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Review of a decision of the Court of Appeals. Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and cause remanded.

Petitioners Richard and Barbara Eberle (Eberles) sought review in this case of the court of appeals' decision to uphold the circuit court's dismissal of various claims they alleged in connection with the Dane County Board of Adjustment's (Board's) denial of a special exception permit. The Eberles contend that the effect of the permit denial was to deprive them of a legal means of access to their property. Following a certiorari review, the circuit court ordered the Board to issue the permit, a decision which the court of appeals affirmed and which has not been appealed to this court. ...

Review of a decision of the Court of Appeals. Affirmed.

In this case we are asked to determine whether a circuit court retains equitable power to deny injunctive relief after a zoning ordinance violation has been proven. Forest County instituted enforcement proceedings under Wis. Stat. §59.69(1) against Wesley S. Goode for noncompliance with a zoning ordinance. The County requested assessment of forfeitures and an injunctive order compelling Goode to relocate his house to comply with a 50-foot setback requirement of Forest County Zoning Ordinance § 5.03.10. The Circuit Court for Forest County, Robert A. Kennedy, Judge, denied the County's request for an injunction but imposed a forfeiture against Goode. The County appealed from both orders of the circuit court. ...

Review of a decision of the Court of Appeals. Reversed and cause remanded.

On this review we consider whether the Kenosha County Board of Adjustment (Board) properly applied the legal standard for determining unnecessary hardship in order to grant a petition for an area variance. The Board determined that the variance applicant, Ms. Janet Huntoon, would suffer unnecessary hardship if she were denied a variance enabling her to build a deck extending into the protected shoreyard of Hooker Lake. The circuit court, the Honorable Michael Fisher presiding, upheld the Board's decision, and the court of appeals affirmed.1 We conclude that the legal standard of unnecessary hardship requires that the property owner demonstrate that without the variance, he or she has no reasonable use of the property. We conclude that the Board did not properly apply this legal standard and that its decision to grant the variance was not reasonably based on the evidence. We therefore reverse the decision of the court of appeals and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. ...

Review of a decision of the Court of Appeals. Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and cause remanded.

J. Jerome and Jane Hoepker (collectively "Hoepkers") sought preliminary plat approval for a proposed residential subdivision from the City of Madison Plan Commission and the City of Madison Common Council (collectively "City"). The City approved the preliminary plat, subject to eight conditions. The Hoepkers sought certiorari review, challenging two conditions which require them: (1) to agree to annex the land encompassed by the preliminary plat to the City; and (2) to reconfigure their plat to provide an open space corridor.(1) The Circuit Court for Dane County, Gerald C. Nichol, Judge, entered an order denying the Hoepkers' challenge, and the Hoepkers appealed. The court of appeals held that the City could not condition approval of the plat on annexation, but could condition approval on the open space corridor. ...

Review of a decision of the Court of Appeals. Affirmed.

The defendant, Payne & Dolan, Inc. (Payne & Dolan), seeks review of a published decision of the court of appeals, which affirmed a circuit court summary judgment in favor of plaintiff residents (plaintiffs) of the Town of Saukville (the Town). Payne & Dolan challenges the court of appeals' conclusion that the Town's zoning ordinance does not authorize a conditional use permit for blasting and crushing in a quarrying operation. The plaintiffs assert that the ordinance prohibits the quarrying operation because of the number of families residing within the area. Because we determine that blasting and crushing are part of the mineral extraction process, and that the ordinance does not prohibit the proposed quarrying activity, we conclude that the conditional use permit is authorized under the Town's zoning ordinance. However, even though the permit is authorized, we conclude that it is invalid because the Town failed to satisfy a zoning ordinance notice provision, and because the application for the permit was incomplete. Accordingly, we affirm the court of appeals' invalidation of the conditional use permit. ...

Review of a decision of the Court of Appeals. Reversed and remanded.

The City of Mequon ("Mequon") seeks review of a published decision of the court of appeals, which reversed and remanded a judgment of the Circuit Court for Ozaukee County, Joseph D. McCormack, Judge. The court of appeals held that, under Wis. Stat. § 236.13(1)(c) (1991-92), a local master plan is consistent with an official map only to the extent the master plan reflects issues encompassed in the official map. Accordingly, the court of appeals held that Mequon's Plan Commission ("Plan Commission") improperly denied preliminary plat approval to Lake City Corporation ("Lake City") on the grounds that the plat conflicted with an element contained only in the master plan. We conclude that, under § 236.13(1)(c), a master plan is consistent with an official map if any common elements contained in both the master plan and official map are not contradictory. We further conclude that a master plan is consistent with an official map even if the master plan contains additional elements that the official map does not. We therefore hold that a city plan commission may rely on an element contained solely in a master plan to reject plat approval. Thus, we reverse the decision of the court of appeals. ...

Appeal from an order of the Circuit Court for Dane County, Stuart A. Schwartz, Judge. Reversed and cause remanded.

These cases are before the court upon certification by the court of appeals pursuant to Rule 809.61 of the Wisconsin Statutes. The State appeals from an order of the Circuit Court for Dane County, Stuart A. Schwartz, Circuit Judge, dismissing petitions filed in both cases under Wis. Stat. Chapter 980, the Sexually Violent Person Commitments statute, on the grounds that it is unconstitutional. The circuit court found that chapter 980 violated constitutional protections against double jeopardy and ex post facto laws, as well as the guarantees of substantive due process and equal protection under the law. ...

Review of a decision of the court of appeals. Reversed.

This is a review of a published decision of the court of appeals affirming a judgment of the Circuit Court for Milwaukee County, John E. McCormick, Judge, granting a writ of mandamus ordering the City of South Milwaukee (the City) to issue a building permit to Lake Bluff Housing Partners (Lake Bluff). This case presents the following issue: may a court, through the exercise of discretion, resort to "equitable principles" to supply a "right" to the issuance of a building permit where the building plans submitted did not comply with the applicable zoning and building code requirements, and thereby find a positive and plain duty on the part of the municipality to issue a building permit for a construction that would be in violation of the ordinance. We conclude that the circuit court in this case erred in granting a writ of mandamus in the absence of a clear legal right on the part of Lake Bluff and a positive and plain duty on the part of the City, and therefore reverse the decision of the court of appeals. ...

Review of a decision of the Court of Appeals. Reversed and cause remanded.

This is a review of a published decision of the court of appeals, DeRosso Landfill Co. v. City of Oak Creek, 191 Wis. 2d 46, 528 N.W.2d 468 (1995), reversing an order of the circuit court for Milwaukee County, George A. Burns, Jr., judge. The circuit court ordered a permanent injunction restraining the City of Oak Creek (the City) from interfering with DeRosso Landfill Company, Inc. and Gordon DeRosso (the plaintiffs) in their implementation of a plan, approved by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), to fill with clean fill a 300,000-cubic-yard hole located on ten acres of land owned by Gordon DeRosso. We reverse the decision of the court of appeals and remand the cause to the circuit court with directions to reinstate the permanent injunction. ...

Review of a decision of the Court of Appeals. Reversed.

This is a review of a published decision of the court of appeals affirming in part and reversing in part a judgment and order of the circuit court for Waukesha County, Willis J. Zick, Judge, and remanding the cause with directions. The issue before this court is whether the zoning of certain land owned by Plaintiff-Appellant-Respondent Alfred A. Zealy ("Zealy") as a conservancy district in order to protect wetlands constitutes a constructive taking of property by the government for which a landowner should be compensated. We conclude that the conservancy zoning placed on Zealy's land did not effect a constructive taking. We therefore reverse the court of appeals. ...

 
 

 

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