WHITELAW (NBC 26) — The Whitelaw Village Board voted 4-2 to revoke Third Gen Salvage's conditional use permit, moving the business closer to closure after years of alleged violations.
Watch the full broadcast here:
The decision came during a board meeting where members discussed multiple options, including giving owner Willis Clark more time to install required fencing or rescinding the permit entirely.
"I would like to make a motion to shut him down," one board member said during the meeting.
"To rescind the C.U.P," another member added.
"I second it," came the response.
Village President Randy Christiansen called it one of the most difficult decisions he's made in three decades on the board.
"To be honest, I've lost sleep over this and I think this is the most difficult decision I've had to make in 30 years being on the board," Christiansen said.
Board members cited years of broken promises, including Clark's failure to install fencing he agreed to in his 2024 conditional use permit.
"It continues from there, on and on and on, promises and violations," Village Trustee Lois Kiel said.
Trustee Beverley Linzmeier said the current board is trying to correct past mistakes.
"Did the last board make a mistake? You bet. This board is trying to correct something that should have been corrected six years ago," Linzmeier said.
Clark said the vote went as he expected and criticized the board's approach.
"They've been trying to shut me down since 2019, so it was not a surprise," Clark said. "It's one thing to blame me for not finishing the fence but then to attack character … seemed like a real stretch."
Clark also pointed to ongoing communication issues between himself and the board.
"Obviously I'm at fault for not accomplishing it but they make it seem like they have been oh so accommodating and that I don't communicate," Clark said. "It always seems like they are changing goal posts."
Board members and the village president declined to comment when contacted.
The board gave Clark 30 days to stop operations. If he doesn't comply, he faces a $500 daily fine.
Clark said he is pursuing legal action and plans to continue business as usual until there is a final resolution.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
