PL PACKET 05191998 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Planning Commission Regular Meeting Minutes April 21, 1998 Page 3 1 Chair Bergstrom suggested Mr. Hanka contact Ms. Moore-Sykes to determine.what is necessary 2 for this proposal to meet the City Code requirements. 3 VIII. OLD BUSINESS. 4 1. Robodyne Request for Town/Country. 5 Ms. Moore-Sykes noted the tour of the Robodyne facility is scheduled for April 28, 1998 at 6:00 6 P.M. 7 Mr. Bill Warner, Kraus Anderson Realty, stated he had been present at the last Commission 8 meeting to present the possibility of a variance, conditional use permit, or rezoning to allow 9 Robodyne to relocate in.the Town& Country building. He introduced Mr. Joseph Alvite, owner 10 of Robodyne. 11 Mr. Joseph Alvite, owner of Robodyne, distributed a brochure describing his company. He noted 12 the picture of the current facilities located in the City of St. Anthony and the State of North 13 Dakota. He explained that in 1963 he moved jobs to North Dakota because the State of North 14 Dakota gave the company $2.5 million to build a manufacturing building. The investment they 15 made in the company has been paid back three times over. Robodyne was incorporated in 1990. 16 It was taken to market in 1993 and through a tremendous amount of money and patience,.has 17 developed the products it has today. 18 Robodyne has moved three times to locations in northeast Minneapolis and St. Anthony and is 19 seeking to locate in the Town& Country building to expand once more. This is an ideal location 20 which will suit the company's needs. Mr. Alvite stated he hated to move out of the community 21 because studies show that every time a business moves it robs people's lives. He stated he has 22 spent a tremendous amount of money training his employees and with a move out of the 23 community he expects to lose 20% of his workforce. The building would be a great asset to him 24 by providing the opportunity for expansion with minimal disruption. 25 Mr. Alvite displayed a rendition of the proposed changes to the exterior of the Town& Country 26 building utilizing the company colors of blue and white. He felt the relocation would provide a 27 new lease on life to the building and noted the location had plenty of parking. The relocation 28 would help him retain jobs in the City and continue to employ the people who have made the 29 company possible. 30 Chair Bergstrom explained that the City of St. Anthony wanted to do everything possible to 31 maintain and develop the tax base, retain jobs (especially high tech jobs), and retain business in 32 the City. The City is currently in the process of hiring a planning consultant to look at 33 redevelopment of the entire St. Anthony Shopping Center area over the next 10-20 years. The 34 City is concerned in general, with mixing commercial and light industrial properties. From a 35 planning standpoint, the City is reluctant to convert part of a commercial area to light industrial. 36 Chair Bergstrom questioned Ms. Moore-Sykes comment that Robodyne may be able to locate in