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HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution 5005 . . . RESOLUTION NO. 5005 CITY OF MOUNDS VIEW COUNTY OF RAMSEY STATE OF MINNESOTA A RESOLUTION DENYING A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT REQUEST FOR THE NEW APOSTOLIC CHURCH TO CONSTRUCT A CHURCH FACILITY AT 3025 COUNTY ROAD H; PLANNING CASE NO. 452-96 WHEREAS, the New Apostolic Church has requested City approval to construct an approximately 4,050 square foot church buildin.-- q an associated parking lot on property at 3025 County Road H; and, WHEREAS, Sec n 1106.04 Subd. 1 of the Mounds View Municipal Code allows churches in the R-l district provided certain criteria are met; and, WHEREAS, Section 1125.01 Subd. 1.e. of the Mounds View Municipal Code requires the Planning Commission to consider certain possible adverse effects of the proposed conditional use. Its judgement shall be based upon (but not limited to) the following factors: (1) Relationship to the Comprehensive Plan. (2) The geographical area involved. (3) Whether such use will tend to or actually depreciate the area in which it is proposed. (4) The character of the surrounding area. (5) The demonstrated need for such use. WHEREAS, Section 1125.01 Subd. 3 of the Mounds View Municipal Code states that the City Council shall consider the advice and recommendations of the Planning and Zoning Commission and the effect of the proposed use on the Comprehensive Plan and upon the health, safety and general welfare of surrounding lands, and requires that certain findings be made for the approval of a conditional use permit as stated in Section 1125.01 Subd.3.b.(1)-(8); and, . . . City Council Resolution No. 5005 October 29, 1996 Page 2 WHEREAS, the City Council has received and had available for review the following documents regarding this conditional use permit request: 1. 2. 3. 4. Application dated 7/15/96 Zoning Map Wetland Zone District Map Letter from Curt Lingwall, dated 8/28/96, giving permission from owner for the filing of the conditional use permit application _" , Letter from Bob Long, City Attorney, dated 8/30/?6' -"'\ . Letter from Rocky Keehn, City Engineer, dated 8/23/96 \\ Letter from Mark Bishop, Fire Marsha~,<dated 1O!1~/96 \ Letter from New Apostolic Church, }v1inneapolis ~o~gregatidn, dated 9/8/96 Letter from Sweeney, Borer & Ostrow dated 9/4/96 >'.., Section 1103.08 from the Mounds Vie~ Municipal\~od~ Staff Report to Planning Comntission dated 9/18/96.\ . . Minutes from Planning Commission meeting on 817/96/ Minutes from Planning Cdmntission meeting on 9/4/96 Minutes from Planning Com~ission meeting oll/9/18/96 Planning Commission Resolution,Nos. 475",96'and 476-96 Boundary Survey prepa.red by Pioneer Engineering, printed 1017/96 Grading and Erosion Control Plan prepared by Pioneer Engineering, dated 9/26/96 Landscaping P~an prepared by Rio Architects, dated 9/30/96 Floorplans and: Elevations prepared by LRK design group, received 1017/96 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. WHEREAS, the City Council'dries_hereby make the following findings of fact regarding the requirements set" forth in Section 1106.04, Subd. 1 of the Mounds View Zoning Code. The requirements are nqted below, and have been grouped to avoid repetitive findings. a. Front yard depthssha..llibe a minimum of thirty five feet (35'). b. Side yards shall be n~ less than thirty feet (30'). Complies; Pleasant View Drive is being used as the front of the lot for purposes of setbacks. c. Adequate screening from abutting residential uses and landscaping is provided in compliance }vith Section 1103.08 of this Title, which are paraphrased below. (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) No fence shall exceed 8 feet. No fences, structures or planting of trees in sight triangle. Fences not to exceed 48" allowed any where on lot;fences not to exceed 96" may be erected behind the front line of the principal building. Fences shall be constructed so surface adjoining adjacent properties and rights-of-way are finished construction. Landscaping required in areas remaining after providing for off street parking, off-street loading, sidewalks and driveways, and building site. . . . City Council Resolution No. 5005 October 29, 1996 Page 3 (6) Fendng and screening shall consist of either afence or a green belt planting strip the height of which shall be suffident to adequately shield the activity from the abutting properties. a. Greenbelt planting strip shall consist of evergreens of sufficient width and density to provide effective screen; planting strip shall contain no structures or other use; planting strips shall be not less than 8 feet in height; earth mounding may be used but limited to no more than 5 feet; planting plan subject to approval of Planning Co.mn~ssion based on recommendation from staff. . ;", .- --,_'-- Required screening fence shall be masonry, brick, .iw~od or Ste~l. not less than 6 feet or more than 8 feet; subject to approval by Planning Co~ssion bdsed on recommendation from , 'J . staff. . Ground cover shall be established ljli,t~in one year following issuance of building permit; must control erosion.,? , .' . \. ..' b. c. ,.;,/ I~ \ (". .' Complies with 1103.08 Subd.J-5, exc:ept there are ,five ~xisting trees in the sight triangle at Pleasant View Drive and~County Road H. ,he applicant has shown two of these remaining. All ar~s of ifie property other than the parking area, building site and walkways are prop~sed t9fbe landscaped. ~oiencing is proposed. : 'Ii ~ /', With respect to S4bd. 6(1 the applican,tis:.proposing to provide a buffer area along the north :ptpperty lin~ .of 151,\ 24 and 19 f~t in width, and along the east property line of 12 feet. Qn other c~urch sitb in Moup.ds View, the buffer area between parking lots for churches and property liri~s' abuttJn.f residential properties vary from 14 feet to 63 feet, with 30 feet being: typica1..The~eastern buffer is less than the width suggested by other church sites .in ~ounds View, and is less than the width suggested by neighboring property owners as adequate (15 feet). The proposed landscaping plan shows six feet for . evergreen trees" a~d three feet for lilacs in the northern and eastern buffer areas, which when planted wilt/be less than the eight feet required by the ordinance. The proposed plan does not meet the requirement for buffering and screening sufficient to adequately screen the church facility and parking lot from abutting properties at the time of development. The City Council finds that requirement c. is not met in its entirety; in particular, the proposal does not meet c.(6). d. Adequate off-street parking and access is provided on the site or on lots directly abutting or directly across a public street to the principal use in compliance lI-7th a/apter 1121 of this Title and that such parking is adequately screened and landscaped from surrounding and abutting residential uses in compliance with Section 1103.08 of this Title. Adequate off-street loading and service entrances are provided and regulated where applicable by Chapter 1122 of this Title. e. There are two driveways serving the site: one from County Road H and one from Pleasant View Drive. The driveway onto County Road H is 21 feet wide and will be used for emergency vehicle access. The one on Pleasant View Drive is twelve feet in . . . City Council Resolution No. 5005 October 29, 1996 Page 4 width at the property line, which are within the maximum width of 22 feet allowed in the R-l district. There are 27 parking spaces provided (23 regular spaces, 2 handicapped, and 2 compact) which exceeds Code requirements as long as restrictions are placed on the use of the building so the church auditorium and fellowship hall are not used at the same time, and the capacity of the auditorium is 98 seats. The size of the parking spaces, number of compact spaces, and width of drive aisles meet Code requirements. The Fire Department has stated the 71\;foot drive onto County Road H will be sufficient for emergency access, if the buildi'ng i$\sprinklered. (Pending receipt of letter from Fire Marshal.) \-\1 ... .~ \ 1 \ Chapter 1121 includes Subd. 12 which stat~si "Req6ired screening: All open, nonresidential, off-street parking area.of :five (5). or more' spaces shall be screened and landscaped from abutting or surrptinding resi~en~!~t.districts in compliance with 1103.08(6) of this Title." A finding' has b~n made that the proposed buffer areas and landscaping along the north.~rn': and easternp~operty lines are insufficient to provide adequate screening for the ,parking lot undetitem c. above. Off-street loading is not required for this t~pe of u~~ or sIze of building. The City Council::. finds thht the p~oposaf does not provide sufficient screening and lanq~caping to meet the: :requiref!1ents in Chapter 1121 and Section 1103.08(6). Requ~t:ement d. i(not met. . , . \\, ~ )~.; f. . . The provisions ofsub~iVision 1125.01(J)e "ojthis Title are considered and satisfactorily met. (This section is quoted belOw.) Adverse Effects: . The flanning and Zoning Commission shall consider possible adverse effects of the proposed amendment or conditional use. Its judgment shall be based upon (but not limited to) the following factors: (1) Relationship io the Municipal Comprehensive Plan (2) The geographical area involved. (3) Whether such use will tend to or actually depreciate the area in which it is proposed. (4) The character of the surrounding area. (5) The demonstrated need for the use. The geographical area involved in this application is a residential neighborhood bordered on the south by County Road H which serves as the municipal border. The neighborhood is characterized by deep, oversized lots and mature trees. Because the lots are large, the typical building coverage is low. The applicant's proposal would be a more intensive use of the lot than is typical of the neighborhood. The applicant is proposing to place a 1-1/2 story, 4,050 square foot building (with a 2025 square foot footprint) on a single 22,500 square foot residential lot. Approximately 60% of the site will be in paving and building; 40% of the site will be in landscaping. The amount of paving is far greater than is the case with single family residential development. This proposal would result in the smallest site developed as a church in . . . City Council Resolution No. 5005 October 29, 1996 Page 5 Mounds View (approximately 1/2 acre). The smallest existing site for a church in Mounds View is 1.59 acres (or three times as large) and the average site size is 3.7 acres. The majority of homes in the immediate vicinity are one story, and have been estimated to range from 1,200 to 1,400 square feet in size. They are located on wooded lots. Most of the mature trees in the center of the proposed church site will be removed. The site will look much more barren for a number of years than it does now. The Planning Commission found that the proposal does not fit into the character of the surrounding area based on the intensity of development on this lot, the size of the building and the parking lot. . ,. ,-', .;! The City Council finds that the proposal, will \:reate an\aqverse impact on the character of the surrounding area, and requirem~nt f. is '~ot met. \ WHEREAS, the City Council do~~{hete,by make'the,following findings of fact regarding this conditional use permit request with t~sp~t tp the cri~e~a,.se(forth in Section 1125..01 Subd. 3.b. for the review of condition;~ use permits,. \The ~titeria are noted below, and have been grouped to avoid repetitive fin<;lings. . " ..' I , .. ,/ ,l (1) (7) (8) The use l1/ill not create an excei~'ive burden on existing'parks, schools, streets and other public facilities and utilities will serve or are. propqsM to se~e the area. . The use will not cause tr~ffic ho/,ar.ds or .c~ngesti~n. Adequate u'jilities, acces~ roads,"drainage; and necessary facilities have been or will be provided. . . i' .: .. The New Apostolic, Church proposes to hold Sunday School at 8:45-9:3.0 AM, two Sunday church"services at 10:.0.0-11:00 AM and 5:.0.0-6:.0.0 PM, and a Wednesday evening service from 8:.0.0:-9:'.0.0 PM. The maximum seating in the church is 98 people; the current congregation is 55 people. Because the use is a church, rather than residential homes, it is not anticipated to create a demand on parks or schools. Both water and sewer service adequate to support this use is available to the site. The site is served by two streets, County Road H and Pleasant View Drive. Given the limited number of services and the size of the congregation, the amount of traffic is anticipated to be low and will occur on weekends or evening rather than during peak commute times. The City Engineer has reviewed the applicant's drainage proposal and indicated that the rate of runoff should not be a problem and the grass treatment areas will provide enough water quality treatment. Drainage will now be directed to County Road H and will flow through grassed areas to allow sediments to percolate before runoff water leaves the site. The Rice Creek Watershed District has stated that a permit from them is not required. The City Council finds that requirements (1), (7) and (8) have been met. (4) 171e use, in the opinion of the City Council, is reasonably related to the overall needs of the City and to the existing land use. . . . ..x: City Council Resolution No. 5005 October 29, 1996 Page 6 (6) The use is not in conflict with the Comprehensive Plan of the City. The Zoning Code envisions the development of churches in residential neighborhoods, and there are five other churches in Mounds View. The applicant has testified that a number of the members of this church are from the Mounds View area, and desire to locate the church closer to their homes. (Comments on the Comprehensive Plan will be provided at the City Council meeting on October 29.) The City Council finds that requirements (4) and (6) have been met (pending the comments on the Comprehensive Plan). (2) The use will be sufficiently compatible or separated by distance or screening from adjacent residentially zoned or used land so that existing homes will not be depreciated in value and there will be no deterrence to development of vacant land. The structure and site shall have an appearance that will not hm'e 'an adverse effect upon adjacent residential properties. The use is consistent with the purposes of the Zoning Code and the purposes of the zoning district in which the applicant intends to locate the proposed use. (3) (5) According to the Zoning Code, "the purpose of the R-l, single family district is to provide for low density single-family detached residential dwelling units and directly related, complementary uses." Churches are allowed in all residential districts in Mounds View. They require, however, approval of a conditional use permit. The conditional use permit process requires a public hearing be held by the City Council before making its decision, and that property owners within 350 feet of the site be notified. Churches, therefore, are regarded as complementary uses which require special, discretionary review. The R-l district is intended for low density, i.e. low intensity uses. Based on the findings noted earlier under Section 1106.04, Subd. I.c. and f. adequate screening and buffering have not been provided between the church facility and its parking lot and adjacent residential uses. The Planning Commission found that the proposal does not fit into the character of the surrounding area based on the intensity of development on this lot, the size of the building and the parking lot. The proposal would establish a new benchmark as to the site size and buffer widths which are acceptable to the community, below current conditions on church sites in Mounds View. City Council finds that requirements (2), (3) and (5) are not met. WHEREAS, the Planning Commission of the City of Mounds has recommended in Resolution No. 475-96 that the conditional use permit request from the New Apostolic Church for development of church facility at 3025 County Road H be denied; and, . . . City Council Resolution No. 5005 October 29, 1996 Page 7 WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Mounds View does hereby find that the conditional use permit request as proposed by the New Apostolic Church for 3025 County Road H does not meet the criteria and requirements set forth in Section 1106.04 Subd. 1 nor Section 1125.01 Subd. 3.b. in their entirety. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Mounds View City Council does hereby deny the conditional use permit for development of a church facility at 3025 County Road H as presented by the New Apostolic Church in its plans dated September 26 and 30, 1996 and October 7, 1996. Adopted this 29th day of October, 1996 x,.~~~~X.X~~j-~ ferome inke, ayor ATTEST: ~~~y.y. ~~ ~)t,~~V 'X Charles Whiting, City Clerk-Administrator (SEAL) B:\CUPRESO.DEN