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CITY COUNCIL <br />WORK SESSION STAFF REPORT <br />ITEM NO.6 <br />STAFF ORIGINATOR: Tom Hoffman, Environmental Coordinator <br />WORK SESSION DATE: February 3, 2025 <br />TOPIC: North Oaks Mixed Use EAW Record of Decision <br />-1AX01lei as] LlWup <br />The North Oaks Mixed Use Development Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) was <br />approved for distribution by the City Council on December 9, 2024. The document was filed <br />with the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board (EQB) and circulated for review and <br />comments to the required EAW distribution list. A Notice of Availability was published in the <br />EQB Monitor on Tuesday, December 17, 2024. Notice was also provided to properties within <br />600 feet of the proposed project. <br />The thirty day comment period closed on January 16, 2025. The City received a number of <br />written comments from agencies and citizens. The City must respond to every substantive <br />comment. Substantive comments are comments that address the accuracy and completeness of <br />the materials contained in the EAW, potential impacts that may warrant further investigation <br />before the project is commenced, and the need for an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on <br />the proposed project. <br />The City's response to substantive comments received during the comment period are included <br />in the attached draft Record of Decision document. <br />The EAW is not meant to approve or disapprove a project, but is simply a source of information <br />to guide other approvals and permitting decisions. Minnesota Rule 4410.177, Subpart 2 requires <br />the City to make either a negative declaration or a positive declaration on the need for an EIS. <br />The City shall base its decision regarding the need for an EIS on the information gathered during <br />the EAW process and the comments received on the EAW. In doing so, the City must prepare a <br />record of decision that includes the information supporting the decision. <br />Minnesota Rules 4410.1700, Subp. 7 lists four criteria that shall be considered in deciding <br />whether a project has the potential for significant environmental effects. Those criteria are: <br />A. Type, extent, and reversibility of environmental effects; <br />B. Cumulative potential effects. The RGU shall consider the following factors: <br />whether the cumulative potential effect is significant; whether the contribution <br />1 <br />