09/05/1979 P&Z Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Search

Page 8 Planning and Zoning Commission September 5,1979 Mr. Gourley indicated that all the developments on the plat map were one acre, with the exception of two 22 acre developments. .Mr. Gotwald felt it would not be profitable to develop 22 acre Tots in view of the land costs and road costs, which would remain the same regardless of lot size. He felt that it had been proven in many areas that the soils were adequate for a half or even a third of an acre to support an on -site system, and that proof should be gotten from Metro that a one acre size was necessary. Mayor Karth in- dicated that Metro had set up an on -site waste disposal ad hoc committee, which had determined that one acre of land would be adequate to handle a septic system for80 years. Mr. Gotwald said that one acre was an average size, and Mr. Johnson noted that 90percent of the land in the City was Tess than' average. Mr. Gotwald referred to WPC-40, in that it dealt with every possible problem, and that it could be done. He explained the soil types, basically fine sand, in the City, and noted that the problem was not the soil but the seasonal high water table. He felt Z acre Tots were feasible, and Metro should offer evidence to the contrary. He noted that one acre lots were required ; where the soil was clay, and also where the soil was sand. Mr. Locke noted that in a one unit per ten acre size , the density was low enough that it could be subdivded at a future date; the City would not want an extensive number of 21 acre lots, as it would use up the available land faster and it would be difficult to go back later and subdivide. He asked how often splitting of these lots had occurred. Mr. Gourley said that there was no control on where people put their houses, and there were only a few that could split their lots. Mr. Gotwald felt if the farmer weren't faced with the higher taxes, if he was given a tax credit, they could keep the farms and development could be phased into the area. Mayor Karth noted that if building occured on the county road in these areas, it would be difficult to get back into the areas behind. Trying to tie the streets together was difficult as well. Mr.Gotwald suggested a 60-foot right of way along the section line or quarter line. Mr. Short handed out a sheet of paper with the guidelines other communities had on their residential/agricultural areas. Mr. Gotwald suggested changing the road requirements for the type of acreage requirements in an area; a cheaper type of road would make larger lots feasible. Any future reconstruction of the road would be assessed back to the property owners. However, even with that type of road, the costs would still be large to develop raw land into large lot sizes because of surveying, roads, and legal costs. Mr. Short pointed out that Centerville had an ordinance for minimum lot size outside of the sewered area which had a low density but a one acre minimum lot size, so that large chunks of land were not used. Easements for roads and so forth were to be handled by the people that reviewed the plats. Mayor Karth noted that the City was getting away from meets and bounds under 5 acres, so that everything would be coming in and be re- viewed. Mr. Gotwald suggested that commercial be considered for the southern boundary adjacent to Shoreview, as Shoreview was strictly residential at that point and this would also be in the middle of the Lino Lakes re- sidential area. There was a potential location on the west side of 1-35 E near Shoreview Lino Lakes, White Bear and Hugo. He suggested an area be selected that wasn't really suitable for residential development, where