Tails of Gold kennel owner Valorie LaBeau has filed a lawsuit against Lynden Township and its board members after the board voted last February to revoke the conditional use permit (CUP) she had been granted in 2007 to operate a commercial kennel.

 

LaBeau’s CUP was revoked after Stearns County sheriff’s officials executed a search warrant at her business in November 2015 and Lynden Township’s building inspector performed a site visit in January 2016. 

 

The search warrant, which was carried out to investigate allegations of possible violations and concern for the well being of the golden retrievers bred by LaBeau, found the condition of the facilities to be a potential threat for the spread of disease and parasites. Along with this, LaBeau appeared to be in violation of nine conditions of her CUP. 

 

She was given 30 days to correct the violations by the township, and in January 2016 the township’s building inspector, Nancy Scott, performed a site visit. Many of the alleged violations appeared to have been corrected, however a mobile home on the property was still being used to house several animals, none of the floor surfaces were completed impervious, and there were too many dogs on the premises, all direct violations of the CUP.

 

The Lynden Township Board of Supervisors revoked LaBeau’s CUP in February after a public hearing and the Stearns County Planning Commission’s determination that a violation of the permit had occurred and recommendation they do so.

 

Two conditions of the CUP were determined to be in violation. The first states all primary enclosure surfaces must be able to be cleaned and sanitized and secondary kennel surfaces must be maintained according to an approved waste management and drainage plan for the site. 

 

The second condition states the mobile home may not be used as a primary or secondary enclosure.

 

“We certainly believe the township had the right to revoke the CUP due to violations that occurred,” said Lynden Township Attorney Paul Reuvers.

 

At a hearing in Stearns County Dec. 19, Reuvers asked for the lawsuit filed by LaBeau to be dismissed. The judge has 90 days to issue a ruling.