Proposed RV Town Raises Concerns Among Neighbors

site of proposed RV campground – courtesy 10/11 NOW

(KFOR NEWS January 14, 2020) A 240-site campground has been proposed for a 45-acre plot of land on Highway 77 and the Davey Road. Special permit application #19051 was approved by the Lancaster County Planning Commission after a hearing that lasted more than five hours on December 4, 2019.

Neighboring land owners have appealed the decision and the special permit application must now be considered by the Lancaster Board of Commissioners. The board will also consider a text amendment to county zoning regulations since no ordinance for campgrounds in rural Lancaster County currently exists. Local farmers and acreage residents calling themselves Citizens for Protection of Rural Life, have formed a group to study the special permit application and text amendment.

Karen Kurbis, a member of CPR Life, sees several problems with locating a campground at the proposed
location which is zoned for agriculture. “This could create the 4th largest town in Lancaster County with no city services,” she said. “When it’s full in the summer, the population density would become the highest in all of Lancaster County. That just doesn’t make sense for a rural neighborhood that has been farms and single-family homes for generations.” “We’re also concerned about water quantity and quality for the surrounding family’s wells. There’ll also be safety issues from RVs turning on a four-lane, 70 mile per hour highway. It’s high traffic there with lots of semis, so we need turn lanes or a reduction in speed.”

Neighbors also express concern about ag land preservation and potential environmental impact to the
nearby Jack Sinn Wildlife Management Area in the event of malfunction of proposed lagoons to handle
wastewater.

“We’re strongly opposed to this campground so we’ve started a ‘Say No to RV Town’ campaign,” Kurbis
said. “We’re also opposed to the lenient ordinances being considered without citizen input. The next
campground could be in your rural area, so you’ll want the same protective text amendments that we’re
seeking for the protection of all rural life. People need to find out more and contact their commissioner.”

Public comments will be taken at the Lancaster County Board of Commissioners hearing to be held on
Tuesday, January 21, 2020. The hearing begins at 9 a.m. in room 112 of the County/City Building at 555
S. 10th Street in Lincoln.

Information from CPR Life can be found on Facebook under "Say No to RV Town" or they can be
contacted at [email protected].