WILLMAR
— Improvement of the Willmar property located on the northwest corner of Litchfield Avenue and Sixth Street Southeast, which has been an eyesore for many years, should start taking place soon.
Paving the way for work to continue on the project was the
Willmar City Council’s
approval on Monday of a new plat and rezoning the property to general business three, which was previously approved by the
Willmar Planning Commission
in early March.
The owner of the property, Ben Fischer, in 2022 moved the triplex at that location from the corner lot to the adjacent lot to the west at 425 Litchfield Avenue Southeast. The plan is to pave the corner lot to be used as a parking pad for residents of the triplex.
Fischer has also been cleaning up the two lots located to the north that are off of Benson Avenue Southeast. A new plat combined those two lots so that a shed from 223 Benson Avenue Southeast could be moved there to be used as a contractor shop with multiple bays that smaller contractors can rent for their business.
Jennifer Kotila / West Central Tribune
Fischer claims that the reason the property has remained in this condition since 2022 was the resignation of former planning and development director Justice Walker in September of 2023, which confused the process.
There is a stretch of homes in that location that are triplexes or fourplexes, but the zoning in that location is residential two, which only allows for single-family homes and duplexes. The triplexes and fourplexes are out of compliance with Willmar’s zoning ordinance, which was established after those buildings were constructed, according to Willmar City Planner Chris Frank.
Contributed / City of Willmar
Fischer explained that Walker told him that the area was going to be rezoned to residential three to bring those homes into compliance, but that did not take place before Walker resigned.
When Fischer attempted to get a permit to renovate the triplex, he said he was told by Willmar Building Inspector Jacen Swagerman the building could only be a duplex due to the city’s zoning ordinance.
“Justice Walker told me that … was going to be changed to (residential three) way back when, so I didn’t have to worry about any of this stuff,” Fischer told the Willmar Planning Commission in February. “Well, as soon as he’s gone, Jacen told me, ‘No, you can’t, you can only have a duplex.’ So that’s why it sat empty, because it doesn’t money out if I only have a duplex. … That’s what this whole holdup has been. Because ever since Justice left, it all went down the toilet.”
When Fischer approached the Planning and Development Department earlier this year to inquire what could be done to allow him to complete the project, he said he was told if he waited a few months the area was going to be rezoned to mixed use after the new With Willmar comprehensive plan was approved.
However, due to what happened when Walker resigned, Fischer decided he did not want to wait. The solution was to rezone the property to general business three and get a conditional use permit to finish the renovations.
Although Fischer now has what he needs to complete his project, he voiced his concerns during Monday’s Council meeting about how long the process was to get the property rezoned and platted, as well as being made to pay $8,000 for a civil engineering permit without even knowing that he would be given permission to complete the project.
Willmar Planning and Development Director Christopher Corbett was asked by Councilor Justin Ask to explain the process and why it takes so long.
Generally, it takes 45 to 60 days for plats and rezones to be approved, according to Corbett. The issue first has to come before the planning commission and a public hearing is called. Notification of the public hearing has to be published in the official newspaper 10 days prior to the public hearing.
Once the planning commission holds the public hearing and approves the plat or rezone, it then moves on to the city council where the council hears a briefing on the issue and then schedules a public hearing. Notification of this public hearing also has to be published in the official newspaper 10 days prior to the hearing.
link