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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPC Minutes 6.24.2025 - ApprovedCITY OF FALCON HEIGHTS Planning Commission City Hall 2077 West Larpenteur Avenue MINUTES June 24, 2025 at 7:00 P.M. A. CALL TO ORDER: 7:00 P.M. B. ROLL CALL: Mike Tracy _A_ Laura Paynter _X_ Jacob Brooks _X_ Rick Seifert _X_ Jim Mogen _X_ Jeremy Hallowanger _X_ Jake Anderson _A_ Staff Liaison Lynch _X_ Council Liaison Meyer _X_ C. APPROVAL OF AGENDA A motion was made by Paynter to approve the agenda. Agenda was approved by consent. D. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. January 28, 2025 2. March 25, 2025 3. April 22, 2025 4. May 27, 2025 A motion was made by Commissioner Seifert to approve minutes from January 28, 2025, March 25, 2025, April 22, 2025, and May 27, 2025. Minutes were approved by consent. E. PUBLIC HEARING – None. F. NEW BUSINESS 1. City Code Updates Staff Liaison Lynch went through general code updates the commission has been working on. Changes specifically addressed were the following: - Farmers’ Markets – Previously these were permitted as an interim use in B-2 with specifically 284 parking spaces. It is assumed this was specific to the current Blaze Credit Union parking lot. Code was updated to allow in R-5M and B-2 zoning districts. Must receive a special event permit and meet all requirements of those. - Single Family Residences in R-5M – Code was updated to specifically state that single family residences that are existing in R-5M must conform to R-1 zoning requirements. There are a few existing homes in R-5M, so this change was to clarify how to look at updates to these properties. - Planned Unit Development Expirations – It has been noted in the past that City Code does not have any language around the expiration of PUDs. Code was drafted to update that construction on these must begin within 24 months, otherwise the PUD is considered null and void and the property will revert to its previous zoning classification, or the applicant may request up to two extensions from City Council, for 12 months each. Commissioners discussed this and suggested also including language around an ending time period, such as all work must be completed in a certain amount of time, or stating that this section does not apply if the development agreement for the PUD states out specific timing. Staff Liaison Lynch stated she would draft different language. - Optional informal planning commission reviews for Planned Unit Developments – Code was updated to allow for an informal review of PUD plans by the Planning Commission. Commissioner Mogen suggested adding additional language to clarify that this does not constitute and application and would not trigger MN Stat. 15.99 which requires an approval or denial on a written zoning request within 60 days. - Boat and trailer storage – Currently City Code does not allow boats or trailers to be stored in a driveway. Code has been updated to allow boats and trailers, under 25’ in length, to be stored in driveways from April 2 to November 14. From November 15 to April 1, they may be stored in a side yard or rear yard. Commissioners suggested cleaning up these edits slightly to make more concise and also clarify about the setback from property lines. - Trash bin storage – Previously Code was updated to allow residential trash cans to be stored behind the front plane of a home, but still able to be seen from the road. This has caused slight confusion within the City, so Code has been updated to allow these to be stored in front of garages, as long as they are still behind the front plane of the home. Staff Liaison Lynch stated this was only for homes that do not abut an alley. She will be looking through this section again to ensure that all of this is clear. - Permeable pavement – Code has been updated to allow for permeable pavement or pavers to be used for driveways. This does not allow for plastic grid style paving that includes gravel or grass growing in the grid. This was intended to then allow for the resident to not include the permeable pavement as part of the total impervious surface coverage for the lot. Commissioner Mogen suggested checking with one of the watershed districts as he does not believe having permeable pavement provides the same amount of permeability and that it should be a percentage of the total coverage allowed. Staff Liaison Lynch will reach out to one of the watershed districts to get their advice on moving forward with this update. Staff Liaison Lynch stated these changes would be brought to a City Council workshop before a public hearing is scheduled with the Planning Commission to ensure everything is on the right track. She stated that workshop may not be held until August. 2. Development Updates Staff Liaison Lynch gave an update on the current developments within the City as follows: - “Amber Flats” – The property to the west of Amber Union which was approved for a planned unit development and proposed Amber Flats affordable housing apartments has been put up for sale and a company has entered into an agreement to purchase the property, pending success with securing financing and grant awards. The property will need an update to the existing PUD but should not change much. It will also be changing from affordable apartments to affordable senior apartments and will include smaller units, such as 1-bedrooms and studios. - 1407 Larpenteur (Get Pressed) – The City has spoken with the property owner about the potential to purchase this property from him. A grant from the MPCA was awarded that allowed for an environmental investigation to occur which found pollutants. The estimated cost of remediation is $350,000. The City has requested an appraisal and will be using that to move forward. The goal is to potentially look at doing affordable townhomes on the property for ownership, but ultimately the City will need to look at moving forward with remediation first. - University of Minnesota – Les Bolstad Golf Course – The University of Minnesota has recently announced their upcoming sale of the Les Bolstad Golf Course. This course encompasses approximately 140.9 acres of land in Falcon Heights. The University has stated they will begin an RFP process toward the end of summer to select a developer. The City plans to work with the University during this process and will need to eventually create a master plan to look at rezoning and development. The City completed the Larpenteur and Snelling Corridor Development Study in 2023 which briefly looked at this site and the possibilities for development. This will be used in the RFP the University issues. While the City goes through this process, there will be many opportunities for residents and stakeholders to provide input and feedback about the plans. G. INFORMATION AND ANNOUNCEMENTS 1. Staff Liaison Report – Staff Liaison Lynch announced that Ice Cream Social will be held on July 17 from 5-7 PM at City Hall, there will be a day of Lawn & Garden Tours on July 19 from 9-12 PM, and the City is going to begin paying commissioners $50 per meeting starting in August. More information about this will be at the July meeting. 2. Council Liaison Report – None. H. ADJOURN A motion was made by Commissioner Hallowanger to adjourn the meeting. Meeting was adjourned by consent at 7:50 PM.