11/14/2011 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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g. The storage area is surfaced in a wear - resistant material determined by the City Engineer to be suitable to control dust and drainage. h. All parking, loading and truck staging activities shall occur on site. On- street parking and loading associated with the use is prohibited. i. Noises emanating from the use are in compliance with and regulated by the State of Minnesota Pollution Control Standards, Minnesota Regulations MPC 7030, as amended and City Code. J. The use is terminated upon a specified date or the happening of an event as determined by the City. The applicant's narrative is attached to this report. Findings Based on the discussions with the Economic Development Advisory Committee and the Planning and Zoning Board, staff has collected some findings in support of the request and included those in Ordinance Number 21 -11. Options 1. Approve the request by approving the First Reading of Ordinance Number 21 -11. 2. Return to staff with further direction. Staff Recommendation In addition to the findings included in Resolution Number 11 -109, staff has identified 5 additional reasons why this request carries a staff recommendation for denial: 1. Location — while there are many properties within the city that are zoned Light Industrial, only a handful of those properties are adjacent to residential or rural properties. As such, prohibiting exterior storage on properties in such a situation is not prohibiting that use from the city, but rather keeping it consistent with the surrounding area. 2. Screening — while fencing may reduce the actual storage activity visually, it cannot do so for noise. The noise of vehicles moving product (any kind of product) would have a negative impact on the surrounding homeowners. Additionally, fencing may fall short of a visual screen if adjacent properties are at a higher elevation. 3. Aesthetics — the first impression of the city is often drawn from the perspective of 35W and 35E. A long expanse of fencing will not allow visitors and residents to see the strides taken by staff, boardmembers and council in enforcing stricter development standards and raising the bar on industrial and commercial • •