Lifting of deed restriction may end long-delayed rezoning permit

A 20-year-old deed restriction preventing the land division and rezoning of a Town of Fredonia property has been removed, potentially paving the way for the rezone after about 10 months of deliberation.

The restriction was removed during a Sept. 8 Town Board meeting, with supervisors Lance Leider, Chris Janik and John Depies voting in favor of the removal and Matt Miller opposed.

Leider said deed restrictions have become an outdated tool of restricting what property owners can do with their land and that months of delayed action on the request are a perfect example of why such restrictions have fallen out of fashion.

He said that every resident has the right to come to the board and request changes be made to their property, but that deed restrictions imposed on property owners by a small group of town residents prevent that.

“A group of people do not control the neighbor’s property. They have to come to the town,” he said.

Leider added that the restriction was not used to promote better town government, just to fuel a feud between residents.

Janik concurred, saying that while deed restrictions were frequently used decades ago, they are rarely used now.  

“They have since really fallen out of favor because of issues like we’ve had here, where they’ve fallen through the cracks,” he said. “It’s only proper that we remove this deed restriction.”

 Property owner Kevin Stageman submitted the request to divide his 32-acre property at W3835 Hwy. H nearly a year ago, but land restrictions and opposition from some residents have stalled progress on deliberations.

The land division would include one 5.398-acre parcel fronting Highway H and three parcels of two acres, 2.16 acres and 2.19 acres on a nearby tract of land fronting Highway I.

Stageman and his wife Donna plan to sell the four lots, then build a house on the rest of the property.

In addition to the lot division, Stageman asked the town to rezone the three smaller lots from agricultural to residential.

Some residents have opposed the division, saying the land should remain agricultural and that homes should not be built on the divided lots, prompting additional discussion and meetings.

During an Aug. 11 Plan Commission meeting when a public hearing was held on the request, Patricia Bialzik, a neighbor of the Stageman property, announced she and her lawyer had discovered a deed restriction on the property signed in 1998.

Leider said it was the first time the board had been made aware of the restriction.

The restriction, which was created after seven residents protested rezoning the property more than 20 years ago, prevents any division of the land without the consent of the Town Plan Commission and Town Board.

Additionally, the restriction mandates that seven town residents who protested a division of the Stageman property in 1998 must be notified by certified mail of the intent of the commission or board to discuss removing the restriction. 

Because the neighbors were not notified before the meeting, the Plan Commission tabled action on the division until the restriction could be removed.  

Now that the deed restriction has been removed, the commission will once again consider action on Stageman’s request during its October meeting.