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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPL MINUTES 01181977 Meeting Sheet IIIIIIVIIIVIIIVIIIVIIIVIIIIIIIIIII 105650 Box: 35 Folder: PL MINUTES AND AGENDAS 1977 Document: PL MINUTES 01181977 4 CITY OF ST. ANTHONY PLANNING BOARD AGENDA January 18 , 1977 1. Call to Order 2. Roll Call 3. Minutes A. December 21, 1976 4. Public Hearing ;A. Side 'Yard Variance for a garage addition at 3519 Harding Street N.E. (7 : 30 P.M. ) . B. Conditional Use Permit for a day care center at 3012 39th Avenue N.E. (8 :00) . 5 . Zoning Variations A. Roger Tousley, Apache Car Wash, regarding proposed addition to the rear (east side) of his car wash at 3725 Stinson Blvd. • 6. Old Business A: Gordon Hedlund regarding site plan on Lots 10-16 , Block 6 , Mounds View Acres 2nd Addition (across from Apache Plaza) . 7 . Building Permits - none 8 . Miscellaneous A. Application forms/procedure checklists - Dorsey Law Firm. These forms have been suggested by the City Attorney, subject to Planning Board review and Council approval. B. Selection of the chairman for 1977 . C. Designate representative to the January 25th Council Meeting. 9 . Adjournment Note: Because of a rather full agenda, sign industry representatives and planning for the Kenzie Terrace area will be rescheduled to another meeting. CITY OF ST. ANTHONY PLANNING BOARD MINUTES January 18 , 1977 The meeting was called to order by Chairman Bowerman at 7 :40 P.M. Present for roll call: Marks, Johnson, Hiebel, Bowerman, Letourneau and Rymarchick Absent: Cowan Also present: Jim Fornell, Administrative Assistant Harry Lekson, Assessor The City Clerk was not present to administer the oath of office to the Board and the Chairman requested this procedure be followed at the February meeting of the Board. Motion by Mr. Hiebel and seconded by Mr. Marks to approve the minutes of the December 21 , 1976 Board meeting. • Chairman Bowerman at 7 :42 P.M. opened the Public Hearing for a side yard variance to allow a garage addition at 3519 Harding Street N.E. Donald Dick explained that his present single 12 foot wide garage is no longer adequate for his family's needs and therefore was re- questing a 3 foot side yard variance which will enable him to make an 8 foot addition to his existing structure. He said the overhang on the addition will be modified. Mr. Dick reported that his next door neighbor was not opposed to the plan and no one else appeared to speak for or against the proposal. Mr. Johnson said the addition will bring the garage in compliance with the City ordinance which requires a double garage for a single family dwelling. Motion by Mr. Johnson and seconded by Mr. Rymarchick to recommend to the Council that an 8 foot addition be allowed to the existing garage at 3519 Harding St. N.E. which will leave a 6 foot side yard on that side of the property or a total of 13 feet of side yard. Motion carried unanimously. Mr. Cowan arrived at 7 :45 P.M. The Public Hearing was closed at 7 :46 P.M. and Mr. Dick was advised to appear before the Council on January 25th. Mr. Hiebel and Mr. Rymar- chick are to appear at the same meeting on another matter and will 0 present the Board' s recommendations to the Council . • Although there was some discussion of whether a chairman could be elected by Board members who had not been sworn in, the Board decided a precedent for such practice had been set and left the matter as 8B on the agenda. Mr. Fornell reported that Roger Tousley would not be present to dis- cuss his request for a rear yard variance for an addition to the Apache Car Wash at 3725 Stinson St. N.E. and the possibility was men- tioned that the applicant might be able to secure more land which would make the application necessary. Mr. Cowan said he hoped there would be more parking facilities provided to take care of the overflow along Stinson every Saturday morning. Motion by Mr. Johnson and seconded by Mr. Hiebel to table action on the Tousley request for an addition to the Apache Car Wash for further information. Motion carried unanimously. The meeting was recessed from 7 :55 to 8 :03 P.M. when the Chairman opened the Public Hearing on a Conditional Use Permit for a Day Care Home at 3012 39th Avenue N.E. Mrs. Kathleen Stanley appeared to explain that though she had only sought permission to care for one other child than her own in her home • she was following the advice of the Ramsey County social worker to obtain a license by which she may care for three preschoolers (includ- ing her own) and 2 school age children if she should choose to do so. Mr. Stanley said she now cares for a baby and a preschooler besides her own three year old. She answered questions from the Board by saying the school age child could include an adolescent; since she is under the supervision of the Welfare Department, there is no expiration date on her license, and because she is required to be outside with the children whenever they play there, there is no requirement to have a fenced in play area. However the applicant said she and her husband would probably want to fence in an area for that purpose for their own child. Mr. Rymarchick expressed his concern with the size of the backyard as a play area without a fence. No one else appeared to speak for or against the proposal and at 8 : 15 P.M. the Public Hearing was closed. Motion by Mr. Hiebel and seconded by Mr. Cowan to recommend to the Council approval of a Conditional Use Permit which will allow Mrs . Kathleen Stanley to operate a Day Care Home in her residence at 3012 39th Avenue N.E. Votion on the motion: Aye: Marks, Johnson, Hiebel , Bowerman, Cowan and Letourneau • Nay: Rymarchick (2) • Motion carried. Gordon Hedlund, owner of approximately 5 acres of land across from Apache Plaza, John Daubney, his attorney and Carl Dale of St. Paul who was identified as a consultant and land development advisor for a number of metropolitan communities , were present to discuss with the Board the disposition of Mr. Hedlund's undeveloped lots as well as an existing structure on one lot. Mr. Daubney said it had been established that this was to be an informal hearing at which no specific proposals would be made. He then described Mr. Hedlund's land holdings as being cldssified as R-2 "under the hybridized classi- fications of the new zoning ordinance and old zoning map which differ in their classification of usages" . He traced the history of Mr. Hed- lund's difficulties in securing an economical development of the land over the past 10 years in which time he said the land owner had not been able to find financial funding for residential development. The attorney said Mr. Hedlund's efforts had been further stymied by either refusal of proposals for uses of the land or when the City held up decisions for such a length of time that prospective buyers lost in- terest. Mr. Daubney felt at least a partial rezoning would be a viable alternative to the impasse. Mr. Dale who has been involved in the revitalization projects in White Bear, Golden Valley and Egan among others, then reiterated the pro- fessional studies and opinions which had been made about that parti- cular area of the City including the 1973 North Area Study by Nason Wehrman and Chapman, the 1975 opinion from the same firm's representa- tive, and the 1962 Midwest Planners, Inc. , study which pointed up the changing complexion of the area. Permits for Twin City Federal and Herfurth Fox Realty were sited as examples of such changes . The planner then made the following assumptions about the development of Mr. Hedlund's land: 1. Agreed that there should be a limitation on the number of driveways on Silver Lake Road. 2 . Considered the site not acceptable for a high density usage such as a McDonald's restaurant or a car wash. 3 . Believed the development of the land should prove to be an asset to the community which is well landscaped and will differ from the example set by other commercial projects in the past. 4 . Said protection should be provided for home valuations in the neighborhood to the east. 5 . Felt no traffic from the commercial area should be introduced onto Penrod Lane. 6 . Stipulated that buildings should be low profile and not multi- story nor of great bulk. (3) • 7. Wanted provision made for pedestrain circulation The planner continued by saying he could possibly foresee using the land for (1) an apartment building of 57 units or less (2) one long strip of commercial such as a mini shopping center or office com- plex (3) a commercial cluster of 3 or 4 buildings which would utilize the entire site or (4) the development of only the west porition of the land for commercial consisting of one long low building or a cluster of smaller buildings with all parking on the side near Silver Lake Road. He then presented two basic plans which he felt might be feasible, illustrating each with detailed drawings. First, he suggested devoting the entire 5 acres to commercial develop- ment and presented an illustration _featuring, three buildings with parking along the west and a parkline buffer along Penrod Lane. Mr. Dale said the latter would be comprised of "up and down mounds" rather than berms to accomodate the difference in grades at that point, and suggested a children's playground with either sidewalks or meandering trails throughout. These mini hills which would be 3 or 4 feet high would be planted with coniferous trees. As a further measure to screen the homes to the east, the roofs of the buildings would be of a wood- like construction which would be slanted and would help to block out all the noises and li.qhting of the commercial activity. The planner also told of a project in Golden Valley where heating and air condi- tioning mechanisms are placed at the sides instead of the top of the • buildings. Mr. Daubney then interjected the suggestion that to assure the retention of the buffer and walkways the City could secure the dedication of the sidewalks. The plan included alternate one way drive- ways across Mr. Hedlund' s lot with the existing house and through the properties to the north which have other owners , as well as boulevard trees along Silver Lake Road which would shield the traffic on that roadway from the headlights on the property. The second of Mr. Dale 's proposals suggested low key commercial usage such as a beauty salon or barber shop, medical offices or retail shops which do not have intense usage, for the west portion of the tract with a buffer of heavy tree plantings and possibly a fence separating the Penrod portion where 10 single family homes could be built. He said his plan would call for controlled lighting and noise abatement measures. Mr. Dale said he did not consider any residential develop- ment for normal family housing, not even an apartment house, could be compatible with the heavy commercial usage at Apache across Silver Lake Road with the exception of elderly housing which has unique re- quirements . He felt the two basic plans he had offered should be of a low profile and designed to minimize any irritations from noise, visual impact and lighting, and felt the development could be architecturally controlled by the Council to protect the residential neighborhood and at the same time public control could be provided which would result in a project which would be beneficial to the entire community. • (4) • The planner did not consider the City' s new zoning ordinance to re realistic for the Twin City area, specifically the two commercial zoning classifications which separate usages into first, a service office category for which he felt there is little market and is too restrictive and finally the commercial category which was wide open and too liberal. He was critical of the PUD classification for limiting commercial usage to 25% of the site and felt it should have provided a maximum of both design flexibility and public control. It was his belief that setting specific set backs is alien to a PUD. The only specific proposal contained in his plans, Mr. Dale said, was Mr. Hedlund's desire to convert the existing residence on one of the lots to a beauty shop. Finally, Mr. Dale did concede that past proposals for the development of the land had not been comprehensive enough and had not considered the overall makeup of the surrounding area. Mr. Cowan said he was gratified to see the existing structure had been included in the plan and that more than eight parking spaces were now planned for that spot but wondered how creative the plan was when the only specific proposal left that structure just as it was . Mr. Daubney replied that he felt maintaining the residential character of the house created more of a "village like" appearance. • In addressing the problem of a service road for the commercial develop- ment, Mr. Dale drew on his experience with other projects where ar- rangements have been made for easements across the parking lots which he said could include the property owners to the north of Mr. Hedlund' s lots. He suggested an agreement could be made between the private owners and the City so that access rights and maintenance of the road- ways could be provided. Mr. Daubney said he felt the City could avoid illegal restriction of usages by obtaining from the owners an agreement for deed or plat restrictions which are valid and enforceable. Mr. Daubney then criticized the new ordinance saying it was more re- strictive than the old. He felt there was not enough demand for the service office usage which is classified under "B-2" and pointed out the 56 categories which are classified as "C" as well as those which require a special permit. He further justified the commercial usage of the Silver Lake portion of the land by the left hand turn which provides an access to the tract. Mr. Marks said he was delighted to see the ten homes which had been provided in one of the plans and was glad to see that for once some protection had been provided for the residential neighborhood to the east but was still concerned how the disposal of this property would affect the manner in which the property to the north of Mr. Hedlund's land was developed. • When Mr. Rymarchick asked whether the possibility of using the whole tract for residences had been explored along with the provision of a (5) • buffer along Silver Lake Road, Mr. Dale said this would not be prac- tical from a cost point of view and because of the traffic problems which would result from such a plan. He also felt using cul-de-sacs would expend 30% of the land for roadways and would not be economical- ly feasible. Mr. Johnson expressed the opinion which was shared by the other Board members that the presentation had been very constructive and congratu- lated Mr. Hedlund on the comprehensive planning, saying it was the best that had been offered to date. He said however, the City and the public would require more specific date on the usages which would be involved and what restrictions would be included in the final proposal . He then took issue with the criticism of the new zoning ordinance telling Mr. Daubney that it had been formulated for St. Anthony ex- clusively and not to fit the needs of Golden Valley or any other muni- cipality. He did not see the great disparity between the ordinance and the zoning map which he said had been legally adopted along with the ordinance by Council action. He spoke for other Board members by saying that because the left hand turn had been provided at Mr. Hedlund's request it in no way justified the commercial usage of his land. Mr. Letourneau said he was not convinced that residential development of Mr. Hedlund's land could not be economically feasible and questioned the economic success of a commercial development across the road from • Apache Plaza which is not now fully rented. The attorney replied that Mr. Hedlund had not been able in ten years to merchandise his holdings for residential development. The attorney and planner both agreed that it would be their job to sell their proposals to the residents in the neighborhood many of whom have opposed similar propositions. They promised to report back to City officials the results of meetings with such groups. Mr. Hedlund then wanted to know whether the Board could express to the Council their approval of the plans that had been presented, but both Mr. Daubney and the Board were in agreement that this would be pre- mature. Later in the evening the concern was expressed that a commercial develop- ment in this area might jeopardize the "lifeblood of Apache" . Veri- fication was given that Apache management is officially notified of any proposed change in status of neighboring property. The Board then discussed the various forms of proposed application and procedural check lists which had been drafted by the City Attorney with some expressing reservations on the size of some of the forms . Motion by Mr. Cowan and seconded by Mr. Letourneau to indicate to the Council that the forms prepared by the City Attorney appear to be ac- ceptable and to suggest they be referred to City staff for determination • of their usage. (6) Motion carried unanimously. Nominations were taken for the office of Chairman and Chairman Pro Tem to serve during the calendar year of 1977 . Ken Hiebel was elected the new Chairman and Richard Rymarchick was selected as Chairman Pro Tem. Motion by Mr. Bowerman and seconded by Mr. Cowan to adjourn the meeting at 10 : 15 P.M. Motion carried unanimously. • •