic regulations, landscaping requirements and enforcement.
Several new sections have been added to the document, for instance, a Flood Plain District. The regulations are intended to minimize the extent of floods and reduce the height and violence of them. They are also intended to secure safety from floods through the confinement of floods, within reasonable limits by regulating and restricting areas of development along or in natural water courses and drain ways.
The Manufactured Home District is another new feature of the comprehensive plan.
“It's an overlay district that would allow you to decide places in town where you would like to put manufactured homes," Riggs said. “That's usually used in a section of town where a nice manufactured home, even a single-wide, would be an improvement. So that's a way to influence improvements."
Also new is the Adult Entertainment District.
“It has become a necessary thing," Riggs said, adding the regulations for it are “very stringent."
“It's got to be a long ways away from where there would be youths and children," he said. “And there can only be one in each location. So you get them spread out. This is to prevent them from clustering. They may find a place to do it, but it will be way out of the way from the rest of society."
A section on the Board of Zoning Appeals is also included in the new plan.
“If you have zoning, you must have a board of zoning appeals," Riggs said. “It does have in here that under state law, the planning commission may be designated to act as the board of zoning appeals."
Wind turbines are addressed in the Additional Height, Area and Use Regulations section.
Riggs said there is a setback requirement to the turbines based upon rotor diameter standards set forth in the document.
Riggs said violation of zoning is not a joke.
“If you have a hostile court that doesn't like you, they can assign under law up to $500 in fines, six months in jail, or both the fine and jail time for any zoning violation," he said.
Riggs described the regulations contained in the document as typical of small towns.
“Right now, you have the best one around," he said. “It's similar to others in format, but different. This one is unique. Every community has its own personality and these plans need to reflect that. There is a lot more in here, so that when you need it, you have it."
Riggs said the next step in the process, after these regulations are reviewed, is to develop a zoning map.
The planning commission will meet again at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2010 at Ellsworth City Hall.
Copies of the plan are available for public inspection at City Hall.
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