Plan Commission

1 VILLAGE OF SISTER BAY 2 PLAN COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES 3 TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2025 4 APPROVED 5 6 1. Call to Order & Roll Call 7 Chair Bhirdo called the Plan Commission meeting to order on Tuesday September 23, 2025, at 5:30 8 p.m. and took roll call. 9 10 Present: Plan Commission Chair Denise Bhirdo, and Commission members Steve Bacsi, Nate Bell, 11 Laurel Harff, Skip Heidler, Ron Kane, and Patrice Champeau via Zoom. 12 13 Staff Member(s): Village Administrator Julie Schmelzer, Admin Assistant Sarah Bertges. 14 15 Others: Tricia Janssen, Kurt Harff, Atty Andrew Maertahl, Cynthia Geocaris, Stephen Scripp, S. Gullick, 16 “Lisa’s IPhone”, bmeye, Karen Berndt. 17 18 2. Approve of Agenda 19 Motion by Bell, second by Heidler, to approve the agenda as presented. Motion carried – All Ayes 20 21 3. Approve Meeting Minutes: July 22, 2025 22 Heidler requested a correction on page 2 of the packet (page 1 of the minutes), lines 40 and 41, 23 noting that when he asked about the proposed use of the property, Nick Deviley had actually stated 24 that he would "rather not disclose that at this point." 25 Motion to approve the minutes as amended made by Heidler, second by Bell. Motion carried – All 26 Ayes 27 28 4. Comments, Correspondence and Concerns from the Public 29 There were no comments from the public. 30 31 5. Public Hearing 32 a. Conditional Use Permit Application; Nonconforming Use & Structures; GEOS SB; 10849 N Bay 33 Shore Drive 34 Bhirdo opened the public hearing at 5:34 PM. Schmelzer read the notice into the record. Schmelzer 35 summarized the staff report, explaining that the applicant proposes to remove the main home and 36 attach the two non-conforming structures to the new home. The property is zoned R1, where 37 multiple structures with living quarters are not permitted uses. Any work to expand or replace 38 structures requires a conditional use permit. Additionally, the cottages do not meet setback 39 requirements. Schmelzer noted that she had discussed alternatives with the applicant’s builder, 40 including removing the cottage by the water or purchasing land to the south to make the setbacks 41 conforming. 42 43 Andrew Martzahl, attorney representing the applicant, introduced himself along with property 44 owner Cynthia Geocaris and architect Chris Renier. He clarified that they are not seeking to connect 45 the three structures, but rather to rebuild one structure that was damaged in a recent tornado. 46 Martzahl explained that the property has had three structures with living quarters for decades. The 47 family wishes to maintain the historic cottages while rebuilding the tornado-damaged primary 48 residence. 49 50 Ms. Geocaris explained that she has been coming to Sister Bay since she was 10 years old and 51 purchased the property with her parents in 2002. She described the sentimental value of the  Minutes for the September 23, 2025 Regular Monthly Meeting of the Plan Commission 1 property and stated that they never rented it, only using it for family. She noted that the main house 2 is 72 years old and severely damaged from the tornado. Their plan is to rebuild a main home while 3 preserving the guest cottages, with the intention of retiring there. Geocaris explained that the 4 cottage by the water would be converted to more of a boathouse for water equipment storage 5 rather than having bedrooms. 6 7 Heidler noted the applicant applied prior to the storm that damaged the home. Commissioners 8 asked questions about the property, including the total square footage of the proposed new 9 structure, the size of the main floor, and the existing primary structure. Concern was expressed 10 about the size of the proposed building but acknowledged that other large homes had already been 11 built along Bay Shore Drive. 12 13 Tracie Krist, a neighbor from 10850 North Bayshore Drive, spoke in support of the application, noting 14 that the property owners were victims of a natural disaster and should be allowed to rebuild their 15 home. 16 17 Schmelzer clarified that the owners could repair what is there, but the main house is beyond repair 18 according to Ms. Geocaris. Schmelzer also noted that there is a letter on file from 2003 indicating the 19 owners' intent not to rent the cottages, but it was not a formal deed restriction. 20 21 Bhirdo closed the public hearing at 6:04 PM. 22 23 6. Discussion/Action Items 24 25 a. Conditional Use Permit Application; Nonconforming Use & Structures; GEOS SB; 10849 N Bay 26 Shore Drive 27 During deliberation, commissioners expressed varied concerns: 28 • Allowing multi-family use in an R1 district. 29 • Reluctance to compel the owners to tear down older buildings with historic value to the 30 owner or community. 31 • The close proximity to property lines (3-6 feet) and potential impacts on neighbors. 32 33 Schmelzer cautioned about setting precedents and suggested deed restrictions and conditions if the 34 commission was inclined to approve the application. 35 36 Motion by Bell, second by Champeau, to approve the conditional use permit. 37 38 Before a vote was taken Bhirdo asked if Bell and Champeau would be open to amending their 39 motion to include conditions. After extensive discussion, commissioners developed several 40 proposed conditions for approval: 41 • A deed restriction prohibiting short-term rentals in the cottage by the water and the cottage 42 by the road. 43 • Converting the cottage closest to the water to an accessory use for storage only, without 44 living quarters, but allowing only bathroom facilities without a shower. 45 • The cottage near the road could maintain its use as a unit with living quarters. 46 • No replacement, extension, addition, or structural alterations to either the cottage by the 47 water or the cottage near the road, although routine maintenance would be allowed. 48 49 Motion to approve the amendments made by Harff, second by Bell. Motion carried: Aye -5 (Bell, 50 Champeau, Harff, Kane, Bacsi); Nay -2 (Bhirdo, Heidler) 2  Minutes for the September 23, 2025 Regular Monthly Meeting of the Plan Commission 1 Motion to approve the conditional use permit application with the specified conditions was made by 2 Bell, second by Champeau. Motion carried: Aye -5 (Bell, Champeau, Harff, Kane, Bacsi); Nay -2 3 (Bhirdo, Heidler) 4 5 b. Preliminary Site Plan Review; Employee Housing; Northern Grill & Pub; 10573 Country Walk 6 Drive 7 Schmelzer explained that Lisa McDonald is looking to repurpose an old 400-square-foot cottage from 8 Gibraltar to place on her property for employee housing. The applicant is still waiting for the 9 surveyor to prepare a site plan but needs to know if the commission would be supportive of the 10 concept before proceeding. 11 12 Ms. McDonald, identified as connected to the Northern Grill & Pub, stated that the cottage would 13 match the exterior of the restaurant and would be located in the southwest part of the property. It 14 would be connected to sewer and water. Schmelzer noted that a deed restriction would be required 15 to ensure the building remains as employee housing. 16 17 By unanimous consensus, the commission indicated support for the project provided it meets all code 18 requirements, and McDonald applies for Site Plan and Architectural Review. 19 20 c. Site Plan Review; Expand Residential Condominium; Randell & Tricia Janssen; 2232 Mill Rd., Unit 21 B5 22 Schmelzer explained that the applicants wish to add a bedroom in their basement, changing their 23 unit from a 2-bedroom to a 3-bedroom condominium. The code requires Plan Commission approval 24 when increasing the number of bedrooms in a unit. She noted that this change would not affect 25 green space or the exterior, only parking requirements, which the applicants can accommodate with 26 their existing garage and driveway spaces. 27 28 Motion to approve the Site Plan Review, with no need for a Development Agreement, made by Bell, 29 second by Kane. Motion carried – All Ayes. 30 31 d. Draft Text Amendments; Parks District, Signage, CS-1 32 Schmelzer presented several draft text amendments for the commission's consideration: 33 • Commercial Center and Multi-Use Development Signage: 34 Commissioners discussed the size of marquee signs (currently allowed up to 72 square feet 35 per side). 36 There was expressed concern that 72 square feet was excessive. 37 Commissioners agreed to have village staff measure the existing Country Walk Shops sign to 38 determine an appropriate standard. 39 Commissioners agreed to change the maximum sign height from 12 feet to 8 feet for both 40 commercial center and multi-use development signs. 41 The commission discussed clarification of how signage should be allocated among tenants. 42 ● Window Signs: 43 The commission agreed that window signs displaying business names or logos should count 44 toward total signage allowance and require permits. 45 Temporary window signs (e.g., sale announcements) that change regularly would not require 46 permits or count toward total signage. 47 ● Historic Signage: 48 The commission reviewed and refined the definition of historic signs, removing "paint applied 49 directly to a building" from the criteria. 3  Minutes for the September 23, 2025 Regular Monthly Meeting of the Plan Commission 1 Commissioners supported Schmelzer's recommendation that historic sign determinations 2 should be made by the Plan Commission through a public hearing with findings of fact. 3 ● Agritourism: 4 Schmelzer proposed adding a definition and provisions for agritourism to the code. 5 Commissioners discussed whether products sold at agritourism venues should be limited to 6 those grown on-site, ultimately deciding not to include such restrictions in the definition. 7 8 The commission agreed to schedule these amendments for public hearing in October. 9 10 e. Fee Schedule; Signs 11 Schmelzer presented information on sign permit fees in other municipalities. It was recommended 12 by some to increase the fee to $150-200. Also change sandwich boards: $50 changeable script, $100 13 non-changeable script. 14 15 The commission agreed to forward this recommendation to the Village Board. 16 17 7. Administrator's Report 18 Schmelzer reported: 19 ● She had announced her retirement effective January 2, 2026. 20 ● The Village Board discussed updating the zoning ordinance. 21 ● The Village needs to update its zoning map to match the comprehensive plan within a year. 22 ● She provided commissioners with ideas for increasing housing units in the village, including 23 eliminating the requirement that lots held in common ownership be considered as one lot. 24 25 The commission expressed appreciation for Schmelzer's work and requested that she continue 26 working on housing-related amendments if time permits before her retirement. 27 28 8. Matters to be Placed on a Future Agenda or Referred to a Committee, Official or Employee 29 The commission agreed to discuss how to address historic structures in the context of 30 nonconforming uses and structures at a future meeting. 31 32 9. Next Meeting 33 Regular Monthly Meeting; October 28, 2025, at 5:30 P.M., Large Meeting Room, Sister Bay-Liberty 34 Grove Fire Station 35 36 10. Adjournment 37 At 8:09 P.M. a motion to adjourn was made by Kane, second by Harff. Motion carried – All ayes. 38 39 Respectfully submitted by, Sarah Bertges, Administrative Assistant 4