Light truck and SUV buyers will have more choices come next spring with the addition of a used truck dealership in the town of Minocqua.
The Minocqua Plan Commission Tuesday, Aug. 30th recommended approval of a conditional use permit (CUP) requested by Brian Lenz, co-owner of Lenz Truck Center, Fond du Lac, to construct a showroom, repair shop and display lot on U.S. Highway 51. “The south end is taking off again,” said commission member Margo Oppenheim, who noted other recent building construction in the Highway 51 South corridor.
In the CUP application by Lenz, it was noted the “cost of this entire project will be somewhere in the vicinity of one million dollars.” Currently under three different ownerships, the 25-acre property being considered is located just north of Rollie & Helen’s Musky Shop. The three lots would later be combined into one, said Jim Rein, a local surveyor who is helping Lenz with the permitting process. The dealership building would be located behind the vehicle displays that front the highway. Rein will return to the town with a landscaping plan and details on lighting. He said the dealership would likely use LED lamps to light the lot. Existing structures, which are now unoccupied, would be razed and construction started this fall with the dealership opening in the spring of 2017. The service and repair center would be 200 feet by 85 feet; the sales and display area would be 100 feet by 60 feet. Rein alluded to Cabella’s when describing the showroom’s main entrance as “northwoodys here-we-are structure.”
Lenz said he expects to have between 80 and 120 vehicles on the lot at any given time. The dealership plans to employ about 15 people in the beginning and upwards of 30 within two years, most with full-time jobs. He added they have not yet decided upon a name for the dealership. The town board will take up the CUP at a future date and forward its recommendation to the county, which has final authority on issuing it. A representative from the county zoning office said she had no concerns at this time with the CUP application. The owner also needs permits from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation for signs and for reducing access to two driveways from the current five. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources would also have to sign off the storm water remediation plan as the construction site is more than an acre in size.
In an unrelated matter, the plan commission was receptive to a proposal by the Minocqua-Kawaguesaga Lake Protection Association to plant trees and bushes along the east side of the causeway just north of the downtown area. Sue Meyer of the group said they would plant trees in 25-gallon pots and bushes in 15-gallon pots, pending town board approval. The group would also need Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s approval, as the planting would be in the state right-of-way.
The plantings would include three fragrant flowering buttonbush shrubs, which would grow 10 to 12 feet high. A Majestic Skies pin oak would be added, rewarding viewers with a colorful display in the fall. Flowers and shrubs native to the area would be placed there also. Three elm trees would be spaced along the route to provide shade. They want to plant three Prairie Cascade weeping willow trees on the north end, reminiscent, in part, of how the causeway looked decades ago. Shrubs would also be planted under the willows also. “It’s really important to keep the natural habitat going,” agreed commissioner Oppenheim. “This is a nice way of keeping everything in place.” Meyer said a local nursery has given them advice on the future plantings. Known as the millpond, the water body to the east of the highway is popular with fishermen. Meyers said they would still have easy access to the water edge, even with less area being mowed. “The key going forward will be that this has to be coordinated with the town, both from a maintenance standpoint and a final plan, installation schedule and the timing of all that, and how that is going to be done,” Town Chairman Mark Hartzheim said.
