Planning Commission and Board of Adjustment Meetings

Several land use activities require a more in-depth application and review process, often requiring a public hearing where the applicant needs to present their proposed project to a Planning Commission, Board of Adjustment, and/or Board of Commissioners.

Examples of projects that require this Public Hearing process include:

Amendments to the Official Land Use Map (rezoning)
Conditional Use Permits
Variances
Ordinance Amendments
Platted Subdivisions

Application Deadlines and Meeting Dates Calendar

Step 1:

Attend a Development Review Team Meeting (DRT) – These meetings are held the second and fourth Monday of each month starting at 9:00 am in the Land Services Department Conference Room, located at 322 Laurel Street, Suite 15, Brainerd, MN 56401.

The purpose of the DRT meeting is to bring together the applicant, township representatives, other Government agencies and Land Services staff to insure that proposed land use issues are considered before a completed application is submitted. All applicants desiring consideration on variances, rezoning, conditional use permits, subdivisions of land and permits that require a public hearing and action by the Planning Commission or Board of Adjustment are required to attend the DRT meeting prior to submitting an application pursuant to Article 3.2 of the CWC Land Use Ordinance.

Step 2:

After you have attended a DRT meeting and have all submission requirements completed you can apply for a Public Hearing.

Submission requirements are:

A completed application including answering the Finding of Facts questions.
Certificate of Survey meeting the requirements of our Land Use Ordinance or site plan if the application is for rezoning.
Authorized Agent form if applicable
Septic compliance inspection on all septic systems that are older than 5 years and have not had a compliance inspection within the last 3 years and septic design if installing new septic.
Wetland Delineation completed by a certified delineator and submitted to our office.
Stake out or flag the proposed project area(s) so they are clearly visible to the Planning Commission/Board of Adjustment prior to the on-site visits.

Once an application is received and deemed to be complete, an on-site visit by the Planning Commission/Board of Adjustment members and Land Services staff will occur approximately two-weeks prior to the public hearing. It will then be published in the newspaper and notices mailed to adjoining property owners.

About the Public Hearing:

The meetings are held on the third Thursday of every month starting at 5:00 pm in the Historic Courthouse on the 3^rd floor at 326 Laurel Street, Brainerd MN 56401. They may also be attended virtually using Microsoft Teams. A link to join the meeting is below.

About the Planning Commission/Board of Adjustment:

The members of the Planning Commission/Board of Adjustment are citizens of the county. There are 5 appointed members, all of whom are appointed by the County Board of Commissioners, with one appointed from each of the 5 Commissioner Districts.

These meetings are facilitated by the Land Services staff, however deliberations and decisions are made solely by the appointed members. All decisions for variances by the Board of Adjustment are final the night of the meeting. The Planning Commission is advisory to the County Board and makes recommendations on all applications (plats, planned unit developments, zoning map amendments, and amendments to the zoning ordinance) except for Conditional Use Permits, which are final the night of the meeting.