08/28/2006 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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• • The Preserve page 7 Lots on the south part of the development will need to have `grinder pumps' for sanitary sewer. These are individual pumps in each house that pump wastewater to the sanitary sewer line in the street. This is necessary because of the shallow depth of the sewer line. Grading and Stormwater Management: The design includes infiltration methods that will help filter water prior to running into ponds or wetlands. No increase in runoff rate is allowed. This is a standard requirement for all development which is enforced both the Rice Creek Watershed District and the City. The Watershed granted its preliminary approval in September 2005. Any changes to the plan must be acceptable to the Watershed District. Improving water quality is an important conservation development goal. The use of rain gardens and other methods for infiltration in this project will promote that goal. It is true that each project makes up a relatively small area of the city. As each development project occurs, using natural methods of managing stormwater will result in better water quality than standard methods using only pipes and ponds. In addition, the restoration activities involved in conservation developments such as this one actually will improve the quality of the wetlands and result in water quality improvements. Parks, Open Space: The comprehensive plan broadly envisions a conceptual greenway in the area of this site. The City's "Parks, Natural Open Space /Greenways and Trails System Plan" further describes the area for conservation planning. Creating greenways to implement the concept presented in the comprehensive plan is the first priority of the parks and open space plan. This will require the use of a variety of strategies, the most important of which is greater reliance on a conservation development approach to land development. The preservation of open space on this site will be an important step in the implementation of the greenway vision. This is along the edge of a high value natural feature area that includes a major drainage through the southern part of Lino Lakes. A city trail would be created as part of the plat. The open space areas would be owned by the homeowners association and maintained as perpetual open space through a conservation easement over the area. A public trail easement also would wend through the open space area. The specific terms of the management plan implementation will require detailed legal agreements, which will be worked out prior to final platting. Some questions arose at the P & Z Board regarding pedestrian access to and use of the park. Discussion with the Director of Public Services yielded useful information on these issues. There is one small baseball field in Birch Park. Programming there includes T -ball lessons and Little League practice. It is unlikely that more than about 30 cars would be drawn to the park for these activities. There are 18 parking spaces in the parking lot, including one handicapped space. The parking lot will be re- striped in the near future. Each lot will have a rain garden, which prevents a trail from being constructed along the fronts of the lots. In addition, creating additional off - street trail segments will cost additional money. The boardwalks in this project will use up the park dedication for the project. In fact, the cost of the