Canyon Co. mulls proposal to allow machine shops in agriculture, rural residential zones after Wilder dispute

ByMargaret Carmel - BoiseDev Sr. Reporter (CLICK THE TITLE ABOVE OR HERE TO GO TO BOISE DEV)

May 29, 2024

A proposal could allow machine shops in rural Canyon County, but only in certain cases.

Over the past two years, Canyon County has been reviewing a proposal to change the county’s zoning code to allow small machine shops in rural residential and agricultural zones with a conditional use permit. This would require a property owner who wants to put in a machine shop, which uses equipment to shave down pieces of metal or other material into smaller parts, to have a public hearing and get permission from the Canyon County Commissioners.

This application was filed by land use attorney Todd Lakey, who is also a Republican state senator from Nampa. He brought the proposal after he took on Joe Sullivan, a resident who lives southwest of Wilder, as a client after he got a code enforcement complaint for running a machine shop next to his home on Laht Creek Way. The proposal would impact the entire county, not just Sullivan’s property, but it would make his shop legal if the commissioners approved it.

Nearby neighbors Joe and Sherry Jetton filed a complaint with Canyon County code enforcement over the operation of the machine shop in 2022, according to documents obtained by BoiseDev in a public records request. In response to this, Lakey filed paperwork to try and change the code in Canyon County to allow Sullivan to continue operating if he can get a CUP from the commissioners.

“There are a lot of these small business people operating out of their shops on their property that need an option,” Lakey told BoiseDev. “The county functions on a complaint basis and a lot of them are out there operating with nobody complaining, but if somebody does they are kind of stuck of either having to shut it down or move their small business to an industrial type area. This gives those folks an option to apply. There’s no guarantee they will be approved.”

The City of Nampa responded to the notice of the proposal in opposition, according to an email obtained by BoiseDev in a public records request.

“A machine shop is not an appropriate land use in residential areas and should not be allowed,” Doug Critchfield, a planner with the City of Nampa, wrote in an email to Canyon County in December. “This land use could be a particular nuisance to city residences that abut county residential parcels.”

So far, the proposal got a hearing with feedback from the Planning & Zoning Commission and the Board of Commissioners and is now undergoing revisions and review from staff before another vote.

Hearings reveal county concerns

The Canyon County Planning & Zoning Commission first held a hearing on this item in September.

According to the minutes of the meeting, Lakey argued before the commission that this change would support nearby agricultural uses and that these machine shops have a smaller footprint and lower impact on nearby neighbors than farms. He said the county could write the code to restrict the size of shop, equipment allowed or how many employees could work there to qualify for the CUP.

The commissioners weren’t totally sold on the idea without some sideboards. Commissioner Harold Nevill brought up a 2018 explosion at a U.S. Ecology site in Grandview, which was caused by magnesium dust, as a reason for Canyon County to limit what type of work and materials can be done at these sites. He was also worried about fire protection in case a shop caught fire on the far outskirts of the county.

Commissioner Patrick Williamson raised a concern about the size of these machine shops and potential impacts on traffic on small rural, and sometimes private, roads in Canyon County. Commission Chair Robert Sturgill said the closed nature of a machine shop means nearby neighbors may not know that a shop is violating the conditions of the CUP and using materials or processes that are banned.

After a split vote that failed on a tie to continue the proposal to a later date and write more specific regulations for machine shops, the commission voted 5-1 to recommend denial of the idea to the Board of Commissioners.

The commissioners took up the idea in January, but they opted to kick the issue back to P&Z to have the commission develop more detailed recommendations to define what a machine shop is to prevent legalizing machine shop operations beyond the scope of the small, unobtrusive business Lakey is envisioning with his proposal.

The text amendment is still being reviewed and revised by staff, according to Canyon County public information officer.

What do the neighbors say?

This proposal might impact the whole neighborhood, but it drew several people testifying who live near Sullivan.

In the P&Z hearing and the materials submitted to the county from individuals, the only opponent to the idea was Sullivan’s neighbor Joe Jetton. He told the commissioners his opposition to Lakey’s code change proposal stemmed from specific concerns about Sullivan’s shop, but he expanded his concern to shop buildings that aren’t up to code and could pose a safety risk.

Jetton said Sullivan’s shop was 6,000 feet with 8 milling machines, which he said if it was built new would require a fire suppression system. He also said businesses elsewhere would be required to have a widened roadway with space for trucks to turn around in a commercial area, which is not in place in this area.

“What about existing shops with these types of uses?” he said, according to the minutes from the meeting. “Are there evacuation areas? Fire extinguishers. OSHA doesn’t get involved with anyone that has ten employees or less unless something goes wrong.”

Nine other neighbors signed a petition or wrote letters in support of Sullivan being permitted to operate his business on his property, according to records obtained by BoiseDev in a public records request.

Christine Cobbie Jones, a next-door neighbor to the Sullivans, defended their business and their neighborly attitude in a letter.

“I have personally seen their machine shop and been to their property multiple times as we are immediate neighbors and their home, property and business are immaculate and truly the example of what it means to steward land,” Jones wrote. “Joe and Donna have both taken on the responsibility of maintaining our little over a (quarter) of a mile road and although they are entitled to compensation to offset costs have never once asked.”