A judge sided with the city of Madison on plans for a west side apartment building that neighbors have sought to block, the Wisconsin State Journal reports. The building is currently under construction on former farmland at 6610-6706 Old Sauk Road.
Last June, Stone House Development and New Madison Development secured several key permits and approvals from Madison’s Plan Commission and City Council for a 138-unit project. The decisions came in spite of opposition from neighbors who voiced concerns about the size of the apartment building as well as potential flooding, traffic and noise.
The same group appealed the project’s conditional use permit, which allowed it to have more than 36 units, after the Plan Commission had given the green light; however, the neighbors failed to convince the City Council to reverse the Plan Commission’s decision.
Two nearby households sued over the conditional use, arguing that the Plan Commission did not have sufficient evidence to approve it and that the stormwater from the project would pose an undue threat to their properties, already prone to flooding.
On Wednesday, Judge Susan Crawford upheld the Plan Commission’s issuance and the City Council’s affirmation of the conditional use, asserting that both bodies’ decisions were “supported by substantial evidence” and that the neighbors’ concerns “were in fact properly considered.”
This is likely Judge Crawford’s last ruling on the Circuit Court. She is set to be sworn in Friday as a Supreme Court justice after being elected to the Supreme Court in April.
Related stories:
Old Sauk Road development gets 2nd City Council OK after neighbors sue
