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Planning Commission Regular Meeting Minutes January 19, 2021 Page 4 1 thought keeping the parkway as residential as it can be for the best. She also stated another 2 thing she was concerned about are the hoods, chillers, boilers, kitchen and all of those things 3 running close to hers and the neighbor’s homes and the noise it will give out. She wanted to 4 make sure that the City understands the residents concerns but there are already a couple of 5 senior homes in the area so if the builder could possibly move the development back or 6 somewhere else would be great. She thought there had to be something better than this. 7 8 Ms. Barbara Sullivan stated her grandfather’s farm was on that site. Her concern was with the 9 EAW that was done by Ken Haberman on this site. One of the big concerns was perk and the 10 developer wants to build an underground garage and t here are still pollutants there and perk 11 comes up through the soil. She thought the City should check into remediation because she 12 thought the owner of the property would be responsible for any kind of cleanup that has to be 13 done. 14 15 Ms. Carol Weiler, 2312 St. Anthony Parkway, Minneapolis, stated in reviewing the 16 documents that were submitted for the development, 65 Project, she noticed that a portion of 17 the land behind the building is part of the easement. She wondered what the exact terms of 18 the easement are and can the easement be removed by either party. The density of the 19 proposed development is significantly higher if the easement is not included in the 20 calculations. The site as described in the project documents as 4.25 acres and she wondered if 21 the 4.25 acres includes the area in the easement. She would appreciate the developer pointing 22 out where the employee entrance is and where also the employee parking is located. The 23 development was proposed initially as 135 units in November 2020 and is being presented as 24 around 155, which is a fifteen percent increase. She mentioned this in part due to the small 25 amount of useable green space in the project. Everyone has noticed a change in their living 26 habits since the beginning of the pandemic and the value and necessity of green space has 27 been foremost in maintaining their physical and mental well-being. She thought it would be a 28 mistake to approve a new senior living building without very careful consideration of outdoor 29 space, its useability and programming. No one knows how long COVID-19 will require 30 social distancing and they also need to be prepared for the next virus. St. Anthony already has 31 two assisted living properties with very little green space and no nearby parks. With 89 32 independent living units and 42 assisted living units there will be many active residents who 33 will want outdoor amenities beyond a small patio and deck. 34 35 Ms. Weiler wondered if raised bed gardens would be incorporated into the plan. She noted 36 water holding ponds take up a large portion of the green space and she wondered if those 37 could be landscaped to provide visual interest to attract wildlife. In looking at the landscaping 38 plan, she suggested reconfiguring the sidewalk on the east side of the property. Walking 39 directly alongside a road is not a pleasant experience. It would be much more pleasant if the 40 sidewalk would meander to the green space on the east side and looped around to a fully 41 landscaped holding pond. The sidewalk on the southern edge of the parcel abuts the road to 42 the parking garage, again, that is not a pleasant walking experience and she wondered if the 43 sidewalk is necessary. She would like the developer to identify which trees currently onsite 44 will be saved and how the trees on the west side of the property will be chosen and will those 45 trees be able to thrive with the existing trees on the boulevard. 46