Town to allow ATV/UTVs on its roads

In front of a standing-room only crowd of more than 60 people, the Belgium Town Board on Tuesday voted to allow all-terrain and utility-terrain vehicles to travel on its roads with stipulations.

The 2-1 decision, with Chairman Tom Winker and Supr. Bill Janeshek voting in favor of the Lakeshore ATV-UTV Club’s proposal and Supr. Tom Bichler voting against, provides some closure to a year-long debate that had passions running high on both sides of the issue.
Janeshe

made the motion to approve allowing the vehicles on town roads, serving as the tie-breaking vote after Winker voted for and Bichler against in a 5-4 decision by the Plan Commission to recommend the board endorse the proposal last month.
Janeshe

added three conditions: no riding east of Lake Church Road to Clay Ridge Road, following the firearms discharge line; no riding from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m., mirroring the Town of Fredonia’s ordinance; and requiring a yearly review of the ordinance.

More details could be hashed out by the Plan Commission, which unanimously required it write the ordinance before a public hearing and vote by the Town Board.

“This issue has extremely divided our community,” Winker said, lamenting the fact that this decision won’t earn 100% customer satisfaction, which he said he strives for in his trucking business.

“I’m disappointed that we couldn’t come to some type of compromise.”

Janeshek said this is one of the “harder decisions” he has had to make in 20-plus years on the board, putting it in the category of the quarry and casino.

“I don’t think any of us here take it lightly,” he said, adding some conditions need to be added to the ordinance “that was going to try to make everybody a little more comfortable.”

One town resident asked if people could speak, and Winker said, “Very simply, no,” then allowed the woman to make a point, which was followed by a rebuttal and 30 minutes of questions and comments about the ordinance and stipulations.

Winker said he lost sleep over the issue until two weeks ago when a discussion with a resident calmed him.

“Why am I losing sleep over this? We’re a community. We’re friends and neighbors. Couldn’t we possibly just all try to get along?” he said.

The town is so split on the issue, Winker said, that he knows whatever decision he makes will only make half of the people happy.

“Does that mean in two years you vote me out? OK, now the next person comes in, the other 50% are mad at you guys,” he said.

“You’re putting me in a very, very difficult situation.”

Winker said he was president of the local snowmobile club for several years.

“It was never the club members that we got complaints about,” he said. “The lawbreakers will always be out there … and it’s going to bring a bad name to everybody.”

But the ordinance, regardless of what details the Plan Commission adds, isn’t necessarily permanent.

“I’m putting my reputation on the line,” Winker said. “We’re going to review this every year. If there are problems with it, it ain’t going to happen.”

Billing itself as a family oriented club, Lakeshore ATV-UTV members say they want use the vehicles to be able to visit family and friends and go get an ice cream cone at a local business.

Those against the ordinance say safety is an issue since ATVs and UTVs aren’t designed for roads, would add to already busy roads that support bicycles, motorcycles and farm equipment and would create noise pollution.

At the June 16 Plan Commission meeting — the first time commission members discussed the issue themselves — Zoning Administrator and commission member Charlie Parks cited the fact that 250 people contacted the town in opposition to the ordinance and said Belgium could become a thoroughfare between stops for many riders.

Commission member Matt Fuller said new ATVs can travel at 90 mph and have speakers that create unwanted noise.

“Think of the convoys of these machines. There’s lots of downstream ramifications” if the ordinance passes, he said.

Commission member Dennis Dimmer said Harley-Davidson motorcycles are much louder than ATVs.

The Ozaukee County Sheriff’s Office opposes allowing the vehicles on town roads while the Department of Natural Resources is neutral.

The next Plan Commission meeting is at 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 20 at Town Hall, 171 Main St.

Winker said he would recognize people in the audience who want to make a point, but “We just can’t have open debates.”