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1 <br />Approved <br />CITY OF LINO LAKES <br />ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT <br />ADVISORY COMMITTEE <br />MINUTES <br /> <br />DATE: January 6, 2011 <br />MEMBERS <br />PRESENT: J. Schwartz, M. Keller, J. Stranik, D. Johnson <br />MEMBERS <br />ABSENT: B. Menke, B. Combs, K. Corson, L. Masonik <br /> <br />OTHERS <br />PRESENT: M. Divine, P. Bengtson (part) <br /> <br />APPROVAL OF MINUTES <br />The Minutes of November 18, 2010 were approved. <br /> <br />REDEVELOPMENT TASK FORCE <br />Mr. Stranik said EDAC’s asked if anyone had questions about basic issues with nonconforming <br />uses. The most difficult issue appears to be the lack of utilities to certain sites. The goal is to <br />come to a recommendation that would be forwarded to the council. Ms. Keller said just letting <br />the market take its course is not proactive enough and she’d rather see the city take actions rather <br />than doing nothing about these sites. <br /> <br />Mr. Bengtson stated that in his inventory he looked at Lake Drive and Hodgson corridors where <br />the majority of properties of concern are located. It started out with a list of approximately 150 <br />properties zoned, guided, or used for business, then narrowed it down to sites that don’t have city <br />water and therefore have difficulty meeting the fire suppression requirements. Some were <br />eliminated because they had 60 feet of clearance around the building, and therefore didn’t need <br />sprinklers, and some are off the list because city water is very close and could get utilities to the <br />site. The inventory also lists some general redevelopment issues to pertaining to each site. It also <br />lists existing use on each site, whether it is a conforming or nonconforming use, and market <br />value and annual tax information, and zoning and comp plan information. <br /> <br />There was no way to categorize these sites except for how far they are from utilities. There are <br />some uses which are actually nonconforming uses, and some that are conforming to the zoning <br />district, but if they were to shut down the building would have to come in conformance with <br />utilities or do the private well and pump, which can be cost prohibitive. <br /> <br />Mr. Bengtson reviewed that nonconforming meant that the building was built too close to the <br />road, or the parking lot is too small, etc. An existing nonconforming use can stay indefinitely, <br />and if it closes, the same use can go back in. But if the building is empty for 12 months and the <br />use changes in the building, then it must be replaced with a use that is allowed under the zoning <br />code, and sprinklers are then required to bring up to today’s standards. That’s why the issue <br />keeps coming back to lack of utilities.