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Item No: 7A Meeting Date: July 11, 2011 Type of Business: Public Hearing City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Honorable Mayor & City Council From: Heidi Heller, Planning Associate Item Title/Subject: Consideration of a Conditional Use Permit Amendment for Bauer Welding, 2159 Mustang Drive; Planning Case CM2011-001 Introduction: The applicant, Doug Bauer, owner of Bauer Welding & Metal Fabricators, is requesting approval of an amendment to an existing conditional use permit. In August 2004, a conditional use permit to allow outdoor storage was approved for this property. The applicant constructed a 50’ x 80’ paved area on the north side of the building to store pallets, empty reusable containers and finished products for shipping. One of the conditions of the CUP approval was that the gravel driveway leading from the parking lot to the storage area be improved with a hard surface within three years. Mr. Bauer is requesting that this condition be removed from his CUP. Discussion: Bauer Welding was started in 1946 and has been in Mounds View at the current location since 1977. The property is zoned I-1, Industrial and is located on Mustang Drive in the city’s industrial park, although this business is adjacent to the Skyline Motel property on the east side and the Towns Edge Manufactured Home Park on the north side. The applicant applied for the outdoor storage area in 2004 because the business was doing well and running out of space to store the pallets and containers inside. When stored inside of a building, the pallets and containers must be stacked low and spread out to avoid creating a fire hazard. This requires a large amount of space for storage and Bauer Welding and Fabrication needed that space for production area. At the time of the CUP application, Mr. Bauer anticipated that the proposed storage area would be used temporarily until a permanent addition to the building could be constructed, which he estimated would be within two or three years. By 2007, the economy was quickly declining and so were sales for Bauer Welding. City staff administratively approved two-year extensions for the driveway improvement requirement in 2007 and 2009. After the second extension, City Staff informed Mr. Bauer that he would need to apply for an amendment to his CUP if he still did not want to improve the driveway. Mr. Bauer still anticipates that he will expand the building in the future, and prefers not to spend money on paving when the driveway would be removed with the building addition. The outdoor storage area is located 40 feet from the east (side) lot line and about 300 feet from the north (rear) property line. Section 1104.01 requires a twenty (20) foot side setback and a forty (40) foot rear setback, which the proposed storage area satisfies. The driveway is accessed from the north end of the parking lot on the west side of the building, and is not visible from the street.