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Mounds View Planning Commission October 17, 2001 Regular Meeting Page 4 ________________________________________________________________________ Community Development Director Ericson indicated that Staff had looked at the requirements he just reviewed and had taken into consideration the hardship statement submitted by the Harstads while drafting its report for the Commission. He then recommended holding the public hearing and hearing resident input before coming to a conclusion on the variance request. Commissioner Miller asked how many utility stubs were put in at the property. Community Development Director Ericson indicated that there were ten stubs in place at the property. Chair Stevenson asked Mr. Ericson to point out the wetlands on the drawing. Community Development Director Ericson explained the drawing for the proposed development indicating the wetland was shown in blue and the open space was shown in green. He then indicated the open space would be an outlot and said ownership of the outlot had not yet been determined. He further indicated that the proposed development was basically the same configuration as the development across the street. Chair Stevenson opened the public hearing at 7:16 p.m. Steve Feldner of 5168 Longview Drive clarified that the proposed development was not the same configuration as the development across the street because there are only eight lots across the street and they are all the same width. He then indicated he feels that allowing the development would devalue the lots across the street because there would be 11 lots in a space that should contain eight. Mr. Feldner asked if the applicant would be willing to pay to put the utilities in the ground as it is not possible to put the utilities behind the houses and he does not want to be looking at utility poles in his front yard. He then asked if the homeowners in the new development would be willing to apply for wetland permits to cut their grass as a permit is required by law to mow grass in a wetland area. He also asked if residents would be forbidden to use pesticides or weed killers on their lawns because there is a steep grade at the back of the lots and all the pesticides and weed killers would run into the wetland. He then commented that, if that were allowed to happen, the wetland would become a stagnant pond within a year. Mr. Feldner indicated he did not see a viable way to develop the land as he can walk across the street ten feet and be standing in mud. He then indicated that anyone who says the wetland is only the blue area is lying because the whole thing is wet most of the time and if the developer fills it in it will not only ruin the wetland but will create a slope that will cause things to run into the wetland and it will turn it into a quagmire of rotting plants because nothing will be left alive in there. Community Development Director Ericson clarified that Mr. Feldner was correct as the blue areas on the map are replacement areas for fill that would be occurring. He then indicated that