Board hears three requests, meets newest member

​The Clinton County Planning and Zoning Commission held three public hearings on Thursday, August 5, approving two requests while declining a third.

Estep Meadows, Inc. of Cameron had applied to the zoning board for a minor subdivision of a 135-acre parcel, requesting to divide it into two tracts consisting of four acres and 131 acres. The property is located on the west side of N.E. Estep Rd., south of H Hwy, and north of N.E. 292nd Street. In Turney (Section 34, Township 56N, Range 30W).
A total of eight letters were sent to adjoining landowners. No one other than Joy Estep appeared to either support or oppose the request. The four-acre tract is somewhat isolated and has harvest storage facilities on the site. There are no houses on either of the tracts.

Zoning commissioners expressed concerns about a four-acre tract of land because it does not meet the minimum requirements for a home to be built and there are no other small tracts of land in the area. After approximately 10 minutes of the hearing, the board moved to a vote and the request was denied (two votes in favor, three opposed, and one board member abstained).

The second hearing was a request by Douglas and Cynthia Crozier of Holt. They were asking for a minor subdivision of a 20-acre parcel into tracts of 15 acres and five acres, and to rezone both tracts from AG-A to AG-B. The property is located on the west side of S.E. Sellers Ln., south of S.E. 209th St., and north of S.E. 207th St., Holt, Mo. (Section 27; Township 54N; Ranger 31W).

The Croziers wish to have the two tracts in order for their daughter to build a home on the five-acre tract so she can live closer to the parents.

Letters were sent to 25 adjoining lot landowners, with only the Croziers attending the hearing. The board voted to approve the subdivision and rezoning request, 6-0.

The final hearing was a request from William and Deanna McClelland of Cameron,  who applied to the commission for a special use permit to install a 17.04 KW residential solar energy system (LASES). The property is located on the east side of 69 Highway, north of H Highway, and south of Highway 121 in rural Cameron (Section 23, Township 56N, Range 30W).

Letters were sent to 14 adjoining property owners with no one appearing in support or opposition of the request. There was discussion among the commissioners regarding the mounting, height, and length of the system, if the wiring would be underground and if there were rebate incentives from the electric cooperative or tax incentives for this system.

Jonathan Grant spoke for the McClellands as the installer of the system and informed the commission that the system would be a ground mount and that there should be no glare affecting traffic on I-35. He stated that all the traffic on the interstate should see are the black surfaces of the panels. He said the system is approximately nine feet high, three and a half feet off the ground, and about 75 feet long. He added that this system should meet all the electric requirements of the McClellands based on current needs. He also informed the board that there are some tax incentives from the government but none from the owner’s electric service providers.

The board voted 6-0 to approve the request for the special use permit.

Finally, the board members were introduced to the newest appointed member of the commission. Elizabeth (Beth) Franklin, who had been nominated and approved by the county commissioners to replace resigning member Roger Porter in Clinton Township. She will assume her position on the board at the September meeting. Franklin said she could not take the position until then because she is retiring from the Corps of Engineers, where she has worked for 35 years, and she looks forward to taking the position then.

​The next scheduled meeting of the zoning commission is scheduled for Thursday, September 2, at 7 p.m.