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Planning & Zoning Board <br />November 12, 2003 <br />Page 5 <br />APPROVED MINUTES <br />meet with the neighbors over the past few months. She stated they hoped to start <br />construction this spring and the construction would last 16-18 months. She stated the <br />easements, stormwater management, roadwa ys, etc. were doable and agreeable to <br />applicant. They were agreeable to ad ding additional screeni ng also. They were <br />agreeable to traffic control during peak times. She assured them the Conservation <br />Easement was being pursued and the church was working with Anoka County Parks and <br />Rice Creek Watershed District on it. She indi cated the church was willing to split the <br />property where the house was located off from the rest of the property. She stated they <br />were working with Anoka County on the roadway. She noted traffic was the most <br />challenging issue, but it was a re gional issue that this project alone would not cause. She <br />indicated the church was willing to work wi th traffic control officers to alleviate the <br />congestion. She stated the proposed turn lane s would also assist w ith traffic congestion. <br />Mr. Rafferty asked if the existing home was wh ere the previous owner of the land lived. <br />Ms. Leonidas replied that was correct. She indicated the Church was agreeable to <br />increasing landscaping along certain areas of the site, which had been a concern to some <br />of the residents. She noted they would put in a berm along the south side for further <br />screening for the residents to the south. <br />Mr. Rafferty asked the footprint of the propos ed church. Ms. Leonidas replied it was 250 <br />x 350. <br />Mr. Corson asked what was the situation with the existing home. Ms. Leonidas replied <br />that under an agreement, the former owner c ould stay there for a specific period of time <br />from the date of purchase, which was last Jul y, but at this point, they had no plans for the <br />building. <br />Chair Schaps invited the public to make comment. <br />Barbara Bor, 7707 20 th Avenue North, stated she lived to the south of the property and <br />her driveway was adjacent to the proposed C hurches driveway. She presented a petition <br />signed by 160 neighbors within one mile of the property who were opposing this <br />development. She stated they did not go in to Centerville or Columbus Township, even <br />though many residents wanted to sign the petiti on. She stated this petition represented <br />95% of the neighborhood and this was a si gnificant unified indi cation in opposition of <br />this. She presented a letter from RLK regardi ng traffic and a letter from attorney Paul R. <br />Haik. Both letters and petition were given to staff to be made a part of the City’s file. <br />She stated they wanted to see the numbers of services and hours of operation the Church <br />was proposing. She noted the current tra ffic study was done over a year ago and <br />conditions had changed. She also indica ted the traffic study was done for Sunday <br />services only and did not include Saturday or Wednesday night services. She requested <br />the City require updated traffic information ba sed on current data. She expressed concern <br />about the stormwater management plan. She not ed this was a critical project for this area <br />and it would forever change what was curr ently there. She asked as a neighborhood, <br />from an environmental perspective, and fo r their heritage that this project not be <br />approved.