By Tere Dunlap
tdunlap@ themonroetimes.com
MONROE - No blood and guts was the basis of the Monroe Plan Commission's decision to approve a conditional use permit for Zuber's Sausage Kitchen move to the city's North Business and Industrial Park.
In March and April, the city went through the process of changing its code to allow Zuber's to move to the industrial park, but the commission remained true to the intentions of the original code, which restricts processing, packaging and manufacturing of meat and meat products, fish and fish products, and sauerkraut and cabbage byproducts from industrial parks.
The commission met Wednesday for a public hearing and to discuss and approve a conditional permit for meat processing and butchering. Their restrictions of the permit were set on a specific definition offered by City Attorney Rex Ewald.
Ewald said butchering, by definition, has various elements in the process, including slaughter, draining for fluids, removal of organs and skinning or dehairing.
The specific wording, made part of the motion to approve, allows for "butchering of seasonal wild game animals, but not including slaughter or evisceration" (removing organs). Other animals must be "slaughtered, skinned and eviscerated off site and delivered to the site in bulk form."
Zuber's Sausage Kitchen makes Zuber's Original Landjaeger, a dried sausage, but uses meat, cut up and packaged, ready for processing into the link form. During deer season, the company makes summer sausage, Landjaegers, brats and snack sticks for hunters.
Owner Jim Zuber told the commission March 10, no meat products enter the sanitary sewer system during his sausage-making process.
The original code wording had prevented the commission on March 10 from finding a conditional use clause to allow Zuber's business into the zone.
According to Plan Commission member Nate Klassy, who was on the panel that set up some of the city zoning codes, the original wording was to prevent canning factories. Wastewater Treatment Plant Superintendent at that time, Jerry Ellefson, said, he did not want food particles from large industrial processing, which were too hard to treat, coming into the treatment plant.
Council voted May 18 to make a change to the codes that deleted the permitted uses category for the industrial park and moved those uses into conditional uses, allowing the Plan Commission to consider all uses in the industrial park on an individual basis.
Zuber's Sausage Kitchen began in 1991 in Monroe. Council approved a purchase and development agreement with Zuber May 18, which will allow the business to move to the industrial park. Zuber wanted to move and be ready for processing before November deer season.
In other business, the commission approved unanimously a revised project plan amendment for Tax Increment District No. 6.
tdunlap@ themonroetimes.com
MONROE - No blood and guts was the basis of the Monroe Plan Commission's decision to approve a conditional use permit for Zuber's Sausage Kitchen move to the city's North Business and Industrial Park.
In March and April, the city went through the process of changing its code to allow Zuber's to move to the industrial park, but the commission remained true to the intentions of the original code, which restricts processing, packaging and manufacturing of meat and meat products, fish and fish products, and sauerkraut and cabbage byproducts from industrial parks.
The commission met Wednesday for a public hearing and to discuss and approve a conditional permit for meat processing and butchering. Their restrictions of the permit were set on a specific definition offered by City Attorney Rex Ewald.
Ewald said butchering, by definition, has various elements in the process, including slaughter, draining for fluids, removal of organs and skinning or dehairing.
The specific wording, made part of the motion to approve, allows for "butchering of seasonal wild game animals, but not including slaughter or evisceration" (removing organs). Other animals must be "slaughtered, skinned and eviscerated off site and delivered to the site in bulk form."
Zuber's Sausage Kitchen makes Zuber's Original Landjaeger, a dried sausage, but uses meat, cut up and packaged, ready for processing into the link form. During deer season, the company makes summer sausage, Landjaegers, brats and snack sticks for hunters.
Owner Jim Zuber told the commission March 10, no meat products enter the sanitary sewer system during his sausage-making process.
The original code wording had prevented the commission on March 10 from finding a conditional use clause to allow Zuber's business into the zone.
According to Plan Commission member Nate Klassy, who was on the panel that set up some of the city zoning codes, the original wording was to prevent canning factories. Wastewater Treatment Plant Superintendent at that time, Jerry Ellefson, said, he did not want food particles from large industrial processing, which were too hard to treat, coming into the treatment plant.
Council voted May 18 to make a change to the codes that deleted the permitted uses category for the industrial park and moved those uses into conditional uses, allowing the Plan Commission to consider all uses in the industrial park on an individual basis.
Zuber's Sausage Kitchen began in 1991 in Monroe. Council approved a purchase and development agreement with Zuber May 18, which will allow the business to move to the industrial park. Zuber wanted to move and be ready for processing before November deer season.
In other business, the commission approved unanimously a revised project plan amendment for Tax Increment District No. 6.