02/12/2003 P&Z Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Planning & Zoning Board February 12, 2003 APPROVED MINUTES Page 39 Beth Piette, 425 Arrowhead Drive, stated she was against the strip mall, commercial part of the zoning. She stated she believed it ha d been zoned residentia l. She stated the Comprehensive Plan would not be met if th ey put in townhomes. She noted they had plenty of gas stations and retail in the ar ea. She requested the area remain retail. Chair Schaps asked if she had attended the Comprehensive Plan meetings. Ms. Piette replied she did not, but she received the books from the City today. Jeff Kerr, 456 Hawthorn Road, stated he also did not get the Comprehensive Plan books and sometimes it takes something like this as a wake up call. He stated the City was fortunate to have an Environmental Board a nd requested they take a look at what Lino Lakes has. Bryan Olson, 511 Hawthorn Road, stated he was at the neighborhood meeting and was upset about the disconcern the developer had about the safety and traffic issues on Birch. He stated putting a stop light on Birch and Hodgson would, he believed, help. He indicated this was not only a matter of traffic, but of safety for the children in the area. He stated he was surprised that the devel oper was still going through with the gas station proposal. He stated there was a gas station going in across the stre et and they did not need another gas station in the area. He stat ed he was not in favor of zoning this area as commercial and he was not happy about it bei ng zoned as R-3. He requested the 30 acres be zoned R-1 residential only. He thanked st aff for their decision to not move forward with a decision tonight. He stated they needed to have more neighborhood meetings. Cindy Bramwell, 441 Hawthorn Road, asked if they wanted to be like Minneapolis where the roads were not large enough to handle th e traffic. She noted they had 142 units proposed, meaning there was 280 cars. She st ated she wanted to see both Hodgson and Birch widened with signalization. She believed they should not be developing the area if it would not support the traffic. She stated her main concern was the traffic and believed this was the main concern of the residents. Connie Grundhofer, 235 Linda Avenue, stated she was on the Environmental Board and stated the Environmental Board did not oppose it because of th e car wash, but also because of the gas station. She noted ther e would be drainage into Baldwin and Rice Lake and that was a concern. She stated the soil was not made to hold pollution. Councilmember Carlson, speaking as a private citizen, called attent ion to the memo by the EDAC memo dated February 6, 2003. She st ated it was a free market to decide the locations of gas stations/convenience stores within the City. She noted EDAC was in unanimous agreement that imposing stricter standards on the number of the location of gas stations/convenience stores within the City will impede future economic development. She noted she was at the Comprehensive Plan meetings. Mr. Lyden stated neighborhood businesses erode d the neighborhood. He stated he would not approve a gas station in this development.