Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
By RICHARD JENKINS
Hurley — The Iron County Comprehensive Planning and Zoning Committee clarified when sheds in the county’s commercial areas need permits Tuesday.
The issue was raised by Iron County Zoning Administrator Erika Roeder, who was seeking guidance on how to answer any potential questions about a Mercer business that was considering using some sheds it was selling for inventory storage until they sold.
“It sounds like they are using them for storage, but they’re also for sale at the same time,” Roeder said. “So I’m just kind of asking you guys to define, maybe, what you see as an output of business and what you see as a storage shed.”
Roeder told the committee while sheds under 1,000 cubic feet were allowed county wide, the zoning code requires a permit for sheds larger than that.
She said other counties handled the issue differently, either permitting the sheds regardless of use or deeming unused sheds as an output of business.
“So if they’re not used for storage or anything, and the sheds are only models for sale; they don’t (require a permit) because they see them as a retail or output of their business,” Roeder said.
Part of the difficulty in deciding what to do, according to Roeder, is theoretically the sheds could sit on the property for sale for a long period of time while also being used as storage.
County Board Chair Joe Pinardi also raised the possibility of the constructed sheds being used purely as models and never actually sold.
“When the time comes to sell the building, they sell another one just like that and keep their storage in there,” Pinardi said. “They sell another one that’s just like the one that is all full of stuff right now so they can continue to (use it for storage).”
The required setbacks for building on a property would be followed regardless of the decision.
While no formal action was taken, the committee reached a consensus that empty sheds wouldn’t require a permit.
“If it’s an empty building, I don’t have an issue with it. As soon as you start to use it for storage, then there’s an issue,” committee chairman Jim Kichak said.