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Mounds View Planning Commission February 16, 2005 <br />Regular Meeting Page 3 <br />________________________________________________________________________ <br /> <br />Mr. Menning stated that the extra $35 per month for a garage is a lot of money to many people, <br />and it could cause him to lose tenants to other complexes. He noted that there are presently a lot <br />of vacancies in the area. <br /> <br />Commissioner Scotch remarked that there have been more vacancies in the last two to three <br />years. <br /> <br />Commissioner Meehlhause asked if renting garages as part of the apartment was standard <br />procedure. <br /> <br />Mr. Menning stated that none of his competition does it. He stated that the $35 per month for a <br />garage requires another $100 of income per month to qualify for the apartment, and many people <br />are on the borderline already. He said it was standard procedure to ask them if they want a <br />garage, but it isn’t standard procedure to make them rent a garage. <br /> <br />Commissioner Meehlhause asked why they couldn’t provide the garage with the apartment <br />without charging extra for it. <br /> <br />Mr. Menning explained that they wouldn’t make any money that way, and he would rather rent <br />50 percent of the garages for $35 per month apiece. <br /> <br />Commissioner Scotch stated that she felt the problem they are having is that the variance request <br />is to large, and she asked whether the plans could be adjusted for more covered parking. She <br />stated that this would improve the property aesthetically. <br /> <br />Chair Stevenson said he felt the percentage of garages that would be rented would rise when the <br />new garages are built. <br /> <br />Mr. Menning reported he is only renting 44 percent right now, so they would be increasing it by <br />16 percent from what they are currently renting. <br /> <br />Commissioner Hegland stated that they are reducing the number of garage stalls that they will <br />have available. <br /> <br />Commissioner Zwirn noted that they are not here to discuss how Mr. Menning could better <br />manage his apartment buildings, and they have to look at the practicality of what he was asking <br />them to do. He stated that Greenfield could spend half of the money by revamping the old <br />garages and putting more lighting in. He felt more creativity could be used to rent the garages <br />for storage to people not living at the apartment complex. <br /> <br />Mr. Menning explained that the present garages aren’t large enough to store a boat in, and they <br />are not in the storage business. <br /> <br />Mr. Menning further stated that the problem is that it is difficult to control 125 individual garage <br />doors. He stated that some residents leave the garage doors open.