Plan Commission Minutes

Town of Washburn

Outdoors at 78860 Church Corner Road

Tuesday, August 4, 2026

 

Commission members present: Kim Bro (chair), Tim Schwenzfeier (vice chair), Caroline Twombly, Seth Vasser (town board representative).

Commission members absent: Cyndi Belanger (secretary).

Others present: None.

1. Chairman Bro called the meeting of the Commission to order at 6:42 P.M. and verified its legal notification (posted at Town Hall, Tetzner Dairy on July 29 and on Town website on July 30, 2026.
2. The minutes of the June 7, 2026 meeting were approved (Caroline moves, Tim seconds).
3. Just prior to the meeting, the commission conducted a site visit for a driveway for a County approved residence permit at Gerald and Amy Fleming’s 40‑acre parcel at 78860 Church Corner Road. The owners have used a former logging road for access, installed a septic drain field for their recreational vehicle, and later marked the corners of their proposed residential structure. The driveway has a gravel base extending approximately 280 feet from the Town road, and woody vegetation had been removed from approximately ten feet on either side. The driveway ends at a circular area approximately 50 feet in diameter at its east end. The proposed residence is north of the circular area, and additional gravel was stockpiled for placement north of the circular area and east of the proposed residence. There is a small storage container south of the circular area. The driveway is on transitional (sand-over-clay) soil and is west of a forested, steep slope descending east approximately 150 feet to a headwater tributary of Four Mile Creek. All of the cleared site appears to be on relatively level, stable soil.
4. The commission reviewed the driveway permit application for Gerald and Amy Fleming to access a planned residence on their 40-acre parcel in a Forestry 1 zoning district (NW¼NW¼ Section 22 T.49N R.5W; Tax ID#: 30954). The Commission recommends (Tim moves, Caroline seconds) that the Town Board approve the driveway permit. The proposed driveway meets the roadbed, drainage, visibility, and turnaround requirements of the driveway ordinance, and is located setback from the wooded, steep sand-over-clay slope extending to trout stream headwaters (Objective 7.3 & p.8‑13). The development retains the natural wooded character of the area (Objective 8.4). Runoff from Church Corner Road flows into the woods on the property such that a culvert is not necessary.
5. The Commission noticed that Dean and Martha Franke at 78855 Church Corner Road had failed to install their driveway as approved by the Town Board in August of 2021 for access to their permanently placed recreational vehicle. Instead they were continuing to use a former logging road with no gravel base, no turnaround area, and inadequate clearance of woody vegetation. The property does not provide adequate access for emergency vehicles. Kim will mention this to the Town Board and will attempt to notify the owners.
6. The planned its next meeting for Tuesday, September 8, 2026 at 7 PM to review draft County ordinances (does this conflict with the Town Board meeting?).
7. The meeting adjourned at 7:40 P.M. (Seth moves, Caroline seconds).

Kenneth Bro, Chair, Washburn Town Plan Commission (August 16, 2026 draft approved September 1, 2026).

Plan Commission Report

The Commission recommends that the Town Board approve the driveway permit for Gerald and Amy Fleming as proposed in their application. The Commission recommends taking action to enforce installation of a driveway compliant with the approved driveway permit application (August 2021) for Dean and Martha Franke at 78855 Church Corner Road.