SYLVESTER - Seven months after tentative approval of concentrated animal feeding operation Pinnacle Dairy, Green County officials and the corporation are at odds over the conditions set by county and state conservation officials in order for Pinnacle engineers to put the large-scale farm in place.
The concrete facility, slated to cover roughly 127 acres along County FF and Decatur-Sylvester Road in the Town of Sylvester, will hold 5,800 cows. Pinnacle must meet three conditions before it proceeds with operation and manure pits can be dug.
Green County Conservationist Todd Jenson said Pinnacle owner Todd Tuls and his attorneys met with county officials and Corporate Counsel Brian Bucholtz after a meeting of the county Land and Water Conservation Committee Nov. 2. The issue was with Pinnacle engineers trying to complete the required phases out of order. Namely, trying to proceed with phase three when they have not yet met the second condition.
Jenson said there was no resolution reached during the meeting. Bucholtz confirmed that no agreement could be made that afternoon. Jenson noted that he was "working on a letter right now asking how they would like to proceed." Once Pinnacle receives his correspondence, he said he will wait to hear a response before any further steps would be taken.
He added that the conditions were set up in a specific way, relating back to saturation of the soil. In phase one, Pinnacle engineers dug a trench and met a specific water elevation to indicate groundwater would be safe from contamination.
Now past the first condition, Pinnacle has spent about three months attempting to meet the second. In condition two, officials identified a need for tile to drain the area meant to hold the manure storage units. Seven monitoring wells were put in place to evaluate whether water is draining properly. The wells are padlocked and require Jenson to contact Pinnacle engineers before visiting the site to conduct any tests.
Jenson said with phase three requiring that Pinnacle dig a hole to see the level of saturation, completing phase two would make the final condition much easier to complete.
"If they don't do them, they can't dig the manure pits," Jenson said.
Bucholtz said the closed-session discussion at the committee meeting Nov. 2 was regarding issues with the Pinnacle work site and concerns from both the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and county officials about meeting the third condition before the second. He did not disclose details of the closed-session discussion, nor specific parts of the discussion with Pinnacle attorneys and the Tuls.
However, he noted there was no agreement reached between the two parties.
Bucholtz added that an outside attorney, Christa O. Westerberg of Madison-based firm Pines Bach, was hired by Green County. According to the law office's website, Westerberg has been practicing law since 2002 and focuses much of her practice on environmental and land-use laws.
Pinnacle Dairy LLC has also been at odds with the Town of Sylvester recently. The company filed a lawsuit against the township at the end of July. According to court records, the corporation Pinnacle Land Holdings LLC filed a petition requesting that the township be ordered to fulfill their official duties. The two parties have clashed over driveway permit conditions, which the Town of Sylvester Board contends Pinnacle has not met, but the corporation feels was satisfied.
A zoning permit variance was approved by the Green County Board of Adjustment on July 26, which township attorney Mark Steichen of Boardman and Clark LLP argued should not have been granted per county code that specifies a hardship must exist for a variance to be allowed. Zoning Administrator Adam Weigel said the variance does not supersede township laws.
But a court can supersede them, if it finds the Sylvester board has abused its discretion. A trial has been scheduled for 9 a.m. Wednesday at the Lafayette County Courthouse.
The concrete facility, slated to cover roughly 127 acres along County FF and Decatur-Sylvester Road in the Town of Sylvester, will hold 5,800 cows. Pinnacle must meet three conditions before it proceeds with operation and manure pits can be dug.
Green County Conservationist Todd Jenson said Pinnacle owner Todd Tuls and his attorneys met with county officials and Corporate Counsel Brian Bucholtz after a meeting of the county Land and Water Conservation Committee Nov. 2. The issue was with Pinnacle engineers trying to complete the required phases out of order. Namely, trying to proceed with phase three when they have not yet met the second condition.
Jenson said there was no resolution reached during the meeting. Bucholtz confirmed that no agreement could be made that afternoon. Jenson noted that he was "working on a letter right now asking how they would like to proceed." Once Pinnacle receives his correspondence, he said he will wait to hear a response before any further steps would be taken.
He added that the conditions were set up in a specific way, relating back to saturation of the soil. In phase one, Pinnacle engineers dug a trench and met a specific water elevation to indicate groundwater would be safe from contamination.
Now past the first condition, Pinnacle has spent about three months attempting to meet the second. In condition two, officials identified a need for tile to drain the area meant to hold the manure storage units. Seven monitoring wells were put in place to evaluate whether water is draining properly. The wells are padlocked and require Jenson to contact Pinnacle engineers before visiting the site to conduct any tests.
Jenson said with phase three requiring that Pinnacle dig a hole to see the level of saturation, completing phase two would make the final condition much easier to complete.
"If they don't do them, they can't dig the manure pits," Jenson said.
Bucholtz said the closed-session discussion at the committee meeting Nov. 2 was regarding issues with the Pinnacle work site and concerns from both the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and county officials about meeting the third condition before the second. He did not disclose details of the closed-session discussion, nor specific parts of the discussion with Pinnacle attorneys and the Tuls.
However, he noted there was no agreement reached between the two parties.
Bucholtz added that an outside attorney, Christa O. Westerberg of Madison-based firm Pines Bach, was hired by Green County. According to the law office's website, Westerberg has been practicing law since 2002 and focuses much of her practice on environmental and land-use laws.
Pinnacle Dairy LLC has also been at odds with the Town of Sylvester recently. The company filed a lawsuit against the township at the end of July. According to court records, the corporation Pinnacle Land Holdings LLC filed a petition requesting that the township be ordered to fulfill their official duties. The two parties have clashed over driveway permit conditions, which the Town of Sylvester Board contends Pinnacle has not met, but the corporation feels was satisfied.
A zoning permit variance was approved by the Green County Board of Adjustment on July 26, which township attorney Mark Steichen of Boardman and Clark LLP argued should not have been granted per county code that specifies a hardship must exist for a variance to be allowed. Zoning Administrator Adam Weigel said the variance does not supersede township laws.
But a court can supersede them, if it finds the Sylvester board has abused its discretion. A trial has been scheduled for 9 a.m. Wednesday at the Lafayette County Courthouse.