04-27-94 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES CITY COUNCIL APRIL 27, 1994 Kurt Sloan, Quicksilver, stated that he believed in the free-enterprise system, but felt the City had to take responsibility for how it develops. Sloan pointed out that the intersection is close to capacity, and the Council needed to look at how the proposal affects the area. Sloan felt that if traffic worsened, this would affect the development of property in the industrial park, and force existing tenants to locate somewhere else. Sloan felt that the Council needed to consider what the intersection will be like ten years from now. Hanson pointed out that a lot of traffic through the intersection comes from Roseville and Vadnais Heights on its way to the freeway. Hanson felt the intersection was the neck of a funnel to the freeway system. Hanson suggested that when Quicksilver located in the area, they were looking for a location with quick freeway access. Sloan agreed that the traffic at the intersection will always be a knot, but felt that there were choices to be made in this proposal. Sloan felt the City should be looking for a business for this property that doesn't generate as much traffic as a SuperAmerica. Crary passed out some pictures showing three service stations that went bankrupt within 6 months of a SA locating nearby as well as traffic back-ups on Country Drive. Crary also submitted petitions from a number of business owners in the area in opposition to the SA proposal. Crary suggested that if the City wants to see the TIF property along Country Drive develop, traffic cannot be backed up along that street. Crary also felt that the SA proposal would cause a decrease in the City's tax base as property values decrease. Crary pointed out that the City's Comp Plan says the Council has the responsibility to regulate development in the best interests of the City. The City Planner stated that it was his belief that the Comp Plan supports the SA proposal from a land use standpoint. The property is zoned commercial and this is a commercial use. The Planner's primary concern was traffic, and both the developer's and City's traffic consultants have indicated that traffic is manageable on that site for the use proposed. The Planner reported that while there are lots of opinions, there is no evidence that there is no market need for this 13