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The Zombie of Shoreland Zoning Rules Lurches Again
Last week the DNR received authorization from its governing body, the Natural Resources Board, to draft changes to the rules affecting shoreland zoning, known to water geeks as NR 115. These are the same rules that have been in the making, amidst painful negotiations and compromise, for 10 years, and generated thousands of public comments from around the state.
These are the same rules that were endorsed by conservation organizations, realtors and developers together. Now DNR wants to change rule again, under the guise of modifying or clarifying certain sections of the rule that are "difficult to implement or administratively burdensome."
In reality, the changes described in the scope undermine key water protection elements of the rule, and upset the balance the current rule achieved between landowner flexibility and environmental protection.
The River Alliance is emphatically opposed to further weakening of the rules, and particularly opposed to re-opening them well after key parties had reached agreement. Over 40 counties have adopted new ordinances aligning with the new rule, and this re-opening of the rule throws more confusion their way.
Someone should explain to people who develop and sell shoreland property that the value of that property is deeply tied to the quality of the water that property sits on. You wreck the lake, you wreck the value of the cottage. Isn't that obvious yet?
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