Posted: 02.25.2011

The Janesville Gazette is reporting this morning that the Magnolia Town Board voted 2-1 on Thursday to spend up to $15,000 to litigate the town’s case over a permit at Larson Acres before the state Supreme Court.

The board also accepted a $10,000 donation for the cause from board member Dave Olsen and his wife, Sheryl.

The Supreme Court decision is expected to set a precedent as to how permitting large farms interacts with local zoning authority, according to a news release from the court. The case revolves around conditions the town placed on the farm’s permit in 2007 to protect groundwater—an action the farm claimed was micromanagement.

The board met in closed session last week with town attorney Glenn Reynolds to discuss what to do after the Supreme Court agreed earlier this month to hear the case. Nearly 20 residents gathered in the town hall Thursday night for the board’s discussion over how to proceed.

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