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In a rare move, September 16,  the Chisago County Board unanimously turned a recommended permit approval from the planning commission,  on its head— and voted 5-0 to deny the SnoBarons snowmobile club request to intensify use of their Hay Days Motorsports event grounds.  The planning commission had recommended approval 4-3 of a downsized request from 15 annual events to eight.  

This leaves SnoBarons  sanctioned by permit for Hay Days only, over Friday, Saturday and Sunday the weekend following Labor Day.

County Board comments prior to the denial,  included examples of what they felt were ongoing existing Hay Days conditions being ignored by SnoBarons.  While the new proposed activities are separate from the Hay Days issues, and the two permits were not to be conflated; the commissioners declared alleged non-compliance by the applicant necessarily must color their thinking.

Another concern is the category under which SnoBarons applied for the expanded uses. The conditions in the county ordinance do not fit what the SnoBarons applied for.  The process was tied to a “Commercial Recreation Permit” and commissioners argued the whole thing belonged under “event center” standards.  The type of permit is initiated by the applicant.

It was brought up multiple times in planning commission review during two public hearings on the Sno Barons’ plan— that there was nothing recreational about the potential uses identified by the snowmobile club.  The proposal ought to have been filed under event center and regulated by that, planning members in the opposing minority argued, as the split vote was recorded to send the request to the County Board.

The three planning commissioners opposed also pointed out the Sno Barons application was shy on details; which the County Board agreed on.  Commissioner Marlys Dunne stated the possible events sought were “too vague and broad” and she felt the projected crowd attendance numbers were unsupportable.

Commissioner Dan Dahlberg, who made the motion to deny the expanded uses under the commercial recreational conditions,  concurred that the use descriptions are too vague.

Commissioner Ben Montzka commented the recent (Sept 11, 12 13) Hay Days celebration racked up alot of complaints that found their way to him as an elected official. 

The way Sno Barons handled their existing responsibilities needs to be looked into, and he could not ignore  alleged non-compliance related to Hay Days, he concluded.

Commissioner Jim Swenson added if Sno Barons want to return with a refined plan and be prepared to answer his questions, which he said were unresolved in his mind, they can always apply again later. (County code doesn’t allow for the same or substantially similar project to be reapplied for until six months have passed.)

Chair Rick Greene agreed on this proposal lacking  specifics, saying “...there were hardly any conditions at all, we put more conditions on wedding venues.”

This County Board final action did not allow public hearing testimony— but during the  agenda portion under “open microphone” resident Deborah Olson publicly thanked the County Board for the denial.  “We (neighbors) were asking ourselves, how does this fit into our agricultural community” and added,  “Thanks for listening.”

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