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Just how many feet make for an adequate buffer between a sprawling RV park and an adjacent property owner of more than three decades?

After nearly four hours of presentations, public comments and deliberations, that became the final question to be answered by the Coconino County Board of Supervisors as they approved a zoning change requested by Happy Jack Lodge & RV on Tuesday night.

With the approval, Happy Jack Lodge will be allowed to expand from its current 381 RV campsites to 631, an increase of 65% capacity, and from 572 RV storage spaces to 812, a 42% increase.

The 4-0 vote by the board concluded a process that began more than four years ago when the Coconino County Planning and Zoning Commission recommended the change of three parcels, totaling 49.79 acres of land, from open space to resort commercial in October 2020. A continuance by the county Board of Supervisors two months later left the decision in limbo as a master development plan was requested to break down the existing development on the land, in addition to a traffic impact analysis to identify where improvements may be required for proposed development expansion.

“We were here in 2020, but I want to tell you, chair and board, we did need to spend time. There were things that we needed to do,� said Julie Pendergast, the manager of Happy Jack Lodge. “We heard there were things in the community, coordination, cooperation and collaboration with people, and I will tell you we worked -- staff and us -- very hard in the community. I think there’s always been outreach; it’s always been a wonderful place, but there was room for improvement. So we started really engaging even more than we had in the past.�

Four of the original 11 conditions to be met for approval were adjusted from when the hearing essentially began in December 2020, with three requested by Happy Jack Lodge itself.

A fence proposed at the southern boundary of the property will be allowed to be either metal or solar, a signed agreement by all guests will limit one registered off-highway vehicle (OHV) per site, and the business will distribute information from the Coconino National Forest and Arizona Game and Fish regarding safely using OHVs.

The fourth change came in the final minutes of the hearing, as the required 50-foot buffer between all the RV campsites and adjacent residential properties was modified to 350 feet at the northern boundary.

Detailed in the county’s more than 1,110 pages related to the zoning request, the northwestern corner of the expanded development would have come approximately 100 feet from the acre of residential land owned by Phil Trautman.

Trautman was one of many against the rezoning request, with Coconino County staff documenting 99 comments in opposition and seven of 13 public comments presented during the hearing raising concerns.

Public safety, noise and OHV concerns

Many of the concerns expressed during public comment, submitted to the county or presented to the board by Jess McNeely, the assistant director and planning manager for the county’s Community Development Department, focused on a set of similar issues.

With the park growing to 631 RV campsites, in addition to the existing 21 cabins and 25 tent sites, those opposed who live in the area questioned the additional smoke from campfires, off-roading activities on the surrounding land and overall public safety with limited law enforcement and fire protection available near Happy Jack.

All of those concerns tied into another worry for Trautman, who believes the property values diminish as those who desire a quieter life in the forest will seek out other residences away from a campground.

“We didn't have time to get an appraisal, but if you look at the real estate values where you have two identical properties, one close to a campground and one not close to a campground, guess what people are going to buy and guess what's going to be the larger real estate value?� Trautman told the board on Tuesday night.

As the hearing’s continuance neared its end and the topic returned to the board’s agenda, Trautman shared multiple photos with the county, displaying the impact of OHVs and side-by-sides on the roads and trails around the property.

Though Happy Jack Lodge elected to include a limit on the number of OHVs permitted per campsite, McNeely noted early in the proceedings that Coconino County has no ability to prohibit OHV access in any location due to their licensing through the State of Arizona.

However, those opposed to the rezoning added that by expanding the sites, the density of the use of the vehicles would still be focused around the campground as opposed to being spread throughout the forest. Even with one OHV allowed per RV site, Carol Harder surmised that the expansion could lead to more than 550 OHVs being used in the area at the peak of Happy Jack Lodge’s busy season after the Lodge’s leadership said around 90% of customers bring one of the vehicles.

“Everyone should have an opportunity to spend time in the forest, so long as it’s sustainable,� said Harder, who lives a few miles from the campground. “I understand the county has no jurisdiction over OHVs on our public roads and forest trails, but you do have the ability in this instance to limit the amount of potential additional OHV traffic in the specific area of the Coconino Forest.�

The presentation by both Pendergast and Happy Jack Lodge owner and local lawyer Michael Mongini noted that an expansion of spaces should lead to bringing in the assortment of dispersed campers on national forest land. At its current capacity, Pendergast said, the dry campsites for RVs are essentially booked a year in advance by customers who stay seasonally. With a significant number of the spaces treated as second homes for months at a time, Pendergast added there's effectively no way to currently bring dispersed campers -- those camping outside of designated sites -- onto the property.

However, a few members of the public pushed back on the notion that additional campsites for RVs would bring campers out of the forest and onto Happy Jack Lodge’s property if the opportunity was available.

Explaining that even when spaces are available at the Lodge, he elects to remain as a dispersed camper, Kevin Korczyk noted that the restrictions Happy Jack Lodge has put in place to alleviate concerns simply keeps away potential customers due to the limit of one OHV and the quiet hours from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.

“The net effect and impact of expanding the campground would be additional congestion and wear and tear on the forest, especially in the immediate areas surrounding the campground, as increased density means more traffic and demand on the land,� Korczyk said. “This would be in addition to the population that prefers dispersed camping.�

Richard Crecelius, another resident who lives within a few miles of the campground, closed the public comment by expressing an overall concern about the density of people in the Happy Jack area.

“It seems to me that they’re trying to make a small city in a rural setting, and it just doesn’t fit,� Crecelius said. “I believe you’re at the maximum right now, and I cannot see how it would behoove anybody but the investors in the Happy Jack Lodge to increase this.�

A good neighbor

During his presentation to the board, Mongini highlighted the benefit Happy Jack Lodge offers to the surrounding community through its ability to dispose of trash and sewage, a cell tower, a water tower with an emergency radio system atop it that is utilized by local emergency personnel and staffing to assist in the event of an emergency.

Having repurposed its buildings and infrastructure from the previous mining and lumber operations on the site when it opened in 1994, the property’s existing water tank, Mongini explained, holds 255,000 gallons and the system of fire hydrants is in place for fire protection, while the sewage treatment plant was built for the previous use of the land and is “going to serve us forever.�

“We are consistent with where we should be,� Mongini said. “We're on a major road, we have all the infrastructure out there that we need for whatever issues that could possibly arise, and what we're doing is we're expanding right next door to a consistent use.�

Mongini said he believes there’s been a clear increase in forest use in the years following the pandemic, given the rise in usage of the camp’s RV sewage dump by campers coming from off the property. Additionally, Mongini said he sees the same campers� use of the property’s dumpsters for trash as another example of the camp’s benefit to the forest as a whole.

“When we first started this, I went to the national forest and asked them, 'What do you guys need me to do out here?'� Mongini said. “They said one big item: 'You have to deal with the RV dumps. They're dumping all over the national forest, can you deal with that?'�

In addition to citing their help in keeping the forest cleaner -- via those who stay at the park and any dispersed camper who utilizes the facilities during their time within the forest itself -- Pendergast cited the Lodge’s desire to become a staple in the Happy Jack community.

“We made sure we mitigated, worked on relationships and did the things we needed to do to limit impact to the neighbors and community,� Pendergast said. “And again, to make sure there’s a benefit to this zone change request to the community and that we continue to be an asset for the Happy Jack area.�

Members of the community reiterated the same beliefs, noting the availability of the sewage and trash dumps is a step toward keeping the surrounding forest cleaner while agreeing there’s not necessarily a perfect solution for the host of issues the national forest faces.

“Having a facility like the Lodge, I believe, mitigates some of the congestion caused in the forest from visitors seeking to enjoy the cooler weather,� said Beth Canedy, a resident within the area who has visited the cabin throughout the years. “We’re probably not all in agreement as to how to handle these things and to manage the growth in our areas, but I do think that a managed campground is a plus for all residents.�

Board approval

With the approval of the Planning and Zoning Commission a little more than four years prior, the board ultimately found that all three conditions for approval were met.

In addition to McNeely’s presentation showing Happy Jack Lodge had met the standards for RV parks and a resort commercial zone, the board found that the zone change would not be detrimental to the public health, safety, comfort, convenience and welfare of the area, and would not adversely affect the established character of the surrounding neighborhood or be detrimental to adjacent properties.

Among the reasoning for the findings was Happy Jack Lodge’s access to Lake Mary Road, which will have right and left turn lanes added in accordance with the traffic impact analysis, approval by the state fire marshal or an area fire district and its emergency access on and off the property via Forest Service Road 122.

Patrice Horstman, District 1 supervisor and vice chair of the board, noted these as specific reasons for the approval in comparison to the denial of a conditional use permit for a potential campground in Red Lake this past August.

“We had a situation that came before us not long ago on a camping area that they wanted to put in an area that was already substantially a residential-use area,� Horstman said. “They were trying to put a commercial enterprise in the midst of that. I had some problems with that and voted against that, but this is almost the opposite. I know there are some property owners that have been there for a long time, but the nature of the area predominantly has changed not because of the park or the Happy Jack coming into a residential area, but by quite frankly people building residential homes in this area.�

District 3 Supervisor Tammy Ontiveros, who represents the area where Happy Jack Lodge is located, said while she does not believe the expansion will pull all dispersed campers in the area to the camp, she said the problem will likely only get worse without some form of management.

“These cases are difficult because there is going to be an impact to the area, and there is no question about that,� Ontiveros said. “In my opinion, the Lodge has been a good neighbor. I think this Lodge is part of the solution, and not the problem.�