06-20-2022 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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c. The applicant can demonstrate that there are “practical difficulties” in complying with the regulation(s) in question. Determination of whether practical difficulties exist shall be based on the following: 1. The property owner proposes to use the property in a reasonable manner permitted by this ordinance; 2. The plight of the land owner is due to circumstances unique to the property not created by the landowner; 3. The variance will maintain the essential character of the locality. 2. Practical difficulties include, but are not limited to, inadequate access to direct sun light for solar energy systems. 3. Economic considerations alone shall not constitute a sufficient basis for a Variance if reasonable use for the property exists under the regulation. 4. Variances shall be granted for earth-sheltered construction as defined in Minnesota Statutes 216C, Subd. 14, when in harmony with this ordinance. 5. The City Council may impose conditions in the granting of a variance. Such conditions must be directly related to and bear a rough proportionality to the impact created by the variance. The applicant has submitted supplemental information regarding the existing conditions and unique circumstances related to this property. Lapham Hickey seeks to expand 2 of 3 bays of their production floor to increase the volume of their operations. Due to the demand for steel, fabrication has increased considerably in the metro area and Lapham Hickey’s current space is inadequate in keeping pace with this demand. In the existing warehouse, there are three overhead cranes used for moving large steel pieces across the facility to machinery for different processes. The proposed plan would be to expand two overhead crane bays to extend the production floor 210 feet. In order to make this plan feasible, the proposed expansion needs to utilize the existing crane infrastructure and expand it northwards so that the flow of the assembly line remains continuous. This requires that the layout of the addition is calibrated in such a way that the new crane rail and structure aligns exactly with the existing crane path. These rigid parameters result in the proposed addition being located 6’ set back from the east property line as opposed to the required 20-foot rear yard setback. The applicant believes that these constraints provide for a practical necessity of a setback variance: a 20’ building setback would impede the flow of production since the eastern crane runway would no longer be able to be expanded and Lapham Hickey’s growth of production potential at this property would be stunted indefinitely. By granting a 6’ rear setback variance, Lapham Hickey will be able to expand their production line in such a way that improves not only efficiency, but worker safety as well since cranes will run continuously without obstacle across the