05-14-2025 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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Applicants must meet all criteria for a variance to be approved. The criteria for variance requests are as follows: 1. The request is in harmony with the purposes and intent of this ordinance 2. The variance is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan. 3. 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: a. The property owner proposes to use the property in a reasonable manner permitted by this ordinance. b. The plight of the landowner is due to circumstances unique to the property not created by the landowner. c. The variance will maintain the essential character of the locality The applicant has submitted all necessary paperwork for the variance request, including a narrative submittal. APPLICANT NARRATIVE The applicant is required to submit a narrative explaining their need for the variance and their explanation of how the request meets the City’s criteria. The Risty Family states that the desire to move the property line stems from their desire to guarantee the maintenance of seven mature pine trees. The applicant states that the trees are an important element to the character of the neighborhood and provide a natural privacy screen between the two properties. Moreover, the applicant argues that, at the time of development, the City’s rear setback requirement for the homes was thirty feet, which is the same setback now proposed for the home at 49 Old County Road C. OUTSIDE AGENCY REVIEW The applicant’s proposed legal descriptions and survey will be reviewed by Ramsey County should the City Council approve the request. No other agency or Staff review is necessary for this proposal as no new structures are proposed nor new developable lots created. PUBLIC COMMENT Staff have mailed notice to property owners within 350’ of the two properties. Notice of both the Planning Commission and City Council meetings were published in the Pioneer Press on Saturday, May 3, 2025. Staff have not received any written public comment, nor did anyone appear in support or opposed to the application at the Planning Commission’s May 8th meeting. PLANNING COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION The Planning Commission reviewed the application at their May 8th, 2025, meeting. The Planning Commission noted that the variances were minimal, that the properties were developed under different expectations of City Code and agreed with staff’s findings. They recommended approval of the subdivision and both variances unanimously.