Agenda Packets - 2000/12/04 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Item No: 5 Meeting Date: December 4, 2000 Type of Business: WS WK: Work Session; PH: Public Hearing; CA: Consent Agenda; CB: Council Business City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Honorable Mayor & City Council From: James Ericson, Community Development Director Item Title/Subject: Discussion Regarding a Request to Excavate within a Designated Wetland to Restore Open Water and to promote Wildlife Habitat, 7373 and 7375 Knollwood Drive Date of Report: November 30, 2000 Background: On October 31, 2000, Rice Creek Watershed District (RCWD) approved permits to allow for the excavation and alteration of designated wetlands on properties located at 7373 and 7375 Knollwood Drive. The applicants desired to remove some of the sediment that had built up within the designated wetlands to restore the open-water features of the wetland. This had been done once before in 1955 for the same purpose. On November 6, 2000, staff sent letters to the two property owners indicating that in addition to a RCWD permit, the City had its own wetland zoning regulations which would necessitate approval of a wetland alteration permit and a grading permit. Three days later on November 9th, the two property owners submitted the application for a wetland alteration permit. Refer to the attached applications and the Wetland Zoning Map which illustrates the subject parcels, the assumed wetland boundary and that of the 100-foot buffer. Discussion: Staff has forwarded copies of the approved RCWD permits and the City applications to SEH, Inc., for its review. They have responded that the impact to the wetland would be minimal and could in fact produce a positive net result in terms of the wetland’s flood storage capacity and ability to provide habitat for a more diverse animal population and allow for greater varieties of wetland vegetation. In order for a wetland alteration permit to be approved, the standards and criteria identified in Chapter 1010 of the Municipal Code need to be addressed to the satisfaction of the City Council. (This section of the Code is attached for the Council’s easy reference.) Staff fully expects that the request(s) will more than satisfy the standards. The Council may want to discuss whether or not there may be some benefit in deferring to Rice Creek Watershed District on wetland alterations in some situations, rather than requiring an applicant to obtain a RCWD permit and then a duplicative City permit. If directed, staff could confer with RCWD staff and SEH staff and report back to the Council at a later date. In the meantime, if the Council has no objections,