By Whether a building moving permit is needed in Aberdeen could soon depend on the width and height of the building.
That will be the case if a revised ordinance meets with final approval from the council during its next regular meeting on April 7.
The Aberdeen City Council met Monday, March 24 at the Municipal Building with a relatively short agenda, including approving first reading of the revised city ordinance with one amendment to building height.
Current city zoning regulations require a building moving permit for any structure that exceeds 200 square feet. The revised city ordinance eliminates the square footage threshold and replaces it with more than 12 feet in width.
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According to a summary of the proposed revision, the width requirement puts the emphasis on traffic impact as opposed to arbitrary dimensions.
The original proposed ordinance suggested a maximum height of 13 feet, but Community Development Director Ken Hubbart said a requirement of 15 feet for the height of the building loaded on the trailer was suggested by the Public Works Department.
Public Works Director Stu Nelson said that will still provide sufficient clearance below power lines.
The council gave the ordinance and amendment initial approval Monday.
In other action, the council:
- Heard a quarterly update from Aberdeen Area Convention & Visitors Bureau Executive Director Casey Weismantel. He said 2024 saw increases in the collection of occupancy tax (up 4.53%) and the city’s 1% tax on hotel stays, restaurant meals and alcohol sales (up 3.73%). Weismantel said he encourages event organizers to check with his office to coordinate the best time to plan an event and avoid conflicts with other large happenings.
- Approved a resolution invalidating some votes made by Councilman Rich Ward. Ward said last week that some of his votes were considered a conflict because they involved Climate Control, a client of his employer, the Aberdeen Development Corp. The resolution invalidates his votes related to ADC business in 2025 and late 2024.
- Approved a request to waive the $1,000 application fee for an affordable housing tax increment financing application by Homes Are Possible. City Manager Robin Bobzien said the fee is relatively new. City Attorney Ron Wager said this is the first true affordable housing TIF with which housing costs have to stay under first-time homebuyer amounts and the application is coming from a nonprofit organization. The approval of the fee waiver now does not guarantee fee waivers for future applications, he said.
- Approved a final payment to Dahme Construction of $108,287 for seeding work on a mill and overlay project.