The Martin Township Board continues to grapple with problems associated with local zoning rules.
The board learned Wednesday evening from Planning Commission Chairman Ron Zeinstra that the Van Elderen pet food processing plant requested a special use use permit Tuesday night, but was turned down on a 3-2 vote.
Zeinstra explained the reason was the firm wanted to use agricultural land for industrial and commercial purposes, and because of “older problems they’ve had in the past.”
Meanwhile, the commission and board have a potential zoning enforcement problem looming with Paul Brewer’s decision to erect a storage building on an ag parcel that has no other building on it, despite the fact the township ordinance forbids it.
Zeinstra told board members he’d like to see some kind of insistence on site plan review before anyone builds.
“If they had to a site plan review, it might give us a little more control,” he said.
This, not long after the township suffered an economic blow from the Nate Knight case, in which he was building a structure they believed not to be in compliance. After numerous attempts to get him to comply and even taking the case to court, the district judge ruled Knight didn’t have to pay for legal costs now that he had gotten into compliance.
In other business at Wednesday’s regular meeting, the board:
• Scheduled a workshop on the proposed 2019-20 fiscal year budget for 6 p.m. Wednesday, May 29.
• Learned the Allegan County Road Commission has estimated the cost at $222,000 for reconstructing 122nd Avenue from 10th Street to 300 feet east of railroad tracks. Board members agreed to ask the commission how much it would cost to extend the work to Seventh Street and even beyond. Martin Township currently has $440,000 available in its road fund.
• Scheduled the annual Trash Day for 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 18, in downtown Martin.
