Slaughterhouse plan near Wonder Lake hits snag; zoning hearing called off

A third zoning board hearing that had been scheduled Wednesday for a Wonder Lake-area slaughterhouse proposal has been called off.

The hearing was canceled after someone contacted the county and said that not everyone who should have gotten notices about the meeting received them, Adam Wallen, the county’s planning and development director, said.

County officials looked into whether everyone had been notified and found that the notice requirements hadn’t been met, Wallen said, prompting Wednesday’s hearing to be canceled.

The proposal has raised objections from neighbors, including for reasons such as odors and property values.

In a previous zoning hearing, Tom Burney, who is the attorney for some of the neighbors, had questioned petitioner Sergiy Bazylyuk and raised some objections, among them notification requirements.

Another issue Burney raised was the presence of a single-family home on Bazylyuk’s property within 500 feet of the proposed facility. County rules prohibit such a facility to operate within 500 feet of residences.

County officials had previously interpreted the rules to exempt homes on the petitioner’s land. But a staff member who had interpreted the home as being exempt no longer works at the county, and Zoning Board of Appeals officials asked if another person could weigh in.

County officials went back and looked at the ordinance and said they found nothing to support such an exemption.

Among the options available for the slaughterhouse operators is amending their petition. They would need a variance to address the house on the property, Wallen said.

Terry McKenna, the lawyer for Bazylyuk, said his client intends to amend the petition and will re-notify interested parties, McKenna said. Almost all of the neighbors will get a notice, including those in a subdivision nearby, McKenna said.

Burney said opponents are hoping the petitioner will get a message to go somewhere else.

“Time will tell,” Burney said.