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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2007-09-10 MINUTESCITY OF COTTAGE GROVE PUBLIC WORKS COMMISSION September 10, 2007 Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a meeting of the Public Works Commission of Cottage Grove was duly held at Cottage Grove Public Works, 8635 West Point Douglas Road, Cottage Grove, Minnesota on Monday, September 10, 2007 at 7:00 pm. 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair David Anderson called the meeting to order at 7:02 pm. 2. ROLL CALL David Anderson, Ken Boyden, Robert Dornsbach, Roger Finnegan, Gary Kjellberg, William Royce Staff Present: Les Burshten, Public Works Director Harry Taylor, Public Works Supervisor Also Present:Mark Grossklaus, City Council Member 3. APPROVE MINUTES Upon a motion by Robert Dornsbach, seconded by Ken Boyden, the July 9, 2007 minutes were unanimously approved. 4. ADDITIONAL AGENDA ITEMS None. 5. NEW BUSINESS A. Technical Review 6.1Tattoo and Piercing – Case TA07-040 Justina Lansing-Wakefield has applied for a zoning text amendment to City Code Title11-10B-2, Permitted Uses in the B-2, Retail Business District, to allow permanent body art (tattoo and body piercing) businesses as a permitted use in the B-2 and B-3 zoning districts; and amending City Code Title 3, Business and Licensing Regulations, to add Chapter 12, Permanent Body Art. Public Works Commission September 10, 2007 – Page 2 Harry Taylor reported there is a body art company looking to open a business in Cottage Grove, however, the location is unknown at this time. The current ordinance would have to be modified in order to accommodate a business of this type. 6.2Pole Barn on Kimbro Avenue- Cases CUP07-049 and V07-050 Daniel Banttari, 8600 Kimbro Avenue South, has applied for a conditional use permit and a variance to allow construction of a 1,536 square foot pole barn, which when added to the existing accessory structures on the property, would be 9 square feet over the total allowable square footage for accessory buildings. 6.3Shed on River Acres Road – Case V07-051 Larry Brown has applied for a variance to City Code Title 11-3-3C, Accessory Structure Setbacks, to allow an existing 10-foot by 12-foot shed, which is located in front of the principal structure on the side property line, to be replaced by a 10-foot by 12-foot shed that would be located in front of the principal structure within the property boundaries at 8035 River Acres Road. 6.4 Holiday Stationstore Plat – Case PP07-047 BDM Consulting Engineers has applied for a preliminary plat for a Holiday Stationstore Cottage Grove, which would create one commercial lot for the existing Holiday Station at 8101 Hadley Avenue South. 6.5 Culvers – Cases PP07-052, SP07-053, CUP07-054 ________________ has applied for a preliminary plat, a conditional use permit for a restaurant with a drive-through window, and a site plan review of a 3,954 square foot th fast food restaurant on 80 Street, south of the Kohl’s building and west of the US Bank building. Taylor stated the entrance will be accessible from the Kohls parking lot. Commission Chair David Anderson inquired whether this Culver’s Restaurant would be a standard- sized location instead of the smaller-sizes favored by other Cottage Grove restaurants such as Applebees or Ruby Tuesdays. It is not known at this time if this particular location will be smaller in size compared to other Culver’s locations. Taylor noted that some restaurant chains are downsizing their buildings in order for more restaurants to be built. 6.6 Hamlet Park South – Case PP07-056 The City of Cottage Grove has applied for a preliminary plat for Hamlet Park South, th which would be located on property located north of 95 Street and approximately 570 feet west of Hemingway Avenue (the Werner Electric site), to create one industrial lot. Public Works Commission September 10, 2007 – Page 3 6.7 Dynamic Signs – Case TA07-055 The City of Cottage Grove has applied for a zoning text amendment to amend City Code Title 9-8, Signs and Billboards, to prohibit dynamic signs. Anderson inquired whether the existing sign ordinance included electronic billboards. Taylor stated there is a moratorium on electronic billboards at this time. Commission member Gary Kjellberg stated those types of signs can be very distracting to motorists. Anderson added that a billboard is a billboard and should be limited, electronic or not. 6.8 Amendment to East Ravine Standards – Case TA07-044 The City of Cottage Grove has applied for text amendments to revise City Code title 11- 3-4D, Visibility, to re-insert the provision that no structure be within 20 feet of a public street right-of-way on a corner lot; and to title 11-9I-5, Multi-family and Townhouse Performance Standards to require the same exterior materials on all sides of multi- family and townhouse structures. 6.9 Amendment to Landscape Ordinance – Case TA07-045 The City of Cottage Grove has applied for a text amendment to amend the minimum landscaping requirement of the City Code. The purpose of this amendment is to ensure multi-family, institutional, commercial, office, and industrial projects provide enough open space within their property. Taylor stated staff is looking at redoing the landscaping ordinance. B. Public Works Open House Public Works Director Les Burshten announced this year’s open house will take place on Thursday, September 20 from 3:00-7:00 pm. Commission members were invited to help with the event if they would like. C.Project Updates Burshten noted that a traffic sign study, as well as the 2008 Pavement Management Project will be on next month’s agenda. East Ravine Utility Project Phase 1 of the East Ravine Utilities project will be completed in October. Phase 2 of the project will involve another closing of Military Road in mid-October. Jamaica th Avenue (between 70 Street and Military Road) will be closed for a couple of weeks starting in October for utility work. Pine Tree Pond Project The project will be totally complete in early October. Half of the trail is paved at the current time. The parking lot preparation is taking place now. Landscaping of the pond will be completed by the end of September. Public Works Commission September 10, 2007 – Page 4 Jamaica Roundabouts th Crews have kept on schedule with this project which will be complete October 6. th Bike Path – 80 Street/Kingston Park Backfilling around the edges and the curb still needs to be completed. Grange Water Tower Painting has begun on the water tower and should be completed by mid-October. The City Council has authorized crews to work 7 days per week. Southpoint Ridge th This project is located on the east side of Highway 61 north of 80 Street. Utility work thth will begin September 17 and end November 15. Completion is slated for June of 2008. Hydrant Flushing Harry Taylor reported flushing will begin next week so residents may experience discolored water. Cingular Antennas Harry explained this Cingular antenna will be placed on the twin tanks near Fire Station 2. The City has hired a consulting firm to assist with inspections during the installation process. Atkinson Cemetery A new sidewalk has been installed along with a patio area with exposed aggregate. A lighted flagpole is on order and should be here by the end of the month. The Parks Department has worked on the landscaping. Gary Kjellberg suggested a fence be installed along Tires Plus to screen the view. Taylor thought perhaps they could look at some type of landscape screening. Booster Station A pavement improvement project has been done at the site’s parking lot along with the access driveway to the building. Archery Range Through a DNR grant for the Archery Range, parking spots have been added, along with upgrading of the targets.A re-opening of the new facility took place last Saturday. Zac Dockter noted the archery range users were pleased with the improvements. th 79 Street th The sidewalk on 79 Street (between Hemingway and Hinton Avenues) has been completed. Public Works Commission September 10, 2007 – Page 5 th 80 Street Streetlights The contractor (Vinco) has been replacing the streetlight poles under warranty. They are awaiting a shipment from California which is expected by the end of September. Kjellberg commented the poles look nice and the crew has done a good job of installation. Jamaica Avenue Crack Repair thth Crack repair work will be done on Jamaica Avenue between 70 and 80 Streets. Storm Damage Due to recent storms, areas of the City have experienced some damage, primarily to trees. Boulevard Trees The Street Department has been working with the stump grinding contractor. After that work is completed, boulevard restoration will take place. 6. OLD BUSINESS None 7. ENGINEER’S REPORT See 5C above – Project Updates 8. PUBLIC WORKS UPDATE Refer to 5C above – Project Updates 9. CITY COUNCIL UPDATE 2008 Budget City Council Member Mark Grossklaus reported the Council has been reviewing the budget adding City departments were informed to keep budgets as tight as possible. Drinking Water Concerns The City Council and Health Department will meet with concerned citizens on th September 20 at 6:30 pm. Truth in Taxation th This meeting will take place on November 29. New Business in Town – Werner Electric th Werner Electric will be constructing a building off 95 Street. The company provides supplies to contractors. It’s a fairly good-sized business employing approximately 125. Public Works Commission September 10, 2007 – Page 6 Cottage View Drive-In David Anderson inquired whether or not the drive in theatre will be demolished. Grossklaus stated a potential developer made a presentation, however, no action has been taken. It was noted that Wal-Mart is a proposed tenant. Whatever is constructed in the area, Innovation Road will have to be improved. 10. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN UPDATE Kjellberg distributed the synopsis of the latest Comprehensive Plan Committee meeting. He is still working on accessing this information so it can be included in the PWC packets. He continued to say that the group went over transportation issues for the future within th Cottage Grove stating it was very informative. On September 12 the committee will meet with the City Council. 11. COMMISSION COMMENTS AND REQUESTS Neighborhood Development Signs Anderson stated repair and/or repainting of these signs was discussed at previous meetings and was wondering about the status of this project. Taylor responded that Council authorized these repairs to be done and it is believed the work has been completed. McHattie Property Commission Member Ken Boyden inquired about the status of this property located at Jamaica and Military. Grossklaus responded that this was originally a Chase Homes Project but the company was bought out and for now the project is on hold. Boyden asked if the City paid for the utility improvements. Grossklaus answered that the costs were paid for by the City with the understanding that developers will be assessed as utilities are connected. Resource Recovery Plant - Newport Kjellberg mentioned that he read in the latest Bulletin newspaper that cities cannot mandate trash haulers to bring trash to the plant in Newport. There’s concern whether or not the plant will remain with subsidies going down. Is there anything the City can do to impress upon citizens the importance of the facility? Burshten stated that trash from the City of Cottage Grove does go to that plant, however, they have no control over where the residential refuse is taken. Kjellberg wondered if an article can be written for the Cottage Grove Reports to make citizens aware how important it is to use this facility. Burshten added this would have to be discussed with City staff to see what can be legally recommended, as well as checking with Washington County. Public Works Commission September 10, 2007 – Page 7 Kjellberg commented this would be educational information for residents as it’s our responsibility to recycle. Burshten stated a report will be presented at a future meeting to see what statistics can be brought forth. 12. ADJOURNMENT Motion to adjourn was made by Robert Dornsbach, seconded by Gary Kjellberg. Motion was unanimously carried. Meeting adjourned at 7:40 p.m. Respectfully submitted,    íÜÉËÔÚÔÜêÉÎËÛÄ