A sign declares this to be the future home of Jake’s Pizza in Wells. The building in the background is being remodeled to house the restaurant, and the Wells Council recently passed a motion to make an addition on the building possible.

It appears the owners of Jake’s Pizza in Wells, Dawn and Stephen Navara, will be able to continue with their project of getting their restaurant up and running following a 3-2 vote by the Wells City Council approving a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) for the business.

The vote, which took place at a council meeting on Monday, Oct. 25, came after a long discussion by council members on whether Jake’s had met five necessary requirements to qualify for the permit.

The Navaras requested the permit in order to add an addition to the building they purchased from former city administrator CJ Holl.

The current structure is located at 55 Second Street NE and the new addition would be 12 feet x 20 feet.

Before voting on the requirement, council member Brenda Weber stated, in her opinion, the requirements could not be met.

“I am having a hard time with this,” Weber stated. “I would have to vote no on the permit.”

John Herman offered his thoughts.

“Yes, there is a gray area involved in regards to off-street parking,” he said. “But we are elected to do what is best for the town. People want a sit-down restaurant and our own studies show there is a need for one.”

City attorney David Frundt said there are ways to address parking, which is an issue.

“One possibility is to make the parking on the street, where the residents live near the proposed establishment, available for the residents only,” he commented.

Another concern raised by Weber is what will happen to the residential property values in the area of the business.

“I have talked to two realtors who had the opinion the property values would decrease,” she shared. “I am sticking to the facts and the facts say we cannot pass the CUP.”

Council member Nancy Krueger echoed Weber’s thoughts.

“I agree with Brenda. We have to base our decision on facts and cannot pass this,” Krueger said. “It is not fair for the people who have to see their property values drop.”

Frundt advised the council they should vote on the five individual questions contained in the CUP before voting on the CUP passage.

All the members agreed adequate utilities, access roads, drainage and other necessary facilities were being provided.

On the other four questions, the vote was 3-2 with council members Herman, Jessica Mortenson and mayor David Braun voting the proposal meets the requirements of the CUP and Weber and Krueger voting the requirements are not being met.

Council members also considered whether the proposed use is compatible with the normal and orderly development and improvement of the property and does not substantially diminish and impair property values within the immediate vicinity.

Another question dealt with whether the CUP would impede the normal and orderly development and improvement of surrounding vacant property.

Next, the question of whether adequate measures have been or will be taken to provide sufficient off-street parking was voted on.

The final consideration dealt with controlling offensive odor, fumes, dust, noise and vibration.

Since a majority of the council members had voted the five CUP requirements had been met, Herman made a motion, which was seconded by Mortenson, to pass the CUP.

Herman, Mortenson and Braun voted in favor of granting the CUP while Weber and Krueger opposed the motion.

The council also:

• Heard a request during the public comment portion of the meeting to extend the allowed time for burning leaves past the current Dec. 1 deadline. The stated reason for the request was because many of the trees do not lose their leaves until after Dec. 1.

• Approved the request by the Flame Theatre management to transition from fountain pop to bottled pop due to the mechanical problems associated with the fountain pop system.

• Voted to formally accept a donation of $23,000 for the scoreboard at Thompson Park. The donations were made by Wells Marketplace, Allis Brothers, Kalis Custom, Bevcomm and Peoples State Bank.

• Passed a motion to accept a donation of $200 from the Kiester Fire Department to the Wells Fire Department for Fire Prevention Week.

• Directed the Wells Housing Redevelopment Authority to purchase three tax-forfeited parcels from the county.