Representatives of the Sawyer County Lakes Forum asked the Sawyer County Multi Dwelling Development Ad Hoc Committee to reconsider shoreland dimensional standards and lake classifications when finalizing the county’s multi-dwelling zoning changes.

Jean Acola, vice president of the Sawyer County Lakes Forum, said the forum unanimously urged the committee to examine Sawyer County’s previous four-tier lake classification system and to compare Sawyer’s dimensional and density requirements with similar lake-rich counties such as Burnett and Washburn. “We respectfully request that the committee consider, at minimum, Sawyer County lakes classifications and dimensional requirements of other lake rich counties as a starting point,” Acola said.

Edgewater property owner Linda Zilmer told the committee the forum and some towns are exploring options including larger minimum lot sizes — Zilmer said some counties use minimums around 30,000 square feet — or relying on subdivision ordinances to require larger lots in the future. Zilmer and others cited changes in state law (Act 67) that reduced some shoreland regulatory tools and urged legal review of possible alternatives such as subdivision-based lot-size standards.

The forum representatives noted the county contains more than 252 named lakes and many unnamed waterbodies. They asked the committee to direct legal review of options, including (1) adopting lake classifications specific to individual waterbodies, (2) studying minimum lot sizes used by comparable counties, and (3) examining whether subdivision ordinances can require larger lots in future development.

Committee members acknowledged the request and said legal review and comparisons to neighboring counties would be necessary before the ad hoc forwarded any formal recommendations to the zoning committee or county board.