08-09-2018 Planning Commission Packet

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STAFF REPORT TO: Planning Commission Members FROM: Jessica Jagoe, Associate Planner DATE: August 3, 2018 RE: 2925 Country Drive – PUD Amendment Dick Biagini, Property Owner, and The Academy of Sciences & Agriculture (AFSA) have applied for a Planned Unit Development Amendment at 2925 Country Drive that would allow for a charter school to be a permitted use within this District. This application is necessary because schools are not a permitted use under the property’s current zoning classification. Public and private educational institutions are permitted under the Public District. The applicants are requesting a text amendment to the PUD District to either allow charter schools as a permitted use or by special PUD District designation that would be specific to this parcel. The existing PUD Permit allows for commercial office type use. The school will have approximately 312 students in grades Pre-K – 8th. AFSA is currently operating out of two locations. AFSA Building Company owns a location in Vadnais Heights which is used for grades 7-12. The middle school which facilitates grades 5-6 operates out of Maplewood in the Lakeview Lutheran Church. This is a rental location. Both locations are at maximum capacity. In 2017, AFSA was approved for expansion and will be adding grades Pre-K-4 to their enrollment. The continued growth of the school in both enrollment numbers and grade levels has precipitated the need to look at alternate locations. They’ve toured several other existing buildings and feel the location at 2925 Country Drive meets their needs because of the proximity to the Vadnais Height’s location and capacity of the building to accommodate their projected enrollment in PreK-8 grades. It is anticipated that the school would have 35-40 staff members working out of this location. Land Use/Zoning The proposed amendment falls into two categories as part of your consideration. The first would be whether or not a charter school is the appropriate use for the site in the immediate future. The second would be if a school is established now, what would be the appropriate use in the future in the event the charter school vacates the property. In the City’s Comprehensive Plan this parcel is identified in District 4. This area of District 4 says “Along the west side of I-35E and Country Drive is a small concentration of office and office/warehouse buildings. The development in this area was originally facilitated by City assistance. There are a few residential parcels still in place along Country Drive which are both guided and zoned for eventual redevelopment matching the newer office buildings. While commercial uses are expected to continue to be the predominant land uses, small amounts of commercial-residential mixed use may be considered in some areas.”