10/11/2006 P&Z Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Search

• d. That granting the variance requested will not confer on the applicant any special privilege that would be denied by this ordinance to other lands, structures, or buildings in the same district. This variance could easily set a precedent for future applicants to request reductions in setbacks when lot depths are impacted by wetlands and when upland lot areas are minimized. e. That the proposed actions will be in keeping with the spirit and intent of the ordinance. The spirit and intent of the ordinance would clearly be violated by allowing reduced setbacks along a major arterial roadway. Streets: Birch Street is an existing road and no additional roads are being proposed. The existing road system can accommodate the traffic generated by the new homes, and the right of way is already dedicated to the required width of 60 feet from center line. Birch Street is a County State Aid Highway and acts as a major east to west arterial for the entire city. As such, the number of accesses for private drives and city streets should be minimized. In this case the proposal would require adding two driveway accesses. The subdivision ordinance requires that the following alternatives be addressed (in order) to limit accesses on arterial roadways: • New commercial, industrial, and multiple family lots fronting on an arterial or major collector street shall be designed to minimize the number of direct access points through the following methods listed in preferential order. If the highest preference is not possible, the next preference shall be utilized until an access method is possible. a. Access from a local street. b. Frontage road serving multiple properties. c. Frontage driveway or connected parking lot with cross easements serving multiple properties. d. Shared driveways. e. One driveway access, no closer than two hundred (200) feet to another driveway and that meets the City's minimum spacing standards from a street intersection. All driveways shall be reviewed for consistency with the access management guidelines of the Lino Lakes Transportation Plan. Staff therefore would require that the drives be consolidated into a shared drive should this application be approved. This would require the city to approve a variance to the driveway setback, but staff would readily support that type of request to limit the number of accesses for the site. . Landscaping: When abutting an arterial, residential developments are required to provide a `buffer MI/yard'. The zoning ordinance has very specific standards for buffer yards. The applicant will need to submit a landscaping plan that clearly meets these requirements. Park Dedication: The current subdivision ordinance includes park dedication in the amount of $2075 per residential unit, less any land dedication. There is no land dedication needed, as Shenandoah Park is nearby. The park dedication will be $2,075 x 2 new home lots = $6,225.