*This case is recommended for publication.

In Hartland Sportsmen’s Club, Inc. v. City of Delafield (2019AP740), the Court of Appeals District II upheld a conditional use permit for a sport shooting range in Delafield.

Hartland Sportsmen’s Club (HSC) sought a conditional use permit from Delafield to continue to operate a shooting range. A previous lawsuit between HSC and Delafield found that the city had arbitrarily and capriciously denied HSC the permit. After that court decision, Delafield did not issue the conditional use permit but instead reconsidered the permit by holding new hearings, issuing new findings and again denying the permit. HSC filed this lawsuit asking the court to direct the city to issue the permit based on the first court decision.

The Court of Appeals agreed with HSC that the prior court ruling required the city to issue the conditional use permit. The outright reversal of the city’s denial of the permit by the court in the prior case was appropriate because the violation of due process would not be cured by remanding for further proceedings on the permit. Municipalities do not have authority to revisit a previously denied permit when a court has invalidated the denial on a factual basis.