By Susan Steele
Correspondent, Sharon Reporter
Events don’t create issues, but the perceptions of how they are handled often do.
This is what is behind residents of Williams Bay questioning village officials about Topography’s Preserve concept for the former Aurora/ George Williams College property.
Upon writing to elected representatives with questions, a response was received that said responding directly might “inadvertently result in a violation of the Open Meetings Act.”
Public meetings with closed sessions include public participation limited during ones remaining open. Transparency and conflict of interest – examined by Jessica Conley, Walworth County Finance Director – was then explained in her letter to the Village Board and made part of the Special Planning Commission Meeting in May.
“An open and transparent process to elicit interested applicants for the citizen representative role on the Joint Review Board,” stated Conley, “should include a method to allow for the selection process to include citizens not necessarily residing within the Village of Williams Bay and eliminate the ability for a citizen to be eligible if they work for the Village or are employed by an organization funded by the Village.”
Conley went on to say that the citizen member should not be a member of the board – in this case, invalidating the appointment of Phil Duncan, who is the Village Board president. Skip Mosshamer was later appointed as the citizen representative.
The current land use situation started brewing for the Village in 2018 when – after 100 years – 200 acres of adjoining prime land began to change ownership.
The 77 acres owned by the University of Chicago since 1892 containing Yerkes Observatory – the birthplace of astro- physics – the lakefront and park was sold and split into properties now owned by Yerkes Future Foundation, the Women’s Conference Center, and residential lots on what was once Frost Woods. This was followed with Aurora University’s sales of the former YMCA training camp’s 137 acres to Topography, the creator of The Preserve, in 2023.
Topography’s Frequently Asked Questions sheet states their concept includes an inn for up to 68 accommodations, two restaurants and bars, a full-service spa, a family pool, tennis, platform tennis, pickleball courts, and various water activities including boating, kayaking, paddle boarding, rowing and swimming.
Additionally, a retreat center will be available for events, retreats, and board meetings, an amphitheater, racquet center, and 90-acre nature preserve.
Three of Topography’s six parcels are located within the Village of Williams Bay and contain the lake- front campus and what was formerly known as the front nine of the golf course. The campus and golf course parcels are presently zoned Public and Institutional.
Village Planner Sonja Kruesel, AICP, noted in her memo dated Jan. 15 that the future land use designation for the former George Williams College campus is “institutional campus” and former golf course parcels are “planned neighborhood.”
Kruesel went on to explain how the institutional campus land use category was developed and mapped specifically to preserve large, long- held institutional uses like George Williams College and Yerkes Observatory. Planned neighborhood, used for the former golf course parcels, was recommended primarily due to proximity to their Williams Bay schools.
In conclusion, stated Kruesel, “the proposed development is not allowed under the current zoning district and rezoning is required to enable development. Rezoning to anything other than P&I is not allowed without a Comprehensive Plan Amendment.”
She then laid out the Comprehensive Plan Amendment Process: “Amendments to the Comprehensive Plan, whether it is a change to the future land use map or to the text of the Plan, must follow the procedures outlined in Section 66.1001(4) g. of Wisconsin Statutes.”
A sample resolution and public participation plan was distributed to the Planning Commission at their Special Meeting on May 13. The commission recommended the Village Board approve a resolution to adopt a public participation plan, with the Village Board unanimously approving that at its June 20 meeting Resolution R-31-24 Establishing Public Participation Procedures (PPP) for Amendments to the Village of Williams Bay Comprehensive Plan.
Then by letter dated July 19, Topography’s attorney applied and petitioned the Village to amend the text of its comprehensive plan by re-titling the “institutional campus” future land use category to “institutional campus and limited resort” and amending the future land use map where the 40-acre parcel golf course is located from planned neighborhood to institutional campus and limited resort.
The Planning Commission discussed the proposed Comprehensive Plan text amendment, Comprehensive Plan Future Land Use Map amendment, and a Planned Development Overlay concept plan for The Preserve at its Aug. 19 meeting.
Kruesel reviewed the PDO concept prior to the meeting. Her Aug. 6 memo explaining PDO as a “multi-step process in which a customized, negotiated zoning overlay district is created” and how a conceptual zoning overlay review meeting of the PDO zoning district and conceptual review of the Comprehensive Review was required, with Topography requesting both occur at the same meeting.
Per the Planning Commission’s Aug. 19 meeting minutes, Liam Krehbiel, Topography Hospitality LLC, Nicholas Egert, Egert Law, Kevin Clark, Historical Concepts, and Allyson Vincent, Historical Concepts, presented the commission with an updated concept.
Discussions included the walking path access to the lakefront shore path from the nature preserve, signing a letter of intent for the future annexation of the 40 acres west of North Lake Shore Drive, and an entrance check point to limit access to guests and club members.
It appears from the Village Board’s Aug. 19 meeting minutes Topography and the Board proposed the following schedule:
1. October X (TBD) Joint Meeting of Plan Comm. & Village Board
2. Publish Class I Notice (30 Days before hearing) Public Hearing
3. Plan Commission Recommendation
4. Village Board Action
5. Annexation Ordinance and Temporary Zoning
6. Planned Development Overlay (PDO)
7. Village Engineer and other Village Staff members meet to review public improvements and agree on concepts of the Development Agreement
8. Development Agreement Approval.
On Oct. 7 and Nov. 11, the joint meetings of the Village Board Committee of the Whole and committees discussed the development agreement in closed sessions. The Planning Commission at its Nov. 4 considered the Temporary Zoning Classification of AH Agricultural Holding District for Parcel EW 200020 as it relates to Aurora University Petition for Direct Annexation of Parcel EW 200020 from the Town of Walworth into the Village of Williams Bay Re: The Preserve Development.
The village sent on Nov. 11 to its Listserv subscribers that individual written comments were available on its website.
So, too, are copies of the Notices of Public Hearings scheduled for Dec. 9 at 7 p.m. on the Amendments to Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Map and Topography’s Final GDP.
