by Carrie Moritz, Gazette
On Monday, August 8, the Garretson City Council heard the results from a recently completed housing study, and contemplated setback variance requests from Nachurs Alpine for the new facility to be built off Railroad and Essex.
The housing study was approved by the council after the request of Economic Development Director Jessica Fueston and Southeast Council of Governments (SECOG) proposed it as an option last winter. This study not only looked at the condition of current housing in Garretson, but also the city's growth potential, commercial potential and current standings, and employability.
"It took nearly six months [to complete]," said Fueston. The study was completed by Community Research Partners, using census bureau and government sites such as AGS and ESRI, as well as personal interviews with landlords around town.
The report projected a growth of 123 residents by 2026, resulting in approximately 53 new houses, or ten per year. Unfortunately, up through 2020, there was only a 7% growth rate, which is the lowest of our area, according to Fueston.
"We have a lot of room for growth," she said.
The main concern of many Garretson residents is that the town may become a "bedroom town," where most residents work and shop in a nearby municipality (in this case, Sioux Falls) and live in Garretson. Bedroom towns can lack a cohesive community, as well as commercial opportunities that generate sales tax revenue in order to provide services.
"There are limited commercial options," Fueston recited from the report. She also stated that employee pay in town was relatively low.
Luckily, Garretson has several things going for it, including current infrastructure and the school.
"According to the report we have 424 residents that commute to the Garretson area every day," said Fueston. "Those are mainly EROS and Nordstroms, with some others here and there." Around half of those commuters drive over 30 minutes to reach their work destination.
In current housing, the researcher found 6 dilapidated properties, 3 of which were houses and 3 mobile homes.
"He was very impressed with that, for our size," Fueston said, suggesting that normally it would be a higher number.
The report recommended that the city purchase the dilapidated properties, raze the houses, and re-sell the land to a developer, who would hopefully pass on the cost savings in the form of affordable housing.
"During the course of the study, there were no rental vacancies at all," Fueston said, "so we're very short on rentals in Garretson." She also pointed out that sixty percent of the rentals in Garretson are more than 40 years old, which makes rehabilitation a costly expenditure.
"That's a tough spot," she said, "because to fix them up, [landlords] need to raise rates. But you want more affordable [housing] instead of the rate raising."
One way to rehabilitate rentals and preserve what Garretson has, is to use grants from the Housing Development Authority and pass those on to rental properties.
The report also pointed out the space available for growth. To do that, strategizing will be necessary, as will utilizing current resources such as SECOG.
Downtown redevelopment will also need to be considered and strategized, according to the report.
"Attracting more commercial development and multi-use buildings with rentals, housing and commercial" is one strategy to build more housing and commercial opportunities, Fueston said. The report also suggested mobile home park improvements, such as age requirements for those structures.
After finishing the summary of the report, Fueston pointed out that the completed housing study now makes the city eligible for several grants, such as funding from South Dakota Housing Authority, with the express purpose of purchasing land for development or attracting developers.
For instance, the city could use funds to install infrastructure in areas where growth is wanted, and sell the land to a developer who then does not need to use their funds to put it in place. This passes on cost savings to future homeowners.
There's definitely room for growth, and strategizing how to grow both rentals and single family and multi-family housing is needed, said Fueston.
Nachurs Alpine variance requests rejected
In June, the council had approved the request 4-2 for Nachurs Alpine Solutions to convert land off Railroad Ave./Essex St. into industrial from residential. This was done over the protestations of local residents whose land would be impacted by the decision. This month, the company was requesting variances on 3 of their 4 setbacks.
The council had opted to move ahead with the re-zoning request as nothing had ever been developed on that specific plot of land in the 130 years since Garretson was incorporated as a town, and the industry was planned to be quiet, reduce truck traffic, and not add to any smell issues that have been experienced in the past. (Further reading can be found in the May 12 and June 16 issues of the Gazette.)
As part of their 17,000-square-foot building plans, Nachurs was requesting a variance on setback requests on the east, west, and north sides of the property, reducing the setback from 25 feet to 10 feet on each side.
Despite the reluctant willingness to approve the re-zoning, city staff and the council quickly made it clear that they were not in favor of the variance requests.
"I don't think we should allow it into the west," said City Maintenance Supervisor Ryan Nussbaum. "It's going to be too close to the water main."
He requested a setback of at least 15 feet and for it not to be in the right-of-way at all.
Steve Kirton, who owns the property just north to the new proposed building, was concerned about the amount of snow that is likely to come off the roof, especially if it was too close to the designated road on the west.
"That is not an alley," he said, pointing out the road to his building was actually an unpaved portion of Railroad Avenue, a point he has made several times in past meetings.
"I tell you what, my first impression is that going from 25 feet to 10 feet is too much of a hit," said council member Dave Bonte. Other council members agreed.
"That's significant," said council member Jackie Rotert.
"It's too much," said council member Bill Hoskins.
Mayor Greg Beaner asked if there was an amount that could be negotiated, and Kirton agreed that 20-foot setbacks would be acceptable as a compromise.
"Usually industrial setbacks are 20 feet," said Fueston. "But since this abuts residential, it's 25."
The motions were made to deny the requests as written, and all passed unanimously. It is likely that Nachur's Alpine will be back at a future meeting with revised requests for setbacks.
The final piece of the council meeting held on the 8th was to set a special budget meeting for August 30. A public hearing will be held from 6:00 - 6:30 p.m., and a formal meeting after at 6:30 p.m. at the Legion building. The public is invited to attend.
The next regular meeting of the city council will be held on September 12 at 6:30 p.m. at the Legion.
