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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02_1126City of Falcon Heights Planning Commission Minutes November 26, 2002 Commission Chair Heideman called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m. PRESENT: Heideman, Lageson, DeLeo, Harris, Maher, Middleton, Ryan. Also present were Peter Lindstrom, Council Liaison, Heather Worthington, City Administrator, Tom Scott, City Attorney, and Deb Jones, Zoning and Planning Coordinator. ABSENT: Tracy, Ziebarth MINUTES: The minutes for October 22, 2002, were approved as written. PUBLIC HEARING: PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO CHAPTER 9 OF THE CITY CODE, CONCERNING LOT COVERAGE IN R-1 ZONES The public hearing was opened by Commission Chair Heideman at 7:05 p.m. No one came forward wishing to speak on this issue. The public hearing was closed at 7:06 p.m. LOT COVERAGE ORDINANCE AMENDMENT Commissioner Middleton moved, Lageson seconded, that the Planning Commission recommend to the City Council passage of Ordinance 02-04, concerning limitations of impervious coverage of R-1 lots. The Commission has spent considerable time studying this issue, so there was no discussion. Ms. Jones asked if there were any questions concerning an adjustment to the limits for the smallest lot category which is based on more accurate interpretation of the data on existing lot coverage. As there were none, the question was called. Motion carried, 6 in favor, 1 opposed. REQUEST FOR A VARIANCE IN REAR SETBACK AT 2190 FOLWELL AVENUE A variance of 15 feet in rear setback is requested by Dr. Fred Cooper and Dr. Helen Foster, owners/leaseholders of 2190 Folwell Avenue to construct an addition to their home. The owners wish to build a library office addition to be designed by the architectural firm that originally designed the house. No building permit is sought at this time; the variance will allow the owners and the architect to proceed with the design phase. The staff report finds that this property is unique in that the lot has street frontage on three of the four sides, severely restricting any expansion; also, that the addition of a library/office space is a reasonable use for a residence in this neighborhood and that there is no detriment to the public interest or neighboring properties. Dr. Cooper was present and addressed the Commission. Commissioner Heideman confirmed the uniqueness of the property and pointed out that if the front door of this residence faced either one of the side streets the five foot side setback would have applied and the variance would not have been necessary. Even with the variance there will still be a separation of 15 feet from the adjoining property on the south. The neighbor at 1587 Burton was also present, and said he had no objection. Ms. Jones confirmed that notices had been mailed to neighbors within 300 feet and only one response (which was positive) had been received. The Commission voted unanimously to recommend approval of the variance (Resolution 02-21) to the City Council. The Council will take up the matter on December 18. COMMENT ON LOT COVERAGE FROM RESIDENT Mr. Rich Roddick of 1341 Idaho Avenue, who had arrived after the close of the public hearing, requested the opportunity to ask a question about the ordinance. The public hearing could not be re-opened, but the Commission invited him to speak since he had taken the trouble to come. Mr. Roddick asked how the coverage limit would impact future changes to properties that are already close to the coverage limit. Would owners be allowed to replace one kind of coverage with another? The answer is yes, Ms. Jones confirmed. Commissioner DeLeo assured Mr. Roddick that the Commission had looked very carefully at these issues in Northome in particular over several months. INFORMATION AND ANNOUNCEMENTS City Administrator Heather Worthington gave an update on the SE Corner project. The project is running about a month behind the timeline that was included in the October memo the Commission received. In December the Commission will be asked to review the Preliminary Site Plan for the project and the Comp Plan Amendment. The latter is a formality. The Commission will make recommendations to the City Council. Several of the Commissioners had questions about the project. In response to a question from Commission Lageson, Ms. Worthington said that the developer is committing funds to the redevelopment of Curtiss Field in lieu of setting aside land from the development for park use. There will be many opportunities for communication with the public during the project, beginning early in the new year. Ms. Worthington said that the City had received a grant of $1 million from the Met Council toward the project. The City has tried to be proactive about addressing concerns that have been raised by the community; recent phone calls from the public have been very positive, mostly about how to get on waiting lists for units. In response to a question from Commissioner Harris, Ms. Worthington said the City has not been involved in relocation of businesses but has been in touch with Sherman and Associates about the progress of this. Commissioner Heideman asked if the City has concerns about local government aid in view of the recent election. Ms. Worthington replied that nothing is certain but that an LGA cut is likely and that the City is prepared with a contingency budget. The Truth in Taxation Hearing on December 9 will go into this in detail. The City has been told that the tax credits for the SE Corner cannot be "unallocated," but Ms. Worthington cautioned that nothing is certain. Commissioner Lageson gave a brief report on the meeting of the working group of developed suburbs that has been meeting in Richfield. The group met earlier this month with representatives of the Association of Metropolitan Municipalities and League of Minnesota Cities to formulate priorities. The issues at the top of the list are (1) local government aid, (2) TIFF/redevelopment, and (3) transit. Commissioner Heideman added that the needs of inner suburbs are quite different from those of the developing suburbs and that we need to direct some effort toward supporting our common interests. The inner suburbs face a lot of complexity in these issues. She encouraged the commissioners, and any interested citizens, to attend future meetings of the working group. Commissioner Middleton asked if the City had taken a look at the transit changes in Falcon Heights. The new stops do not have shelters or even benches. She mentioned in particular the stops on Larpenteur at Cleveland and Gortner that serve UM students. Ms. Jones will look into this and find out if shelters are planned; these routes are on county and state right-of-ways. Commissioner Lageson asked about the proposed Vikings/UM football stadium. Councilmember Lindstrom replied that the most recent proposal, which included parking at the State Fair, seems to be "off" for now. Councilmember Lindstrom said that the Council has put in a lot of time discussing affordable housing. He will send staff a task force report on zoning measures cities can take to encourage affordable housing. This will be included in the next commission packet. A roll call of Commissioners determined that there will be a quorum for the proposed meeting on December 17. ADJOURN The meeting adjourned at 7:50 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Deborah Jones Zoning and Planning Coordinator