MANKATO — A couple suing Mankato Township for approving the proposed Blue Earth County shop project has posted a $1.2 million surety bond sought by the county to cover cost increases if the project is needlessly delayed by the suit.
In late April, homeowners Patrick Lease and Lynn Koosman-Lease filed a lawsuit against the township, alleging the board’s granting of a conditional-use permit for the facility was “directly contrary” to the township’s land-use ordinance.
In March the Mankato Township Board voted 2-1 to approve Blue Earth County’s plans for the facility, which would serve as a base for county snow and road crews, on the corner of County Roads 90 and 16 just south of Mankato. Residents near the site threatened to file a lawsuit if the Township Board gave the go-ahead.
The Leases live next to the proposed shop site.
Although the suit is against the township, the county asked the court to require a surety bond so that if the township prevails and the county’s project is delayed the court could order that part or all of the bond be paid to the county to cover increased costs because of the delay.
In a recent order, District Court Judge Kristine Weeks said the county estimated that because of inflation and other issues, the cost of the project could increase by $1.2 million if the start date was delayed until May 2025. The county already has been sending out and accepting various bids on building the shop.
Weeks ordered the surety bond but also noted there’s no way of knowing if the price might increase or even decrease if the project is delayed.
While the heart of the case hasn’t been presented in court, Weeks in her order for the bond noted: “Townships have wide latitude in making decisions about special use permits.
“A township’s decision to approve a (conditional-use permit) will be independently reviewed to determine whether there was a reasonable basis for the decision, or whether the township acted unreasonably, arbitrarily, or capriciously.”
The judge wrote that even if the township’s “decision is debatable, so long as there is a rational basis for what it does, the courts will not interfere.”
The lawsuit seeks a nullification of the permit and a permanent injunction on the project. Mankato Township earlier answered in court that the complaint should be dismissed.
The project needed a conditional-use permit because the proposed site is within an area zoned as an agricultural district. The suit alleges the permit is illegal because it didn’t meet a range of requirements needed to allow an industrial use in an agricultural zone.