The purpose of this article is to promote and to protect the public health, morals, safety, and general welfare of the county. It is intended to encourage the use of lands and natural resources in the county in accordance with their character and adaptability; to promote orderly development; to secure safety to health, life and property; to prevent highways from economic suffocation by encroaching uses; to preserve land values and ensure a quality environment for future generations. This article is intended to accomplish this purpose by providing for the proper locations, construction and use of buildings, structures, and the use of land, shorelands, air, and water within the unincorporated areas of the county.

(Code 2000, § 38-311; Ord. of 3-19-2002, Art. I, § 11)

Pursuant to Wis. Stats. §§ 59.692 and 87.30, all of the unincorporated areas of the county are subject to county shoreland and floodplain zoning within the shoreland and floodplain areas described in divisions 2 and 27 of this article and section 38-921.

(Code 2000, § 38-312; Ord. of 3-19-2002, Art. I, § 11.5; Res. No. 47-17, 6-20-2017)

(a)

The provisions of this article shall be held to be minimum requirements, adopted for the promotion and protection of the public health, morals, safety, and general welfare of the county. Whenever the requirements of this article are at variance with the requirements of any other lawfully adopted regulations, ordinances, or private covenants, the most restrictive, or that imposing the higher standards shall govern.

(b)

In their interpretation and application, the provisions of this article shall be held to be minimum requirements and shall be liberally construed in favor of the county and shall not be deemed a limitation or repeat of any other powers granted by state statutes. Where a provision of this article is required by a standard in Wis. Admin. Code ch. NR 115, and where the ordinance provision is unclear, the provision shall be interpreted in light of the Wis. Admin. Code ch. NR 115 standards in effect on the date of adoption of this article, or in effect on the date of the most recent text amendment to this article.

(Code 2000, § 38-313; Ord. of 3-19-2002, Art. I, § 12)