The Issues

The Shadow Wood Landing project is a venture of CFS, LLC, a limited liability corporation with a staff consisting of business manager Wendy Cariveau of Minneapolis, and her college student daughter, Annalisa, designated as President and CEO. The proposed development, a private, members only community, plans a private jet landing strip, a hotel, restaurant, bar, gas station, rental condominiums and cabins, and private homes. CFS, LLC has no prior development experience.

This project is objectionable to the local community for numerous reasons:

The proposed airstrip to accommodate private business class jet aircraft will generate substantial noise pollution normally encountered - and endured - only in large urban areas. This jet aircraft traffic will be disruptive and offensive to Bayfield peninsula residents and visitors, and will negatively impact the tourism economy critical to the economic prosperity of the region.

The planned high density housing in the midst of forest and agricultural land constitutes inappropriate urban sprawl, and is inconsistent both with the rural character of the area for which it is proposed, and the expressed values of the great majority of Bayfield peninsula residents. The Town of Russell Land Use Plan, ignored by both the Town and County Boards, clearly designates the areas adjacent to Red Cliff and along east County K as the preferred and only appropriate site for high density housing. The proposed Compton Road location would negatively impact local residents, agribusinesses, and wildlife.

Roads and bridges in the immediate area of this proposed development are completely inadequate to handle the increased traffic that would result from this project, and will require substantial upgrades, or complete replacement, and maintenance, at taxpayer expense.

No plan has been offered by the developer to mitigate the large amount of wastewater and raw sewage, which a residential and commercial development of this magnitude will generate. Storm water runoff, burdened with a variety of toxins from the acres of deforested and/or paved land and airstrip, will enter the fragile Pikes Creek Watershed and substantially harm this important ecosystem. Pikes Creek is designated as a Class I, high quality trout stream that sustains populations of wild trout.

A development of this magnitude will consume a huge amount of water - up to 1,000 gallons per day per occupied housing unit. The impact of this withdrawal on the aquifer and, thus, area farms, residences and streams, has not been studied and is, therefore, unknown.

Local police and fire protection resources, already stretched thin and suffering from budget constraints, cannot assume the additional burden of supporting this development.

The following organizations/entities formally requested that the Bayfield County Board either deny, or table for further study and discussion, the CFS, LLC requested zoning change to accommodate their proposed high density housing development.  The requests were ignored.
          Town of Bayfield
          Bayfield Chamber of Commerce
          Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

The process by which the Town of Russell Board approved the CFS, LLC rezoning request was cloaked in secrecy, and may not have complied with State of Wisconsin open meeting law and/or Town protocols and regulations. What is certain is that the Town Board deliberately endeavored to keep dialog regarding this major, complex project "below the radar", and did not solicit input from the community at large in spite of its obviously far reaching implications for local residents and businesses.

The Bayfield County Board, in spite of overwhelming public sentiment opposing this development, refused to table the CFS, LLC rezoning request pending further review and discussion, as requested verbally and in writing by a multitude of constituents. Instead, the Board voted to approve this rezoning request, even though they had only superficial knowledge of the site characteristics and development plan details. One can only speculate on the Board's motive for "fast tracking" the vote on this important issue without understanding, or responsibly considering, the consequences of their decision and the legitimate concerns of the community.

It has been suggested that the developer wants to make Bayfield "The Aspen Colorado" of the upper Midwest, and that this development will create substantial employment opportunities and new business for area merchants. Those who directly experienced the construction "boom" in Aspen note that virtually all labor and materials were imported from Denver, and that local citizens and businesses were not benefitted. It is highly likely, in spite of claims to the contrary, that this Minneapolis developer will import her resources from the Twin Cities. In addition, as upscale construction proceeded in Aspen, living costs and taxes escalated so substantially, that families who had lived and worked there for generations could no longer afford the area, and were forced to relocate. The Shadow Wood Landing development could, ultimately, have a similar effect on the Bayfield community should the out-of-state developer realize her "vision".

The Bayfield County Committee for Responsible Land Use, considering these issues, opposes the Shadow Wood Landing development and asks you to join us in our efforts.  Contact us by email, make a contribution to the legal defense fund, write a letter to the editor, talk to the County Supervisor who represents your town, and help us maintain the character of Bayfield County and keep Bayfield the "Best Little Town in the Midwest."