Tepetonka subdivision for housing development approved by Kandiyohi County Board

WILLMAR — The Kandiyohi County Board , at its April 16 meeting, approved a request from Tepetonka Club LLC to create an approximately 40-acre conservation subdivision within the club's larger footprint in Lake Andrew Township.

The subdivision, located on the north side of the club's property, just south of Kandiyohi County Road 40, will be the site of a nine-unit residential development that will provide housing for club members while they are at the private, destination golf course.

"It is a unique form of development that intends to provide public benefits and benefits to the developer," said Kandiyohi County Zoning Administrator Eric Van Dyken.

The Kandiyohi County Planning Commission at its meeting April 8 gave its unanimous recommendation for the County Board to approve the subdivision and preliminary plat. According to the minutes of that meeting, there was a lot of discussion, including multiple comments from members of the public.

"There was a fair amount of discussion, I thought substantial and very fruitful discussion at the Planning Commission," Van Dyken said.

Tepetonka Club is building a members-only destination golf club on more than 200 acres of land in Lake Andrew Township. A small residential area was always part of the plan but had to go through its own permitting process separate from the Tepetonka golf course, due to county zoning rules. The golf course's conditional use permit was approved in November 2023.

At the County Board meeting Tuesday, Van Dyken explained that the conservation subdivision is similar to a planned unit development that might be constructed in a shoreland district. The concept is that the allowed number of units, nine in the case of Tepetonka, will be clustered together, leaving common open space.

According to the Tepetonka application for the subdivision, the open space will include a short practice golf course and natural areas of woods, wetland and creek. A community septic system and wells will also be within the open space, and will serve the residential dwellings and the golf course's hospitality facilities.

The open space will be owned and shared by the owners of the individual dwellings. The newly formed Tepetonka Village Owners Association, which has declared itself under state law a nonprofit corporation, will care for and maintain the open common spaces in the development. The homes themselves will be owned by individual club members or groups of club members.

The subdivision approval includes seven conditions. The conditions include that the open space will be maintained and regulated as required by the zoning ordinance; sewage treatment needs will be met by a cluster sewage treatment system or another plan as approved by the zoning office; vegetative and grade alterations within the shore and bluff impact zones will be restricted and regulated by the zoning ordinance; wetland impacts will be regulated by the Wetlands Conservation Act; and stormwater management improvements shall be maintained over time.

There have been public questions, that also were raised during the County Board meeting, about whether Tepetonka Village will have to pay property taxes due to its nonprofit status. Kandiyohi County Auditor Val Svor said being a nonprofit does not immediately mean a business or organization is tax-exempt. Minnesota law has very specific requirements for tax-exempt status, requirements Tepetonka does not meet.

"This entity as a private golf course does not meet any of those statutes. It is not a 501(c) organization like a Goodwill organization," Svor said. "This organization does not meet the description of an exempt."

Another issue raised was how close a few of the lots for the houses seemed to be on the proposed plat to either a protected bluff or Shakopee Creek and whether those lots meet the required setbacks. However, setbacks are measured from the dwelling, not the lot border. This means as long as the house or any building on the lot meets the required setback — 100 feet from Shakopee Creek, the lot location itself is fine. It is similar to lake lots going all the way to the lakeshore, but structures being allowed only in certain areas of the lot, Van Dyken said.