TOWN OF CONCORD PLAN COMMISSION MINUTES
July 23, 2025
The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. with Plan Commission members Sally Williams, Tony Metzger, Dave Wegner, and Dale Konle, present. Duwayne Hunt was absent. Town chair Ted Mueller was also present.
Sally Williams stated that the meeting had been properly posted.
Dave Wegner made a motion to approve the minutes from the June 25, 2025 meeting, second by Tony Metzger. All approved. Motion passed.
Item 1: Ronald & Adelaide Downing requested approval of a preliminary CSM to create three A-3 residential lots at W1878 Elder Dr, from parcels 006-0716-3243-000 and part of 006-0716-3242-000. The lot creation involves 2 separate parent parcels. A 1-acre farm consolidation and a 3.8-acre non-prime A-3 split would be created from a 4.8 acre parent parcel between W. Elder Dr. and Elder Dr. A 2-acre non-prime A-3 split would be created from a parent parcel south of Elder Dr.
Public Comment: There were about 10 neighbors present at the meeting. A few had general questions regarding what was allowed on the property as far as lot splits. None spoke either for or against the specific proposal.
Tony Metzger made a motion to recommend approval of the preliminary CSM as presented, second by Dale Konle. All approved. Motion passed.
Item 2: Discussion of Town Ordinances Ch. 18.1 Impact Fees
Direction from the town board was to keep the Impact fee and possibly structure the fee for commercial properties so that there would be a charge per square foot rather than a flat fee. Ted Mueller suggested $.30 per square foot.
There was discussion as to what the Impact fee should be used for. The current fee is used for highway repairs. The 2007 Public Facility Needs Assessment Impact Fee Analysis prepared by Bender, Levi and Associates indicated that at the time, they felt putting the funds in the highway fund was the easiest way to track use of the money. They also did an extensive analysis of the costs involved in highway repair and the projected population growth to calculate the amount of the impact fee.
State statutes direct that an Impact fee should be used for improvements that are required as a result of the new development. They cannot be used to address existing public facility deficiencies. Some members felt that the use of Impact fees for highway repair was not appropriate based on state statutes.
Other ideas for use of the funds were to cover the costs of placing fire numbers, road right-of-way work associated directly with the new development, and fire/ EMS costs which are based on population. Use of the fees for these purposes would require more involved tracking of the funds.
State statutes also require that any change to the ordinance which would increase the fees or change how those fees are used would require a new Public Facility Needs Assessment and a public hearing. Tony Metzer suggested that due to the work and potential cost involved in preparing a new assessment and the low number of yearly building permits issued, it may not be worthwhile to amend the ordinance at this time.
Tony made a motion to recommend no changes to the Impact Fee ordinance. Second by Dave Wegner. Tony, Dave and Sally approved, Dale opposed. Motion passed.
Item 4: Discussion of annexation
The town board is considering hiring an attorney to attend a meeting to answer questions and concerns regarding annexation. The plan commission came up with a list of questions to present to the town board.
With no further business Tony Metzger made a motion to adjourn, second by Sally Williams. Meeting adjourned at 8:16 p.m.
Respectfully submitted, Sally Williams, secretary