Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutSpecial Advisory Planning Commission July 11Lake Elmo Planning Commission July 11th, 2022 Lake Elmo City Council Mayor Cadenhead Councilmembers Beckstrom, McGinn, Dorschner, Holtz Dear Mayor and Councilmembers: During the Planning Commission’s meeting on 5/23 a public hearing was heard and the planning commission deliberated the change in land use designation for approximately 110 acres of city property given to the city from a 3M settlement. Unfortunately due to our error, our commission did not include facts and findings to support our recommendation, and presumably due to this, our recommendation was largely disregarded during that meeting. Because this 110 acres is a truly unprecedented and “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity, the commission would like to urge the city council to reconsider their land use designation given the following facts and findings:  Whereas the 2040 Comprehensive Plan does not request or plan for an additional 72 acres of Business Park  Whereas, according to the staff report on 6/7/22, the southern 65 acres of land has already been designated as Business Park  Whereas Low Density Residential is not well suited to be adjacent to Business Park  Whereas during both public hearings for the future land use of this Lake Elmo land, residents were nearly unanimously against the large areas of business park being proposed, specifically north of Stillwater Blvd  Whereas the 2040 Comprehensive plan indicates that Lake Elmo Residents are “uninterested in developing a regional destination for commercial and business park users, and instead prioritized creating opportunities for businesses and suers that would support existing Lake Elmo neighborhoods and residents” which we do not believe it does  Whereas the primary or secondary goal of Lake Elmo is not to raise tax revenue, but to provide services to it’s citizens as called out in the City of Lake Elmo Mission and Values statement  Whereas the city is in need of baseball fields after the fields were lost to the Royal Golf Club development  Whereas the 3M settlement was for the PFAS contamination by 3M which should be used primarily to fund the replacement of contaminated wells and secondarily to benefit the citizens of Lake Elmo  Whereas no independent research has been provided that the area could support or needs additional business park or commercial development  Whereas no outside, professional opinion has been gathered or presented to inform the future land use designations for this unprecedented area  Whereas only 4% of land dedicated from a court settlement impacting the lives of Lake Elmo residents is planned for parks We, the Lake Elmo Planning Commission, respectfully request that the city council reconsider this future land use designation and to look for research and independent findings to support this land use designation and to consider giving more land back to the community in the form of parks and open space. Sincerely, Lake Elmo Planning Commission