by April Scheinoha
Reporter

Thief River Falls will be overrun by city officials July 26-28, when the Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities holds its Summer Conference. At its meeting Tuesday, March 7, the Thief River Falls City Council briefly discussed the upcoming event.

Mayor Brian Holmer currently serves as the president of CGMC. He and City Administrator Angie Philipp have started planning the event. Holmer said the city expected to host officials from 100+ cities.

Attendees will attend training sessions, legislative updates and listen to speakers. They will also have the opportunity to attend tours of Digi-Key, Arctic Cat, downtown Thief River Falls and Peder Engelstad Pioneer Village. If they choose not to participate in the tours, they will have the opportunity to go golfing, hiking or biking. At the March 7 meeting, council members were given the opportunity to sign up to help plan the activities.

After a second reading, the council amended buffer requirements in commercial and industrial zoning districts to require a conditional use permit.

Currently, the city requires a 35-foot buffer in commercial or industrial developments when they are adjacent to residential or agricultural properties. The buffer must include a site-obscuring fence or vegetation acceptable to the zoning administrator and city forester.

The Planning Commission conducted research, comparing Thief River Falls’ buffer requirements to similar communities. They all require buffers. Some require a specific distance, and some of them require a shorter distance than Thief River Falls’ requirement. Some provide a list of acceptable vegetation to use as a buffer.

Here in Thief River Falls, problems have resulted from the current buffer requirements. He referred to small lots where a 35-foot buffer would take up the majority of the lot or gaps in fencing installed on adjacent properties. A conditional use permit would enable the Planning Commission and City Council to consider each buffer on a case-by-case basis.

It is believed requiring a conditional use permit would lead to better communication and more intentional placement of buffers. If a conditional use permit were required, it was estimated it would affect up to three properties per year.

The next council meeting is scheduled Tuesday, March 21 at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall.