Watertown Board Approves Light Manufacturing Permit for 11th Street SE Commercial Property
- Steve Jurrens
- 6 days ago
- 2 min read
Northeast Radio SD News – Watertown, SD - The Watertown Board of Adjustment on Thursday unanimously approved a conditional use permit allowing light manufacturing operations at 505–511 11th Street SE.
The 16,353-square-foot property, owned by Legacy Properties-Commercial LLC, is located in a C-3 Highway Commercial District and currently houses office and indoor storage operations.
Community Development Manager Brandi Hanten presented the request, explaining that city ordinance requires all light manufacturing processes to occur entirely indoors to prevent environmental disruptions to neighboring properties.
“All of those operations with light manufacturing take place within the confines of a building, so there is nothing happening additional outdoors,” Hanten said, adding that the process would not produce off-site dust, odor, noise, or vibration.
Tom Mattingly, co-owner of Legacy Properties, told the board that the request is a proactive measure to prepare for potential future expansion. The building is currently divided between Extreme Garage Door, which occupies the front office space, and Glacial Lakes Rubber and Plastic, which rents space in the rear.
“Really we’re exploring this conditional use just in the event that—I’m not saying either tenant is leaving right now—but in the event that the building would be open and maybe one tenant takes control and was going to expand their operations one way or the other, we’re just trying to get our ducks in a line before that happens, knowing what we could potentially use the building for,” Mattingly said.
During board discussion, Vice Chairman Bill Speier asked about potential impacts on parking and neighboring residential properties across 11th Street SE.
“Does the change of use necessitate any changes from parking requirements on this structure?” Speier asked. He also inquired about exterior lighting requirements to prevent light spillage into nearby homes.
Hanten confirmed that staff reviewed the request and determined the site holds sufficient parking for the proposed use. Addressing the lighting concern, Hanten noted that city code dictates exterior fixtures near residential zones.
“When you’re adjacent to a residential district, we do have that for the shoebox lighting, so ordinance would cover that,” Hanten explained.
City staff reported receiving no comments or objections from adjacent property owners, and no members of the public spoke against the proposal during the public hearing.
The motion to approve the conditional use passed on a 6-0 roll-call vote.
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