10-21-25 City Council Meeting Packet

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Page 1 I. STATEMENT OF ISSUE A 79.4 acre housing project is being proposed on five parcels located along the west side of Manning Avenue North in the City of Lake Elmo, Washington County, Minnesota. The proposed project includes the construction of new single-family and multi-family residential housing. This includes approximately 67 single-family unattached homes, 221 townhomes, 271 apartment units, and 120 senior living unit. The project will include a new internal roadway network, a stormwater feature, and connection to municipal sanitary sewer and water systems. Preparation of an Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) is considered mandatory under Minnesota Rules 4410.4300, Subpart 19. Maplewood Development, Inc. is the project proposer, and the City of Lake Elmo is the Responsible Governmental Unit (RGU) for this project, as per Minnesota Rules 4410.4300, Subpart 19. The City of Lake Elmo’s decision in this matter shall be either a negative or positive declaration on the need for an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The City must order the preparation of an EIS for the project if it determines that the project has the potential for significant environmental effects. Based upon information in the record, which is comprised of the EAW for the Proposed Project, the issues raised during the public comment period, the responses to the comments, and other supporting documents, the City makes the following Findings of Fact and Conclusions: II. ADMINISTRATIVE BACKGROUND Maplewood Development, Inc. is the project proposer, and the City of Lake Elmo is the Responsible Governmental Unit (RGU) for this project. An EAW was prepared for this project as part of the Minnesota Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) to fulfill requirements M.S. 116D and Minnesota Rules Chapter 4410. The EAW is used to provide sufficient environmental documentation for the RGU to base a determination of need for a state EIS or that a Negative Declaration is appropriate. The EAW was filed with the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board (EQB) and circulated for review to the required EQB Distribution List. A “notice of availability” was published in the EQB Monitor on August 26, 2025. Appendix A contains a copy of the EQB Monitor listing for the project and members on the EAW Distribution List. A press release was published in Stillwater Gazette for five (5) consecutive weeks on August 22nd and 29th, and September 5th, 12th and 19th, 2025 (see Appendix A). The EAW was posted on the City of Lake Elmo’s website at: https://lakeelmo.gov. The EAW was also made available for public review at Lake Elmo City Hall. Comments were formally received through September 25, 2025. A total of three written comment letters were received during the EAW comment period. Two of the written comment letters on the Limerick Village EAW were received from public agencies: Metropolitan Council and Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA). One written comment