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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-02-26 PACKET 08.City of Cottage Grove Planning Commission February 15, 2018 A meeting of the Planning Commission was held at Cottage Grove City Hall, 12800 Ravine Park- way South, Cottage Grove, Minnesota, on Thursday, February 15, 2018, in the Council Chamber and telecast on Local Government Cable Channel 16. Call to Order Chair Brittain called the Planning Commission meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Roll Call Members Present: Ken Brittain, Justin Fox, Evan Frazier, Tony Khambata, David Lutchen, Derek Rasmussen, Jennifer Raymer, Roger Zopfi Members Absent: Taylor Mills Staff Present: Jennifer Levitt, Community Development Director/City Engineer John McCool, Senior Planner John M. Burbank, Senior Planner Steve Dennis, City Councilmember Approval of Agenda Frazier made a motion to approve the agenda. Raymer seconded. The motion was approved unanimously (8 -to -0 vote). Open Forum Brittain asked if anyone wished to address the Planning Commission on any non -agenda item. No one addressed the Commission. Chair's Explanation of the Public Hearing Process Brittain explained the purpose of the Planning Commission, which serves in an advisory capacity to the City Council, and that the City Council makes all final decisions. In addition, he explained the process of conducting a public hearing and requested that any person wishing to speak should go to the microphone and state their full name and address for the public record. Public Hearings and Applications 6.1 Aggregate Industries 2018 Mining Permit — Case MP2018-010 Aggregate Industries — North Central Region, Inc. has applied for their 2018 mining permit to continue their mining operations at 11250 Grey Cloud Trail South on Lower Grey Cloud Island. Planning Commission Minutes February 15, 2018 Page 2 of 7 McCool summarized the staff report and recommended approval based on the findings of fact and subject to the conditions stipulated in the staff report. Brittain asked if there were any questions for staff or the applicant; there were none. Brittain opened the public hearing. No one spoke. Brittain closed the public hearing. Brittain asked if there was any further discussion on this application; there was none. Khambata made a motion to approve Aggregate Industries' 2018 mining permit subject to the conditions in the staff report. Lutchen seconded. Motion passed unanimously (8 - to -0 vote). 6.2 Legends of Cottage Grove Signage — Case ICUP2018-003 Cottage Grove Leased Housing Associates I, LLLP has applied for an interim conditional use permit to allow an 8 -foot by 25 -foot (200 square foot) banner sign for the Legends of Cottage Grove to be displayed on the exterior wall of their building facing Highway 61 at 6999 East Point Douglas Road South. McCool summarized the staff report and recommended approval subject to the conditions stipulated in the staff report. Rasmussen asked why they applied for an interim conditional use permit when the sign is already in place. McCool stated that City staff allowed them to display the sign to encourage people to lease space, but had to file for an ICUP that allowed for the sign to be on the outside of the building. Zopfi asked if there is an estimate on when Legends thinks they will reach 90 percent occu- pancy as he doesn't want the sign displayed for a year. Bailey England, Community Manager at Legends of Cottage Grove, 6999 East Point Douglas Road South, stated as of February 1, they're currently about 68 percent pre -leased and 44 percent occupied. Momentum has picked up, and they expect to be 100 percent occupied by July 31, but it could be the end of April to mid-May 2018, based on their traffic. Brittain asked if England would have any concerns if they put a one-year sunset clause on the sign. England stated she would not. Lutchen stated that a set period for the sign should be defined, and he felt that one year was appropriate. Brittain opened the public hearing. No one spoke. Brittain closed the public hearing. Rasmussen stated he had no objections to the sign, but he was confused about the timing. Levitt stated Legends of Cottage Grove had made an application for a temporary sign permit, noting that the maximum allowed size for a temporary sign would not be appropriate for the square footage of the building. Staff permitted Legends to put up the sign, as the goal is to see them be successful, but it just took additional time to get it before the Commission. Rasmussen Planning Commission Minutes February 15, 2018 Page 3 of 7 noted that temporary sign permits are for 15 days, but they'd been given 60 days. Levitt stated they're allowed to have four temporary banner permits per year and those can be taken con- secutively, which would bring them to 60 days. Raymer stated she was uncomfortable with an open-ended variance, but she felt having it one year from the day the permit was requested would be the most appropriate. It would provide time to obtain expected occupancy and a date when the sign needed to be removed. Brittain stated he was also comfortable with having a one-year sunset on this, or 90 percent occu- pancy, whichever came first. Rasmussen concurred. Raymer made a motion to approve the interim conditional use permit with an additional condition to limit the duration of the sign to one year or 90% occupancy. Lutchen seconded. Motion passed unanimously (8 -to -0 vote). 6.3 Kingston Fields — Cases ZA2017-034 and PP2017-035 D.R. Horton has applied for a zoning amendment to rezone 59 acres of land from AG -1, Agricultural Preservation, to R-3, Single Family Residential, with a Planned Development Overlay (PDO). D.R. Horton also applied for a preliminary plat to be named Kingston Fields, which would create 121 single-family residential lots on two lot sizes (57 homes on 65 -foot wide lots and 64 homes on 70 -foot wide lots) and 14 outlots. This proposed development is located east of Jamaica Avenue, north of Rose of Sharon Lutheran Church, and west of the Cayden Glen and Grayson Meadow subdivisions. (Continued from December 18, 2017, Planning Commission Meeting.) McCool summarized the staff report and recommended approval subject to the conditions stipulated in the staff report. Rasmussen stated he felt this was a pretty exciting development, but is worried that Ravine Parkway is not yet built. He asked if staff is comfortable with how the future road will fit into the overall plan. Levitt stated staff had worked closely with the developer's engineers to ensure that they come together seamlessly. The roads and other infrastructure, including stormwater, will be integrated into the Ravine Parkway design, to provide service to the development. Rasmussen asked if a portion of Ravine Parkway will be constructed this year. Levitt re- sponded the City Council will consider ordering that project on February 21. Brittain asked if there would be turn lanes in and out of the subdivision onto Ravine Parkway and Jamaica Avenue. Levitt stated those issues have been worked out through the design of the Ravine Parkway, but the details were not available at the time the Commission packets went out. Brittain asked if there would be turn lanes. Levitt responded there would be south- bound and northbound turn lanes to service the development. As part of the Ravine Parkway project, they're looking at a jurisdictional transfer; Military Road will become a City road and Jamaica Avenue will become a County road. Lutchen asked if the details about Jamaica Avenue would be elaborated at the City Council presentation. Levitt stated the public hearing will be specifically about Ravine Parkway. Details regarding Jamaica Avenue and the turn lanes will be presented, but the overall design of Jamaica Avenue will not be the subject of the public hearing. Planning Commission Minutes February 15, 2018 Page 4 of 7 Rasmussen asked if there was a possibility of a roundabout at Jamaica Avenue and Ravine Parkway. Levitt stated that Washington County had requested that the City run an analysis, and a roundabout could be constructed there. At this point, lane configurations are being set up for a future traffic signal, but that could change when Washington County reconstructs Jamaica Avenue in the future; the plans have retained enough right-of-way to facilitate a roundabout. Mike Suel, D.R. Horton, 20860 Kenbridge Court, Lakeville, MN, thanked City staff for their patience with this project. They're excited to be moving forward in Cottage Grove. Brittain opened the public hearing. No one spoke. Brittain closed the public hearing. There was no further discussion among the Commissioners. Khambata made a motion to approve the zoning amendment and preliminary plat, sub- ject to the conditions in the staff report. Fox seconded. Motion passed unanimously (8 - to -0 vote). 6.4 Eastbrooke — Cases ZA2018-004 & PP2018-005 The Bancor Group, Inc. has applied for a zoning amendment to change the zoning of prop- erty located at 6055 and 6065 Hadley Avenue South, which is east of Hadley Avenue, west of the Silverwood development, north of 65th Street, and south of the Woodbury/Cottage Grove border from R-2, Residential Estate, to R-4, Low Density Residential with a PDO, Planned Development Overlay; and a preliminary plat for a subdivision to be called Eastbrooke, which would subdivide a 67.78 -acre parcel of land into 126 single-family resi- dential lots and 10 outlots. Burbank summarized the staff report and recommended approval subject to the conditions stipulated in the staff report. Paul Robinson and Dave Newman, Bancor Group, 5433 Dupont Avenue South, Minneapolis, Minnesota, were present. Robinson stated that based on the feedback they'd received, they made the following changes to their plans: smaller home sites, 138 units down to 124 units; 40 percent more open space with 70 percent of the units abutting open space; in forested areas buckthorn will be removed; if necessary, native over -seeding will be done; approximately 500 trees will be replanted as part of the reforestation effort; steps would be taken to deal with the ravine and erosion issues; and the 55 -foot lots near the Silverwood development have been changed to 70 -foot lots. He reviewed the natural trails, and stated that the pond place- ment was moved north to create a buffer to neighboring properties. He noted that the chosen builders are Gonyea Homes and Stonegate Builders. Rasmussen asked about the street width in this development. Mr. Robinson stated they were 28 feet wide, which is standard City width. There were no further questions. Brittain opened the public hearing. Tim Reimann, 6100 Hadley Avenue South, stated he'd lived at his home for 18 years and has never been opposed to the Eastbrooke development, but have consistently spoken to the need Planning Commission Minutes February 15, 2018 Page 5 of 7 for thoughtful development in the West Draw. They appreciate the changes made by the Bancor Group to the plans, but strongly encourage them to work with existing property owners in the Silverwood development to provide appropriate buffering. They believe this can be accomplished to preserve this unique portion of the City. Al Dressley, 6255 Hadley Avenue South, noted he is directly affected by this development. He stated he moved into that neighborhood with the understanding that there would be acreage lots around him; now they're talking about smaller lot sizes. He would have liked the Commis- sioners to come look at the land, rather than just at the diagrams presented on a screen with some overlays, as it is a very unique are. He does not think the smaller homes would blend into that area. Chris Reese, 6284 Hedgecroft Avenue South, stated he felt the 55 -foot lot sizes were too small for this development. The first phase fits with the Highland Hills development, but it doesn't fit with the Silverwood development. He asked if a traffic study had been done, as he felt there'd be much more traffic coming off Hinton Avenue. He also asked if there would be a monument sign on both sides of this development or if it would just be on Hadley Avenue. Regarding tree preservation, he requested that they look at the quality of the trees they're preserving, not just the quantity. He requested confirmation that construction traffic wouldn't be going through the Pinecliff and Silverwood developments. He also wondered if stormwater would be coming through the ponds in the existing neighborhoods. Levitt stated that staff received emails, which were passed out to the Commissioners, from Karen Spaulding, 6186 Hearthstone Avenue, and Kelli Gorgus, 6264 Hearthstone Avenue, listing their concerns about the proposed development. No one else spoke. Brittain closed the public hearing. Fox recused himself from the vote, as his company currently represents Stonegate, one of the builders selected for this development. Khambata also recused himself from the vote as he, too, has a business conflict. Fox and Khambata both left the Council Chamber. Brittain asked if there was any further discussion. Rasmussen stated he completely under- stood the residents' concerns about the lot width as he likes larger lots, but there seems to be a demand for smaller lots, and he felt the developer had made efforts regarding open space and preservation. He stated things have changed significantly over the years, but a smaller lot size doesn't necessarily mean smaller homes; it's sometimes just having more depth to a home and ramblers seem to be in demand. He felt the open space was important; this devel- opment had various lot widths and a diversity of the housing product, which he thought was a plus. Zopfi made a motion to approve the zoning amendment and preliminary plat subject to all the conditions in the report. Raymer seconded. Motion passed on a 6 -to -0 vote (Fox and Khambata recused themselves from the vote). Approval of Planning Commission Minutes of December 18, 2017 Raymer made a motion to approve the minutes of the December 18, 2017, Planning Commission meeting. Frazier seconded. Motion passed unanimously (8 -to -0 vote). Planning Commission Minutes February 15, 2018 Page 6 of 7 Reports 8.1 Recap of January, 2018, City Council Meetings Levitt provided a summary of the actions taken at the January 3 and January 17, 2018, City Council meetings. Council Member Dennis asked if the Commissioners had any questions for him; there were no questions. 8.2 Response to Planning Commission Inquiries a) Coyotes Information from Deputy Director of Public Safety Pete Koerner to the Public Services Com- mission about coyote sightings and mitigation solutions was provided in the packet. b) LED Lights Information had been provided about the LED light program in the packet. Brittain asked if the City had an illumination standard target that we attempt to meet regarding how bright a specific area would be. Levitt stated there is a light intensity requirement that the Federal Highway Administration dictates for our Municipal State Aid Roads, and the lighting analysis governs on those road designs. On our local streets, it is done through City policy. We are still trying to fine tune the intensity of the LED lights and are continuing to make modifications on the set- tings to reduce their intensity. Brittain stated that having a residential street lit to the intensity of daylight hours is too bright; he's spoken to a number of people who need to install room - darkening shades on their bedroom windows because there's a light outside their house. c) Ravine Parkwav Park Information on the Ravine Parkway Park, north of the Parkway, just to the west of Keats Ave- nue, had been included in the packet. 8.3 Planning Commission Requests Rasmussen stated their last meeting was cancelled due to a snow storm, so he just wanted to say that he was impressed with how the City handled plowing the streets. He asked how many snowplows the City has. Levitt responded 12. Brittain stated that in the Kingston Fields development, part of the sewer line was going to be vacated; and asked how that impacted homeowners who were being serviced by that line. Levitt stated the City is working with the developer on staging the new line installation, explain- ing when they make the final cut over, they will do bypass pumping, often in off hours, and most residents won't even notice. Lutchen stated he'd noted that some main road arteries have been considerably bumpier re- cently and believes it might be due to the temperature changes, but he wondered how that usually got rectified. Levitt stated joints in the roadways start to take on moisture in gaps that creates a pocket that freezes and then thaws, which creates the fluctuation in the pavement. Once the moisture settles out, those bumps will recede. Planning Commission Minutes February 15, 2018 Page 7 of 7 Adjournment Zopfi made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Lutchen seconded. The meeting was ad- journed at 8:42 p.m. (8 -to -0 vote).