Town of Rome, WI Chapter 247 Manufactured Home Communities

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Rome as Sec. 7.13 of the prior Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]

§ 247-1 License required.

A. No person may install, operate, or maintain, or cause the construction, installation, operation, or maintenance of, any manufactured home community in the Town unless the owner of the land occupied by the manufactured home community or the operator of the manufactured home community has been issued a Town manufactured home community license by the Town Board and has fully paid the annual license fee under § 66.0435 (3) (a), Wis. Stats., to the Town.

B. Application for a license shall be made to the Zoning Administrator on a form furnished by the Town. The application shall contain the following information:

(1) Name and address of applicant.

(2) Local and legal description of the manufactured home community.

(3) Complete engineering plans and specifications of the proposed community showing, at a minimum, the following:

(a) The area and dimension of the tract of land.

(b) The number, location, and size of all manufactured home lots, and the location of the common areas.

(c) The location and width of roadways and walkways.

(d) The location of the manufactured home stand within each manufactured home lot.

(e) The plans and specifications of all utilities, including sewage collection and disposal, stormwater drainage, water distribution and supply, refuse storage and collection, lighting, electrical, telephone and television antenna systems.

(f) Landscaping plans for the entire community, including a planting plan for buffer strips that are required herein.

(g) Plans and specifications of all buildings to be located within the community.

(h) Such other plans and specifications and information as may reasonably be required by the Town Board.

C. The Zoning Administrator shall review the application and forward the same to the Plan Commission with comments. The Plan Commission shall then review the application and make a written recommendation to the Town Board regarding the approval, approval with conditions or denial of the application. The Town Board shall make final determination as to the issuance of a license. The Zoning Administrator shall issue a license only at the direction of the Town Board.

D. All licenses issued under this section are personal and are not transferable except by written approval of the Town Board.

§ 247-2 Permits required for units.

A. Except as provided in Subsection B, no person may install, operate, park, or maintain manufactured home unit in any manufactured home community in the Town without timely payment of the monthly parking permit fee as determined under § 66.0435(3)(c), Wis. Stats. The manufactured home community licensee shall collect and timely pay the fee to the Town Clerk/Treasurer, pursuant to § 66.0435(3)(c), Wis. Stats. Any licensee who collects monthly parking permit fees may deduct for administrative expenses 2% of the monthly fees collected prior to payment to the Town Clerk/Treasurer. Fees shall be collected by the licensee and paid to the Town Clerk/Treasurer by the 10th day of each month. The licensee is liable for the monthly municipal permit fee for any unit occupying space in the community as well as the owner and occupant of each such unit, except that the licensee is not liable until the Town has failed, in an action under Ch. 799, Wis. Stats., to collect the fee from the owner and occupant of the unit.

B. Subsection A does not apply to any manufactured home that is any of the following:

(1) An improvement to real property under § 70.043(1), Wis. Stats.

(2) A recreational mobile home as defined in § 66.0435(1)(hm), Wis. Stats.

(3) A camping trailer as defined in § 340.01(6m), Wis. Stats.

C. The licensee shall timely notify the Town Clerk/Treasurer of the number of all manufactured homes installed, parked, or removed in each month. This information shall be provided by the licensee by the 10th day of the following month.

§ 247-3 General regulations.

A. All manufactured home communities shall comply with all applicable statutes, provisions of the Wisconsin Administrative Code, Adams County Ordinances, the Town Comprehensive Plan, this chapter, and any other applicable Town ordinances.

B. No license shall be issued for the construction of a manufactured home community, unless the development shall contain a minimum of 20 lots, except in the case of an addition to or extension of a contiguous manufactured home community, in which case, the minimum requirement shall be 10 lots.

C. A minimum total site area of 20 acres is required for each community.

D. Each manufactured home must meet the requirements of Chapter 360, Zoning, Article VIII, R-2 District.

E. Minimum lot size. Individual lots within manufactured home communities must contain an area of not less than 8,000 square feet for single-wide homes and 12,000 square feet for double-wide homes. All dwelling lots shall have a minimum average width of 60 feet and at least 25 feet of road frontage.

F. Separation requirements. Manufactured homes shall be separated from each other and from all other buildings by at least 20 feet. An accessory structure such as an awning, storage cabinet, carport, windbreak patio, or porch attached to the manufactured home shall, for purposes of separation requirements, be considered a part of the manufactured home. Detached accessory structures shall be allowed only if included and approved as part of the original or revised manufactured home park plan.

G. Setbacks. Each manufactured home shall be located at least 10 feet from any manufactured home lot line. There shall be a minimum distance of 25 feet between any manufactured home and the traveled way of any abutting interior private street. Setbacks from Class A, B, and C roadways shall be the same as required for the R-1 Residential District. All manufactured homes shall be located at least 40 feet from any manufactured home community property boundary line, except where the adjoining property is also a manufactured home community.

H. Buffer strips. All manufactured home communities shall be provided with a planting of natural growth along the property boundary line separating the park and such adjacent properties, except where the adjoining property is also a manufactured home community. Unless waived or modified by the Town Board, the planting area shall have a minimum width of 15 feet and shall include the following:

(1) A temporary planting of fast-growing flora such as Lombardy poplar is recommended.

(2) A permanent planting such as White or Norway pine so arranged that within 10 years they will have formed a screen equivalent in capacity to a solid fence or wall shall be planted.

I. Recreation and common space areas:

(1) All manufactured home communities shall provide one or more recreation areas which shall be easily accessible to all manufactured home community residents.

(2) The size of such recreation areas shall be based upon a minimum of 200 square feet for each lot. No outdoor recreation area shall contain less than 2,500 square feet.

(3) Recreation areas shall be located as to avoid traffic hazards and should, where the topography permits, be centrally located.

J. Allowable uses:

(1) Single-family manufactured homes.

(2) Approved accessory structures included in the original plans and specifications or revisions thereof.

(3) Parks, playgrounds, and open space.

(4) Manufactured home community office.

(5) Laundromat for exclusive use of manufactured home community residents.

(6) Clubhouse and facilities for private social or recreational clubs.

(7) Signs pertaining to the lease, hire, or sale of individual manufactured homes; and one manufactured home community identification sign shall be allowed subject to the requirements of Chapter 360, Zoning, Article XXV, Signs and Billboards.

K. Access requirements.

(1) All manufactured home communities shall provide safe and convenient vehicular access.

(2) Design and improvement. The design and improvements provided in such proposed communities, including street widths and construction of approach streets or ways, shall conform to the requirements of Chapter 326, Subdivision of Land. However, the street widths and construction requirements in Chapter 326, Subdivision of Land, shall be applied only to those streets which would be necessary to service a future conventional residential subdivision and need not be applied to secondary manufactured home site access streets or ways unless the Town Board determines certain requirements are necessary for ingress and egress of public emergency or service vehicles.

(3) In all cases, direct access adequate for emergency vehicles shall be provided.

L. Parking requirements.

(1) A minimum of two off-street parking spaces shall be provided for each individual lot. Those spaces shall be located within 150 feet of the manufactured home to be served.

(2) A minimum of one space for every four manufactured homes shall be provided for visitor parking purposes.

(3) Each parking space shall contain a minimum of 200 square feet. This space shall be paved with a smooth, hard, durable and dense surface.

(4) In no instance shall any required road pavement width be used for parking purposes. The remaining right-of-way width may be used for parking purposes when all other parking spaces are occupied.

(5) Parking of boats, trailers, campers, snowmobiles, or other motorized vehicles may be restricted to a centralized area.

(6) All communities shall be provided with safe, convenient walkways as follows:

(a) A common walk system shall be provided where pedestrian traffic is concentrated. Such common walks shall have a minimum width of 3 1/2 feet.

(b) All manufactured home stands shall be connected to common walks, to roads, or to driveways. The individual walks shall have a minimum width of two feet.

(c) Walks shall be paved with a smooth, hard, durable and dense surface.

M. Installation and maintenance requirements.

(1) Manufactured home stand.

(a) The dimensions shall not be less than the total dimension of the manufactured home, and is to be determined before the time of placement.

(b) The manufactured home stand shall be improved to provide adequate support for the placement and tie-down of the manufactured home.

(c) The stand should be designed and installed so as not to heave, shift, or settle unevenly under the weight of the manufactured home due to frost action, inadequate drainage, vibration, or other forces acting on the structure.

(d) Anchors or tie downs, such as cast-in-place concrete "dead men" eyelets embedded in concrete screw augers or arrowhead anchors shall be placed at least at each corner of the manufactured home stand, and each device shall be able to sustain a minimum load of 4,800 pounds.

(2) Site suitability and stormwater drainage. A manufactured home community shall be located only upon a site where the conditions of soil, groundwater level, drainage and topography shall not create hazards to the property or the health or safety of the occupants. Excluding sand boxes, beaches and other uses requiring the lack of ground cover, exposed ground surfaces in the manufactured home community shall be protected with a vegetative growth.

(3) Water supply and distribution system. An adequate, safe, and potable supply of water shall be provided in each manufactured home community. Where a public supply of water of satisfactory quality and pressure is available at the site or at the boundary of the site, connection shall be made thereto and its supply used exclusively. When a satisfactory public water supply is not available, a private water supply system may be developed and used as approved by the State of Wisconsin.

(4) Sewage disposal system. An adequate and safe sewer system shall be provided in all manufactured home communities for conveying all sewage. The manufactured home community sewer system shall make connection to the public sewerage system, if available, at the boundary of the site and shall use its disposal and treatment service exclusively. If a public sewer system is not available, individual on-site waste treatment systems or a centralized on-site treatment facility shall be constructed and maintained according to standards set by the State of Wisconsin and Adams County.

(5) Refuse storage and collection system:

(a) The storage, collection, and disposal of refuse in the manufactured home community shall be so conducted in order to avoid health hazards, rodent harborage, insect breeding areas, accidents, fire hazards and air pollution.

(b) All refuse shall be stored in water, insect and rodent-repellant containers, which shall be located not more than 150 feet from any manufactured home lot.

(c) Refuse collection stands shall be provided for all refuse containers.

(d) All refuse shall be collected and properly disposed of at required intervals. Where suitable collection service is not available, the manufactured home community operator shall provide this service.

(e) In no instance shall disposal of the waste be carried on through incineration on the manufactured home community site.

(6) Public utility systems.

(a) All utility service systems shall be installed and maintained in accordance with applicable codes and regulations.

(b) Public utility service outlets shall be provided at each manufactured home stand for electric, telephone, gas (if provided) and television service systems.

(c) All utility service lines shall be located underground within the manufactured home community.

(7) Illumination requirements.

(a) A community shall be furnished with lighting units so spaced and equipped with luminaries placed at such mounting height as will provide for adequate maintained levels of illumination for the safe movement of pedestrians and vehicles at night.

(b) Potentially hazardous locations such as road intersections and steps or stepped ramps shall have direct lighting.

(8) Fire protection.

(a) Manufactured home communities shall be kept free of litter, rubbish, and other flammable refuse.

(b) Portable fire extinguishers shall be kept in service buildings and shall be maintained in good operating condition. Their capacity shall not be less than 2 1/2 pounds.

(c) Fire shall be made only in barbecue pits, fireplaces, stoves, or other equipment intended for such purposes. These items shall be so located, constructed, maintained, and used as to minimize fire hazards and smoke nuisances. No open fire shall be left unattended. No fuel shall be used which emits dense smoke or objectionable odors.

N. Responsibility of licensee.

(1) The licensee shall operate the community in compliance with this chapter and shall provide adequate supervision to maintain the park in good repair and in a clean and sanitary condition.

(2) The licensee shall supervise the placement of each manufactured home on its manufactured home stand which includes securing its stability and installing all utility connections.

(3) The licensee shall maintain a register containing the names of all community occupants identified by lot number or road address.

(4) The licensee shall locate an office for the attendant or person in charge of the community. A copy of the community license and the text of this chapter shall be posted therein and the community register shall at all times be kept in the office.

(5) The licensee shall be responsible for the placement of a mail-drop facility of a type approved by the postal authority and the Zoning Administrator.

O. Responsibilities of community occupants.

(1) Each community occupant shall comply with all applicable requirements of this chapter and shall maintain his manufactured home lot, its facilities, and equipment in good repair and in a clean and sanitary condition.

(2) The community occupant shall be responsible for proper placement of his home on its manufactured home stand and proper installation of all utility connections in accordance with the instruction of the community management.

(3) Pets, if permitted in the community, shall be prevented from running at large or committing any nuisance.

(4) The undercarriage, supports, and stabilizing devices of the manufactured home shall be skirted within 60 days of placement of the home to maintain an attractive community appearance.

(5) Porches, patios, awnings, and other additions shall be installed subject to uniform standards established by the community management. When installed, they shall be maintained in good repair. The space immediately underneath a manufactured home shall be used for storage only if permitted by the community management. If permitted, the following conditions shall be satisfied:

(a) The storage area shall be provided with a base of impervious material.

(b) Stored items shall be located so as not to interfere with the underneath inspection of the manufactured home.

§ 247-4 Campgrounds.

No person may construct, install, operate, maintain, or cause the construction, installation, operation, or maintenance of a campground without obtaining a Town campground license. No town campground license shall be issued for a campground for which a permit has not been issued by the State of Wisconsin under § 97.67, Wis. Stats.

§ 247-5 Revocation.

Any license issued under this chapter may be revoked for cause by the Town Board. Any licensee whose license is so revoked may apply within five days after the revocation for a public hearing before the Town Board. At the hearing, the licensee is entitled to be represented by counsel. The hearing shall be conducted upon publication of a Class 1 Notice under § 985.07, Wis. Stats., prior to hearing, with the costs for publication and public hearing paid by the licensee to the Town Clerk/Treasurer prior to publication. After hearing the evidence, the Town Board may confirm or reverse the revocation, or modify the revocation by imposing a limited period of suspension. The determination of the Town Board shall be in writing, shall state the reason for the Town Board's action, and is final.

§ 247-6 Violations and penalties.

Any person, firm, company, or corporation who violates any provision of this chapter or fails to comply with any of its requirements shall be subject to a forfeiture for each offense of not less than $200 nor more than $2,000 for each violation and, in addition, shall pay all costs and expenses involved in the matter, including reasonable attorneys' fees and court costs. Each day that a violation continues shall be considered a separate offense.

§ 247-7 Severability.

If any provision of this chapter or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of this chapter that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end, the provisions of this chapter are severable.

§ 247-8 Definitions.

For the purpose of this chapter, the following terms, phrases, words, and their derivations shall have the meaning given herein. If not defined herein, the word, term or phrase shall have the definition commonly accepted including a relevant definition contained in the Wisconsin Statutes. When not inconsistent with the context, the words used in the present tense include the future, words in the plural number include the singular number and words in the singular number include the plural number. The word "shall" is always mandatory and not merely directory:

ABUTTING

Have a common property line or district line.

CAMPGROUND

Any parcel or tract of land owned by a person, the state or a local government, which is designed, maintained, intended or used for the purpose of providing sites for nonpermanent overnight use by four or more camping units, or by one to three camping units if the parcel or tract of land is represented as a campground.

DISPOSAL

Disposal includes, but is not limited to, unloading, throwing away, discarding, emptying, abandoning, discharging, burning, spreading onto open fields, land spreading or burying waste, garbage, refuse, or sludge on, into, or under any property or lands, whether publicly or privately owned within the Town of Rome.

DWELLING

Any building which has the primary purpose of human habitation and which contains one or two dwelling units.

FRONTAGE

The smallest dimension of a lot abutting a public street measured along the street right-of-way line. For lots abutting a lake or stream, the smallest dimension measured along the shoreline.

LOT

A parcel of land. A lot may be a parcel designated in a plat or described in a conveyance recorded in the Office of the Register of Deeds, or any part of a large parcel when such part complies with the requirements of this Code as to width and area for the district in which it is located.

LOT LINE

A property boundary line of any lot held in single or separate ownership, except that where any portion of the lot extends into the abutting street or alley, the lot line shall be deemed to be the abutting street or alley right-of-way line.

MANUFACTURED HOME PARK

Any park, court, site, lot, parcel or tract of land designed, maintained, intended or used for the purpose of supplying a location or accommodations for two or more mobile homes or manufactured homes and shall include all buildings used or intended for use as part of the equipment thereof, whether or not a charge is made for the use of the mobile home park and its facilities. Mobile home parks shall not include automobile, mobile or manufactured home sales lots on which unoccupied mobile or manufactured homes are parked for purposes of inspection and sale.

OCCUPANT

Any person occupying or having use of a building, structure, premises of any part thereof.

OPERATOR

Any person who has charge, care or control of a building, structure or premises or part thereof.

OWNER

Includes the plural as well as the singular and may mean either a natural person, firm, association, partnership, private corporation, public or quasi-public corporation, or combination of these who shall hold title to a building, structure or property, or who shall be in actual possession of, or have charge, or control of building, structure, or property as agent of the title holder, or who shall be trustee or guardian of the estate or person of the title holder.

PARK

All grounds, structures and watercourses which are or may be located within any area dedicated to the public use as a park, parkway, public boat landing, public lake access, recreation facility or conservancy district in the Town.

PARKING SPACE

A graded and surfaced area of not less than 180 square feet in area, either enclosed or open, for the parking of a motor vehicle, having adequate ingress and egress to a public street or alley.

PERSON

Includes a corporation, firm partnership, association, organization and any other group acting as a unit as well as individuals, including a personal representative, receiver or other representative appointed according to law. Whenever the term "person" is used in any section of this chapter prescribing a penalty or fine, as to partnerships or associations, the work shall include the partners or members thereof, and as to corporations, shall include the officers, agents or members thereof who are responsible for any violation of such section.

REFUSE

Combustible and noncombustible discarded material including, but not limited to, trash, rubbish, paper, wood, metal, glass, plastic, rubber, cloth, ashes, litter and street rubbish, industrial waste, dead animal tissue, blood or parts, mine tailings, gravel pit and quarry spoils, and material and debris resulting from construction or demolition.

RUBBISH

The miscellaneous waste material, combustible and noncombustible, resulting from housekeeping and ordinary mercantile enterprises, and includes boxes, cartons, excelsior, paper, ashes, cinders, tin cans, bottles and broken glass, rubber, grass clippings, brush, leaves, garden plants, and animal waste.

SCREENING

A structure or planting which conceals from view of public ways and neighboring properties the area behind such structure or planting.

SETBACK

The minimum allowable distance from a given point or line of reference, such as a thoroughfare right-of-way, water line, or prospective line to the furthest projection element of a building or structure.

SIGN

Any medium, including its structure, words, letters, figures, numerals, phrases, sentences, emblems, devices, designs, trade names or trademarks by which anything is made known and which are used to advertise or promote an individual, firm, association, corporation, profession, business, commodity or product and which is visible from any public street or highway.

STREET

Any public highway or alley and shall mean the entire width between the boundary lines of any public way where any part thereof is open to the public for purposes of vehicular traffic.

STRUCTURE

Anything constructed or erected, the use of which requires a more or less permanent location in or on the premises, or any other attachment to something having a permanent location on the ground, which includes, but is not limited to, objects such as buildings, mobile homes, gas or liquid storage tanks, bridges, culverts, decks, fences, satellite dishes or swimming pools.

TOWN

The Town of Rome, Adams County, Wisconsin, or any duly appointed designate thereof, including, but not limited to, the Town Board and Town committees.

TOWN BOARD or BOARD

The present governing body of the Town or any successors to the legislative power of said body, or any duly appointed designate thereof.

UTILITIES

Public and private facilities, such as water wells, water and sewage pumping stations, water storage tanks, electrical power substations, static transformer stations, telephone and telegraph exchanges, microwave radio relays and gas regulation stations, inclusive of associated transmission facilities but not including sewage disposal plants, municipal incinerators, warehouses, shops, storage yards and power plants.

WASTE

Garbage, refuse, and all other discarded or salvageable material, including materials resulting from industrial, commercial, and agricultural operations and from domestic use and public service activities.