Wrenshall council weighs RV ordinance, adds short-term rentals to mix

Following two weeks of uproar related to proposed ordinance changes in Wrenshall, the city council earned a muted response at its meeting Wednesday.

There were fewer than a dozen visitors to City Hall, compared to the almost 100 who objected to an RV park ordinance at a public hearing in February.

The city council said Wednesday it won’t address the RV ordinance again until a planning commission meeting at 10 a.m. April 19 — the first date the council can meet in full due to an absence from councilor Joyce Gvesrude. The council, which also acts as planning commission, said it also needed more time to process feedback from speakers at the hearing.

But in tabling the ordinance, Mayor Gary Butala read aloud a city council response, thanking the public outpouring while denying the city was targeting a single business owner, namely Jeff and Liz Bloom, owners of the Wrenshall General Store and RV park on the south end of town.

“The city is not against its residents and is definitely not against its businesses,” Butala said. “We want the city to thrive and grow.”

Citing the Blooms by name, Butala added “(they) do run a tight ship, and that has never been in question,” Butala said. “The fact is they may not always own the businesses at 131 Broadway. It makes sense to have written rules and laws so that requirements are clear.”

The RV ordinance would require owners to supply the city with detailed layouts of camping areas, and puts the onus for updated inspections and permits on the RV park owner when it came to connections with city water and sewer.

Regarding an ordinance governing interim use permits in town, the council unanimously approved changes that would loosen restrictions, allowing home-based businesses to go without a permit provided the business didn’t require separate buildings on a property and was generally low-impact on neighborhood traffic.

Bloom’s Lots4bid business, Ponderosa Sales, saw an interim use permit related to outdoor storage expire in February.

Already dug in against further regulation, Bloom reiterated he won’t seek a new one, saying he doesn’t store auction items on his property, only displays them for sale.

“What do I need one for?” he said.

The council agreed to send a second letter to Ponderosa Sales related to the lapsed permit.

Otherwise, the Blooms sat quietly, mostly listening until talk turned to a proposed new city ordinance that would govern short-term rentals, such as vacation rentals.

“That sounds like deja vu,” Jeff Bloom said, wondering why the city continued to press new ordinances.

Butala explained that in order to allow vacation rentals, the state requires the city to adopt an ordinance governing them.

“We have to have it if we’re going to allow it,” Butala told Bloom, who asked why interim use permits couldn’t govern short-term rentals.

“No, that’s something different,” councilor Judy Mattinen said.

After the meeting, Bloom said he felt like the city was delaying in an effort to wear out opposition to proposed changes.

“That’s not going to happen,” Bloom said, complaining that some of his supporters weren’t allowed to speak at last month’s public hearing because City Hall was overflowing with people.

Meanwhile, councilor Duane Ziebarth and Bloom met outside after the meeting. Bloom’s supporters gathered around them as they spoke to one another.

Ziebarth said the problem with not adopting ordinances for the city was that not every business owner in the future may be as committed to high standards.

“A lot of things get grandfathered in and (bad) things happen down the road,” Ziebarth was overheard saying.

“What I would like to see happen is for us to work together,” Ziebarth told Bloom, who agreed to sit down at a future date.

If Bloom were to reapply for his interim use permit to display auction items, the matter would go before a public hearing and Bloom may be required to put items behind screens.

The city noted during the meeting that, while not receiving any noise complaints about the RV park on Bloom property, there have been multiple complaints about outdoor storage generally being an eyesore.

“Screening for auction storage could be discussed,” Butala said.

Bloom expressed frustration by what he believed was a dragging process.

“What I don’t like is they’re picking and choosing,” Bloom said, while bracing himself for the next step on April 19.