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and controversies that the current or future City Council must struggle with, inherent in <br />this particular type of CUP. With these two provisions (existing buildings and inside <br />storage only) added to the Conditional Use Permit section of the Municipal Code <br />regarding storage businesses, everyone would be satisfied! The agricultural land <br />owners would have an alternate source of revenue to preserve their agricultural lands, <br />the adjacent property owners would not be affected by commercialization of their <br />neighborhoods, the residents of the City of Lake Elmo would have the rural image of <br />their city safeguarded, and the City Council could avoid the controversial decisions <br />associated with a Storage Business CUP. If you adopt a Storage Business CUP <br />without these provisions, the present or future City Council can expect controversy. <br />For instance, if Armstrong Farm is granted an expansion of its storage business, what's <br />to prevent other Lake Elmo property owners from arguing that the City Council allowed <br />Armstrong Farm its expansion and thus the City Council must grant them the same <br />entitlements. Where will it end? <br />I sincerely hope that the City Council will incorporate the "existing buildings" and the <br />"inside storage only" clauses into any storage business addition to the allowable <br />Conditional Use Permits in the Municipal Code. It is interesting to note that both <br />former Lake Elmo Mayor Morgan and former Councilman Dunn, the two assenting <br />votes to the original Armstrong Farm CUP in 1986, stated their concerns about the <br />appropriateness of outside storage for the City of Lake Elmo (Exhibit 2). <br />Finally, I am concerned about the Planning Commission's recommendation to the City <br />Council regarding liaisons from the Planning Commission and the City Council <br />working with Armstrong Farm to construct a Storage Business CUP addition to the <br />Municipal Code. I hope the outcome of their combined efforts is not a Storage <br />Business CUP tailored to the special interests of Armstrong Farm, especially if it is <br />designed to provide Armstrong Farm with the storage business expansion which <br />Armstrong Farm vehemently desires. With the two provisions that I have suggested to <br />be incorporated into the Storage Business CUP addition to the Municipal Code, <br />Armstrong Farm's complaints about its current legal non -conforming use would be <br />resolved and Armstrong Farm would have its existing storage business revenue to <br />preserve its agricultural lands, including the grandfathering of its 100 vehicle outside <br />storage limitation. As stated in my previous letter regarding Armstrong Farm's original <br />1986 CUP request, Mr. Thomas G. Armstrong stated that there would be no further <br />request for expansion if Armstrong Farm was granted the storage limitations it currently <br />has! <br />Sincerely, <br />John Bodey <br />8155 15th Street North <br />cc: Lake Elmo Planning Commission <br />