The Pawnee County Planning and Zoning Commission will host a public hearing at 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 10 at the Pawnee County Courthouse Lounge. The hearing is to receive public input on proposed county zoning regulations related to minimum lot sizes for residential property located in rural residential districts.
Tuesday’s meeting of the Planning Commission will consider additional public input and three proposed changes to county regulations for approval:
• A new section establishes height, area and bulk regulations for newly-platted parcels not intended for agricultural or commercial use. If approved, all tracts of record parceled after July 1, 2022, as a proposed effective date in unincorporated portions of the county will contain a minimum lot area of 130,680 square feet (three acres).
Standards for road frontage setbacks, height of buildings and front, side and rear yards and lot dimensions will be determined.
• In an amendment to the Agricultural District (AG) section, dimensions of front, side and rear yards and lot area shall be determined as a minimum of 40 acres.
• In an amendment to the Rural Residential District (RR) section, height of buildings or structures shall not exceed 35 feet and front, side and rear yards will be determined. Lot area per dwelling unit will be set at a minimum of 130,680 square feet or three acres per dwelling unit.
Consideration to grandfather properties sold prior to the new effective date will also be taken up by the zoning board. The current Pawnee County Zoning Regulations can be found at www.pawneecountykansas.com, at the Road & Bridge/Noxious Weed/Zoning link under Government Departments.
Background
Earlier in the year, negotiations to sell a parcel containing a residence and outbuildings in rural Garfield had commenced. A survey initiated by the potential buyer determined that the proposed parcel was approximately 3.1 acres.
However, Pawnee County Zoning Coordinator Kurt Demel advised the surveyor that zoning regulations, as adopted in 2003, specified a minimum lot size of at least 10 acres and that a variance would be required. In 2003, the county’s zoning regulations were approved as presented by the Baughman Company of Wichita.
The surveyor, Randy Anderson of Central Kansas Surveying and Mapping Inc., Great Bend, and the potential seller met with the Commissioners on March 7 to request the zoning regulations be modified to allow for smaller rural residential lot sizes. Local real estate agents were also in attendance.
During discussion, it was discovered that prior county zoning coordinator Mark Wagner had never required variances — advising surveyors, real estate agents and appraisers that smaller lots were acceptable provided they were approved by the Central Kansas Local Environmental Planning Group (CLEPG). In regard to Pawnee County lot sales, CLEPG approved smaller tracts as long as the septic tank, laterals and water well fit on the proposed tract. The Commissioners took no action at the meeting, recommending that a variance for the proposed parcel be pursued.
At an April meeting of the Planning Commission, it was learned that Barton, Russell and Stafford counties all required a five-acre minimum standard and Edwards County requires a minimum of three acres.
A variance for the proposed Garfield property was granted.
