04-10-2002 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES CITY COUNCIL, APRIL 10, 2002 Scalze suggested that City staff contact the Watershed and request a wetland delineation as well as a determination of the ordinary high water mark. From that information, the buffer zone can be determined. "fhe City Administrator indicated that there are two issues. The first is whether or not the City is interested in acquiring the property for open space. If that is not likely, the next issue is to review a development proposal to determine the extent to which the property can be developed- The City Administrator indicated that development proposals can be submitted even though there is a moratorium in place. However, the Council would not be able to act on a proposal while the moratorium is in effect. LeTendre suggested that the Council could review the 1999 concept with regard to layout and number of lots. Any proposal submitted will likely be close to that. Fahey noted that in reclassifying the property to taxable, the County is also considering how many years to go back and collect unpaid taxes. The City Attorney commented that the 1999 concept development plan for the Palmer property has no legal significance- If the purchaser of the property wants to make a development proposal, one should be prepared and submitted to the City. The Council can review the proposal, however, during the time the moratorium is in place, the proposal could not be approved. Fahey pointed out that it appears the County will be assessing back taxes for the past 6 or 7 years. Fahey indicated that he wanted to ensure that these back taxes were paid before acting on any development proposal LeTendre reported that his client went to the County and requested that the property be placed bad< on the tax rolls. Therefore, he was certain that his client would be paying the taxes. The City Administrator indicated that the County will require full payment of taxes prior to recording a plat. Fahey indicated that the question is does the City move on a parallel path in considering both the issue of whether the City should acquire the property fa' open space and the issue of development of the site. LeTendre asked how long it would take for the Parks & Recreation Commission to make a recommendation on whether the City should acquire the site. Fahey stated that the location of the high water mark and the wetland delineation impacts the value of the property. The less valuable the property, the increased likelihood that the City would acquire it for open space. Fahey stated that he was not interested in the City's acquiring a site that had an inflated value. Fahey felt that the Parks & Recreation Commission will need 7