HomeMy WebLinkAboutPZ Minutes; 06-13-11APPROVED AS PRESENTED; 10-12-11
Lake Elmo Planning Commission Minutes; June 13, 2011 1
City of Lake Elmo
Planning Commission Meeting
Minutes of June 13, 2011
Chairman Van Zandt called to order the meeting of the Lake Elmo Planning Commission
at 7:00 p.m. COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Fliflet, Hall, Haggard, Pelletier (7:05),
Van Zandt, Williams, Ziertman. Absent: Bidon, Britz, Obermueller. STAFF
PRESENT: Planning Director Klatt and Planner Matzek.
Agenda
Chairman Van Zandt asked to move 5c earlier on the agenda. M/S/P, Hall/Williams, to
approve the agenda as amended. Vote: 6:0.
Commissioner Pelletier arrived at 7:05 p.m.
Minutes - March 28, 2011
Commissioner Haggard said on page 3 she voted to approve the Park and Ride.
M/S/P, Williams/Hall, to approve the minutes as amended. Vote: 7:0.
April 25, 2011
M/S/P, Haggard/Hall, to approve the minutes as presented. Vote: 3:0. Abtained: Fliflet,
Pelletier, Williams and Ziertman.
May 23, 2011
Commissioner Williams stated there is a typo on page four and that Obermueller
abstained because she was unclear as to what was being voted on.
M/S/P, Williams/Fliflet, as amended. Vote: 6:0. Abstained: Pelletier.
Business Item – Discussion of Planning Commission Meeting Process
Chairman Van Zandt said he would like to reach a consensus of the commission as to
how the group will conduct business and how they will utilize Robert’s Rules. He
distributed a copy of the City Council’s approved meeting rules.
M/S/P, Hall/Williams, move to approve utilizing the City Council’s approved meeting
rules as a guideline for conducting meetings. Vote: 7:0.
Chairman Van Zandt said he has a cheat sheet for Robert’s Rules of Order he would also
like the commission to consider using. He stated Staff suggested having a workshop
before the next meeting on this item at 6:30 p.m.
Public Hearing – Bremer Bank – PUD Amendment
Planning Director Klatt said the applicants are requesting a PUD Amendment for the
Eagle Point Business Park to allow additional parking (155 parking stalls). This would
amend the setbacks and general development plans approved as part of the Eagle Point
Business Park Planned Unit Development. He said this proposed improvement would
APPROVED AS PRESENTED; 10-12-11
Lake Elmo Planning Commission Minutes; June 13, 2011 2
not impact the ability to put a road through as planned as an East/West connector through
the south of 10th Street area. There will still be a 20 foot buffer between the parking lot
and future residential development that could be landscaped, but portions are difficult due
to topography. The storm water management plan has been reviewed and approved by
the City Engineer. Staff is recommending approval of the amendment with four
conditions of approval.
Kathy Tucci, Employee of Bremer Bank
Ms. Tucci said they are fortunate that they have been successful and have added many
employees in this location. She said people are currently parking on the street and are
trying to carpool.
Commissioner Williams said there is no significant change in elevation and he is
concerned in general with future screening.
THE CHAIRMAN OPENED THE PUBLIC HEARING AT 7:40 P.M.
No one spoke.
THE CHAIRMAN CLOSED THE PUBLIC HEARING AT 7:40 P.M.
Commissioner Williams asked if we can require a certain amount of evergreens so during
the winter there is still some vegetative screening.
Planning Director Klatt said that is a fair condition to be added and that Staff has
requested a revised landscape plan from the applicant.
M/S/P, Williams/Haggard, move to recommend approval of the amendment with
conditions as stated in staff report with added condition that the landscaping on north side
shall provide year round visual screening from properties to the north as reviewed and
approved by the Planning Director. Vote: 7:0.
Business Item – Southern Lake Elmo – Process, Goals and Vision
Planner Matzek stated through a public participation process including City Council
members, Planning Commissioners, property owners and the public at large, a Vision
Statement and Goals were drafted for the area south of 10th Street. She asked for a
recommendation from the Commission.
Commissioner Fliflet commented that one aspect that is absent from the vision statement
is the goal for the development in Lake Elmo to remain different from other
developments along major highways.
Chairman Van Zandt wanted to include bike trails to the transportation section
Planning Director Klatt suggested that the vision statement in terms of transportation
encompass all modes of transportation.
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Lake Elmo Planning Commission Minutes; June 13, 2011 3
Commissioner Fliflet asked for clarification as to what diverse neighborhoods referred to.
Commissioner Williams explained that it meant different housing types and suggested
“shall be known for safe and walkable neighborhoods with a variety of development
patterns, including convenient access to park, trails, and open space.” He then suggested
the following language: “Travel through and within the area shall include many forms of
motorized and non-motorized transportation, including access to parks trails, and open
space.”
Commissioner Fliflet noted that in order to meet the population targets, the majority of
the housing has to be denser, which is in conflict with the idea of having various housing
types.
Planning Director Klatt explained that some flexibility does still remains in the type of
housing that can be incorporated into development.
Planner Matzek then explained that the land use goals may be changed as the planning
process moves forward.
Commissioner Fliflet felt that statement number one was missing the need for increased
public facilities.
Planning Director Klatt reiterated the importance of the village area and south of 10th
street area complementing one another.
Commissioner Williams suggested changing the language from “Be cognizant” to
“Encourage.”
Commissioner Hall suggested changing the heading to “business development goals.”
Planner Matzek suggested rewording number two with the word “encourage” and move
the vision point to the land use section.
Commissioner Haggard asked whether there was any discussion about public access to
the lakes in Lake Elmo. She would like some bike trails around the lakes.
Commissioner Hall suggested adding a third point about creating access to the lakes.
Chairman Van Zandt said that number three should reflect the idea that residents should
be able to use the lakes as areas of recreation, including for exercise, picnicking, etc.
Commissioner Williams suggested the goal should be to “develop design guidelines that
would be unique to the area and are consistent with Lake Elmo’s rural heritage.”
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Lake Elmo Planning Commission Minutes; June 13, 2011 4
Chairman Van Zandt asked to add “Creative rural style architecture should be
encouraged.”
M/S/P, Williams/Van Zandt, move to recommend approving the vision statement and
goals with amendments. Vote: 7:0.
Form Based Code
Planning Intern Johnson outlined the formats of Form Based Codes: Exclusive and
mandatory format, parallel code format, and “floating zone” format. He reviewed a
number of case studies – Benicia, California; Grass Valley, California; and Petaluma,
California.
Commissioner Williams asked Mr. Johnson to explain transects and subsections.
Commissioner Hall said the Work Group he is on had some question about the current
applicability of New Urbanism.
Planning Intern Johnson said he believes form based zoning and New Urbanism are
related in that they are trying to create a walkable environment and encourage mixed
uses.
Commissioner Williams said the I-94 Work Group discussed designating the first 1/8 of a
mile as open for uses, but with strict architectural design regulations. He said it would
stimulate a lot of development.
Planning Director Klatt said one way is to make the process easier and make the City’s
less desired alternative more difficult to entice developers to create the development the
City would like to see.
M/S/P, Van Zandt, Pelletier, move to recommend advising Staff to process with Form
Based Codes.
City Council Updates
Planning Director Klatt said the City Council discussed having a Council liaison for the
Planning Commission.
Staff Updates
Planning Director Klatt said there was an open forum on June 8th to talk about
Washington County extending trails and a potential west trail entrance to the Lake Elmo
Regional Park Reserve which was well attended. He said another open house will be
held later in the process.
Commission Concerns
Commissioner Williams said in the future, he would like to see any report from the
engineer or staff member on an application proposal clearly identifying if the application
does or does not meet the City standards.
APPROVED AS PRESENTED; 10-12-11
Lake Elmo Planning Commission Minutes; June 13, 2011 5
Adjournment:
The meeting was adjourned at 9:34 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Kelli Matzek
Planner