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Tuesday, January 27, 2026
One-line summary
The Planning & Zoning Commission elected new officers (effective the next meeting), approved prior minutes and the agenda, reviewed 2026 meeting dates, recommended adoption of the annual commission policy with edits, and adjourned early before recognizing Chair Dale Ames for 50 years of service.
10 items as recorded in the packet and minutes.
1Call to Order and Pledge of Allegiance: 7:00 p.m.
Call to order and pledge were completed; no vote recorded.
2Roll Call
Roll call was taken; attendance recorded in minutes.
3Selection of Chair and Vice-Chair
Officer selections were decided by roll call vote; minutes state the new Chair and Vice-Chair will begin at the February meeting.
4Approve/Amend Meeting Agenda
52026 Meeting Dates
Chair noted City Council had already approved the schedule; no commission action recorded in the minutes.
6Approve/Amend Minutes from December 23, 2025, Regular Meeting
Approved with an amendment correcting the spelling of Commissioner Jorgensen's name.
7Public Hearings
No public hearings were held.
8Unfinished Business
No unfinished business items were taken up.
9a2026 Draft Policy of Planning and Zoning Commission
Commission recommended approval with the change of the title "City Administrator" to "City Clerk".
10Adjournment
Meeting adjourned at 7:18 pm.
What this meeting did about specific topics, organized by issue rather than by document.
2026 Planning and Zoning Commission officer elections
The commission held its annual officer elections by roll call vote, selecting Commissioner Haapala as Chair and Commissioner Pearo as Vice-Chair, with both changes stated to take effect at the February 23, 2026 meeting after City Council approval.
Agenda: 3. Speakers: Chairman Ames, Commissioner Bies, Commissioner Jorgensen, Commissioner Haapala, Commissioner Pearo, Commissioner Carlson.
2026 Planning and Zoning Commission policy update
The commission reviewed the annual Planning and Zoning Commission policy and voted to recommend approval to the City Council, with a specific edit to change references from "City Administrator" to "City Clerk" (with no other substantive changes noted beyond updating dates).
Agenda: 9a. Motions: M3. Speakers: Planner Cindy Nash, Commissioner Pearo, Chairman Ames.
Recognition of Chair Dale Ames retirement and 50 years of service
After the meeting adjourned, Mayor Hybben recognized Chair Dale Ames for 50 years of service to Burns Township and the City of Nowthen and thanked him on behalf of city staff, followed by applause and refreshments.
Speakers: Mayor Hybben.
4 motions on the record. Split votes are highlighted.
M1MOTION BY COMMISSIONER PEARO, SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER CARLSON TO APPROVE THE DECEMBER 23, 2025, MEETING MINUTES WITH AMENDMENTS TO COMMISSIONER JORGENSEN'S NAME.
moved by Commissioner Pearo, seconded by Commissioner Carlson
SEVEN (7) AYES.
M2MOTION BY COMMISIONER PEARO, SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER JORGENSEN TO APPROVE THE AGENDA AS PRESENTED.
moved by COMMISIONER PEARO, seconded by COMMISSIONER JORGENSEN
SEVEN (7) AYES.
M3MOTION BY COMMISSIONER PEARO, SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER BIES TO RECOMMEND APPROVAL OF THE PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION POLICY WITH CHANGING THE TITLE "CITY ADMINISTRATOR" TO "CITY CLERK".
moved by COMMISSIONER PEARO, seconded by COMMISSIONER BIES
SEVEN (7) AYES.
M4MOTION BY COMMISSIONER CARLSON, SECONDED BY JORGENSEN, TO ADJOURN.
moved by COMMISSIONER CARLSON, seconded by JORGENSEN
SEVEN (7) AYES.
When someone tried to remember earlier business, we cross-reference the corpus and write a short related-history note.
Chairman Ames noted that last year was the first year in his 50+ years of service that they had held a meeting in December.
— Chairman Ames
What this is about
Recalling that the commission did not typically meet in December until the prior year, in the context of reviewing the 2026 meeting date schedule.
The resolver has not run for this cue, or the search did not find a strong match in the corpus.
That was only a couple years back though, right? >> Yeah. >> Like 2022, 2021. >> Three or four years.
What this is about
Informal pre-meeting recollection referencing something that occurred in 2021/2022; the subject is not clear from this excerpt.
The resolver has not run for this cue, or the search did not find a strong match in the corpus.
This year is the first year we've ever had in my 50ome years that we've ever had a meeting in December.
What this is about
Recalling a long-standing practice about December meetings, stated during the 2026 meeting dates discussion.
The resolver has not run for this cue, or the search did not find a strong match in the corpus.
Every document and recording archived for this meeting.
January 27th, 2026 Planning and Zoning Packet
Packet · 2026-01-27
18 pages
January 27, 2026 Meeting Minutes
Minutes · 2026-01-27
4 pages
January 27, 2026 Agenda
Agenda · 2026-01-27
1 pages
Meeting recording
YouTube
Transcript · 110 segments · 17:10
The structured brief on this page is auto-generated and may need correction. The PDFs and the meeting recording remain the official record.