03-27-1997 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

io Planning Commission 471-97: O'Neil Property . March 8, 1997 Page 11 like without the theater. The applicant has taken several steps to isolate the theater from the neighborhood, and in effect, the potential buyers will be looking at a wooded strip of land, more-or-less as it is now, and through the trees, at three one-story office buildings and a screening fence. The main part of the parking lot is 160 feet away from the south property line and behind this"barrier". The theater building is 240 feet away. The potential buyers may give more attention to the businesses at the Highway 10-County Road H2 intersection than the theater, because these businesses take access from the road going through the neighborhood and are far more visible to people coming and going from the neighborhood. Those feeling the biggest impact on property value are probably the people who already live in the neighborhood, because they will live through the change brought by the project, and know how the neighborhood was before and after the development. The impact may not be financial but quality of life or"feel". It is staff's view that the design of this property has minimized this impact. It is important, however, that the office buildings and the screening fence be built and a guarantee for their construction should be included in the PUD agreement. 3. Long Term Viability; Market Demand; Suitability of Location (5) The demonstrated need for such use. The applicant has provided a market summary as part of their application(see Application Materials). It is staff's understanding that the theater industry uses a five mile radius as the area to be served by a theater complex The market summary for the Carmike Theaters shows that there are no theaters within a three mile radius and only one theater complex within five miles. They do not consider this theater as competing with the proposed project because it is older and has only four screens. One of the theaters approved in Coon Rapids is just inside the five mile radius; the other is in the seven mile radius. The 14-screen theater in White Bear Township is not on the map. It is outside the seven mile radius. The map shows that Mounds View is in the center of a substantial area that is not served by movie theaters, with more population growth occurring to the north, northeast and northwest. The market profile report shows socio-economic data for households in the three, five and seven mile radius around the theater site. There is remarkable consistency in the population characteristics between the rings. The average home value is between $94,000 and $97,155; the average household income is between $51,641 and $52,596. It appears that there is discretionary income in the marketplace. The question has been raised whether 16 screens are needed. Recent articles have indicated that these "big box" theaters are the new trend, and smaller theaters will no 111 longer be built. Also the "big box" theaters will cause the smaller ones to close because they will not no longer be competitive. It is interesting to note that on the map showing existing theaters, they are clustered in twos where the total screens for both theaters is the