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HomeMy Public PortalAbout10-14-2003PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES - OCTOBER 14, 2003 PRESENT: MARILYN FORTIN, MARY VERBICK, ELIZABETH WEIR, LENNY LEVER, SHARON JOHNSON, DICK PICARD AND JERRY BROST. ALSO PRESENT, CITY ADMINISTRATOR CHAD ADAMS AND PLANNING AND ZONING ASSISTANT SANDIE LARSON ABSENT: RON JOHNSON AND BILL LOE Chairperson Elizabeth Weir called the meeting to order at 7 p.m. Ms. Weir reminded everyone that the Planning Commission was a recommending body and that the city council made final decisions. Ms. Weir asked that items #3 and #4 on the agenda be reversed. MOVED BY JERRY BROST AND SECONDED BY MARILYN FORTIN TO APPROVE REVERSING THE ORDER OF THE AGENDA. MOTION PASSED. 3. Concept Plan Review for Platting of the Two Outlots created by the Wright - Hennepin Application Chad Adams said that Terry Schneider was present this evening and he also called the planning commissions attention to item #4. He said that the city council is looking at no formal vote or straw vote, just comments. He said we should look at setting time limits (amount of time to address the concept). He said the area we are talking about tonight is zoned Business Park and that will not change. Terry Schneider, developer's consultant, introduced other's here this evening: John Cameron and Daryl Schreiber are the co -developers; and John Mutchler, the land owner. Terry said the concept plan is important to make things go smoother. He said they are not looking for votes, just comments and/or feedback. He said when they get their first buyer, they then will come in for the plat application. T. Schneider said the main issue to get resolved is the re -alignment of Willow Drive and the inner roads. He said their preferred approach is to leave Willow as is and said that they would re -build the road and put in the sewer and water. He said they would put in an E-W road south of the Wright -Hennepin site and would run the road to the west edge to Cal Ladd's property which is also zoned Business Park. He said that the water tower and water line would remain the same with a utility easement. He said they probably would abandon the current easement for the water tower and relocate it from the inner road. Terry said that in his conversations with Medina staff, they concur with Willow staying the same, easements, etc. He said they would do area wide ponding for the entire site and not with each individual site. T. Schneider said that Parcel F is the way it is because of topography and that access would be from Willow Drive. He said there could be a 2 story building on the east side of the site with the back building being warehouse with access from the interior road. Planning Commission Minutes October 14, 2003 1 Lenny Leuer said Apache Drive was down in the SW corner of the property and asked why there is no connection. T. Schneider said he understands that the homeowner in that corner was re -zoned back to residential and access was to be to the east. L. Leuer said he will ask again why there is no connection. He also asked if there would be any straightening of Willow. T. Schneider said according to staff, no. L. Leuer asked about the upper portion of Parcel H. T. Schneider said they will need some ponding, so most logically this area will be developed into some sort of ponding. L. Leuer mentioned that Outlot A is a good part of the entire parcel. T. Schneider said the only way that piece is developable, is for it to be combined with the piece to the south. L. Leuer mentioned the layout of the buildings - Parcel F - 2 entrances - wouldn't work for Parcel G also. T. Schneider said if at all possible they would keep access off Willow. L. Leuer asked if there would be 2 entrances off of the inner road. T. Schneider said that is conceivable. L. Leuer asked if there would be structures over the water line. T. Schnedier said the water line is deep enough that they could have streets and parking over it. L. Leuer asked where the dirt is going that you will be taking away from the hill. T. Schneider said that they hope to balance the site, but there will be some fill required on some of the sites. L. Leuer asked if there had been any further discussion with Cal Ladd. John Cameron said that he had talked with Mr. Ladd and there are currently no plans to do anything with his property. T. Schneider said that the cul de sac that is shown will be temporary. He said it will be ironed out when they come in with their 1st plat. Planning Commission Minutes October 14, 2003 2 D. Picard asked if there was sewer at the site now. T. Schneider said there is a stub by the tracks and we would extend it at our expense. D. Picard asked what kind of businesses would there be. T. Schneider said some small professional offices and other that we anticipate are manufacturer reps, etc. He said there would be multi -use buildings closer to industrial use, but not really industrial. Terry said that their challenge is that there is the 5 acre minimum for the parcels. D. Picard asked if any of the sites would access the rail line and Terry said no. J. Brost asked if there were any traffic figures, volumes of traffic, etc. T. Schneider said it is too preliminary, but they would note that it is a concern. Terry noted the size of each of the parcels and said that they have to work around the topography and wetlands. L. Leuer reiterated that when the planning commission takes action tonight with Wright - Hennepin, the two outlots that they are creating will be unbuildable until it is platted. T. Schneider said that they hope to go away tonight with approval of their Concept A plan. L. Leuer said some of his concerns include the water tower, where it is, relocating the water line etc. E. Weir said she has a little concern with 2 story buildings on high ground with residential across the road. T. Schneider said that the 2 story portion would face to the east and looking to the north will only see 1 story. He said they will also so some landscaping. Mary Verbick said she likes the idea of ponding for the entire area. Marilyn Fortin said she is in favor of Willow Drive staying where it is. E. Weir said that the E-W road concerns her with no thru access. Chad Adams said that they will address the connection to Apache Drive. T. Schneider said hopefully by spring they will be back with an application. 2. WRIGHT-HENNEPIN ELECTRIC - SOUTH OF RR TRACKS/NORTH OF PIONEER TRAIL ON WILLOW DRIVE - LOT COMBINATION/PLAT TO 1 LOT AND 2 OUTLOTS AND CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT FOR SUBSTATION PUBLIC HEARING Planning Commission Minutes October 14, 2003 3 Chad Adams introduced the Wright -Hennepin application. He stated that staff recommends the plat with the stated conditions. He said that the park fee would be 10% of the pre -development value, which would be determined by the city assessor. Chad also stated that staff recommends approval of the conditional use permit with the stated conditions. Wayne Bauernschmitt, Wright -Hennepin, said that Wright -Hennepin Electric was the electric provider for the majority of the Medina area. He said that they have identified the need for an additional substation. They had met with Loren Kohnen to discuss the possibility of sites in Medina. Wayne said that they are incorporating Tom Kellogg's comments for drainage and utility easements and will merge the contours with the remainder of the Mutchler property.. He put up an overhead of the grading plan. He said they are looking at a bituminous access drive to access the site. He said that the site is visited 1-2 times per month and there will be a parking area in front of the substation. W. Bauernschmitt said that the watershed district has approved the retention pond. He said that in the future they see a need for a back-up generator for the area and when that happens, they would come in for an amendment to their conditional use permit. Lenny Leuer removed himself from further discussion during this application and left the table. Sharon Johnson said in looking at the driveway , are there going to be any problems now or in the future. W. Bauernschmitt said they tried to plan the driveway as far north as they could. Sandie Larson said the Jim Dillman would review the driveway placement. Dick Picard asked if there was any comment from the watershed district and asked about the 'future' requirements. Chad Adams said that they will discuss this with Tom Kellogg and staff at the city council meeting. Terry Schneider said there is a small area on the east side of the site that will internally drain and all will be on our property. D. Picard said that it might be difficult to change the size of the pond later. Ann Jackson, Rockler Company, asked about the height of the structures. W. Bauernschmitt said 55'-60' would be the tallest structure. He said the natural topography will screen the view from the south and the substation will be most noticeable for those to the north. He also stated that having a substation so close will help with their power demands. Planning Commission Minutes 4 October 14, 2003 A. Jackson, asked a number of questions concerning access, landscaping, etc. Wayne answered her questions. Doug Dickerson, 2625 Pioneer Trail, said that he has never seen a substation that is not an eyesore. He questioned the transmission line, how tall, where it would go. He also said, would it not be better to have a substation by the Hennepin County tower at the public works site. He also asked if there would be a connection for the other substation in Medina. W. Bauernschmitt said that the line would be underground from the substation to Willow, then up to the transmission lines. He said this site is good for integrating with their system. He said there are important customers in the area and it is important for us (Wright -Hennepin) to give them good service. Dale Aukee, Great River Energy, said they are the power supplier to Wright -Hennepin Electric. He put up an overhead of a concept of the transmission line. He said there would be wood poles 65' high and they would be parallel to the railroad tracks. He also stated that some trees to the north would have to be removed and they are working with the railroad for routing. Elizabeth Weir asked what ROW does a 69kV transmission line require and how many properties are affected. D. Aukee said it is a 69,000kV line and the right-of-way is 70', 35' on either side. There was discussion of the impact of the transmission line, etc. E. Weir asked how far apart the poles would be and Dale said 275'-350'apart W. Bauernschmitt said the distribution line is underground and the transmission line is overhead with 3 wires on a single set of poles. Mary Verbick asked why the transmission line was not also underground. W. Bauernschmitt said that technology does not permit it to be underground. He said it is a single source coming into the substation and there would be extremely long outages if problems occur. He said cost is also a factor at 5-10 times more expensive. E. Weir asked if the site would be monitored 24 hours per day and if there would be lighting. W. Bauernschmitt said they see no need for lighting. There will be an on/off switch if needed at night. E. Weir wanted to confirm that fencing would be around the substation and not the entire lot and Wayne said that was correct. Tony Nelson, Wright -Hennepin engineer, said that they have to meet decibel requirements. Planning Commission Minutes October 14, 2003 5 W. Bauernschmitt said that there might be a need in the future for a generator and although they do not have plans for it now, when they see the need for the generator they will come back for an amendment to their conditional use permit. M. Verbick mentioned #7 in the comments from the watershed district talking about native plants. W. Bauernschmitt said that the watershed district had made some suggestions for plantings and they will follow those suggestions for grasses, etc. T. Nelson said that the watershed recommendations were for erosion control. D. Dickerson wanted to know how tall the poles along the road would be. W. Bauernschmitt said 65'. D. Aukee said typical is 65' for the vertical height, but there might be an additional 5-10' to maintain the federal requirement. D. Dickerson asked how much power Wright -Hennepin sold. W. Bauernschmitt said that the PUC establishes boundaries. D. Dickerson asked if they sold outside their boundaries and Wayne said they did not. A. Jackson asked about the poles at the substation. T. Nelson said they would be 60' and either concrete or steel. A. Jackson wanted to clarify the number of acres that Wright -Hennepin would have and she was told 5.85acres. MOVED BY DICK PICARD AND SECONDED BY MARY VERBICK TO RECOMMEND APPROVAL OF PLATTING THE 94+ ACRES OF MEDINA PARKS PARTNERS INTO 1 LOT OF 5.85 ACRES AND TWO OUTLOTS WITH THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS: 1. All requirements in letter from city engineer 2. All requirements of the Pioneer Sarah Creek Watershed District 3. The 10' drainage and utility easement be provided on the north side of the plat. 4. Park fee due on the 5.85 acres MOTION PASSED. MOVED BY SHARON JOHNSON AND SECONDED BY MARILYN FORTIN TO RECOMMEND APPROVAL FOR A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT FOR A WRIGHT- Planning Commission Minutes October 14, 2003 6 HENNEPIN ELECTRIC SUBSTATION ON LOT 1, BLOCK 1, MEDINA PARKS SECOND ADDITION WITH THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS: 1. Parking area and driveway be blacktop or concrete with a 9 ton design 2. Any lighting must be downcast only with 0.2 foot candles at the property line and light poles no taller than 30' 3. A row of Black Hills spruce, 8' tall minimum and 12' on center be planted on the south and east side of the fenced area and parking lot, but not to interfere with overhead power lines. 4. Any conditions by the city engineer and watershed district, plus their approval of the drainage plan. 5. The future building shown will require the conditional use permit be amended. MOTION PASSED Lenny Leuer returned to the table. 4. DISCUSSION OF CITY PROCEDURES FOR CONCEPT REVIEWS. Elizabeth Weir introduced the discussion. She said some of the items to be considered are items to be brought to the planning commission and to the city council. Ms. Weir said that she favors the planning commission being in on things that meet the ordinance and others things to be brought to the city council. Dick Picard wanted 'concept' defined. Chad Adams said that in the future only items concerning re -zoning and/or comp plan changes would come in for a concept review. (This does not count the Uptown Hamel zoning district, which does require concept reviews) JerryBrost said that he thought re -zoning was a good reason for a concept plan review. E. Weir said there is a need for changes as to what 'concepts' go to the city council and the planning commission. J. Brost said it is a good time to bounce thoughts back and forth with the developer. Lenny Leuer said he thought items that should have concept review are: 1 - To see if a variance is substantiated - and 2 - if there is an intensification of use (even if it meets the ordinance) The planning commissioners agreed that items that needed concept plan review should come to the planning commission before it goes to the city council. 5. CHANGE NOVEMBER MEETING DATE Sandie Larson said that the meeting date for the November Planning Commission would need to be changed due to Veterans Day. It was agreed to move the November Planning Commisison meeting to Wednesday, November 12th Planning Commission Minutes October 14, 2003 7 6. MINUTES OF SEPTEMBER 9, 2003. MOVED BY MARY VERBICK AND SECONDED BY SHARON JOHNSON TO APPROVE THE MINUTES AS PRESENTED. MOTION PASSED. MOVED BY DICK PICARD AND SECONDED BY MARY VERBICK TO ADJOURN. MOTION PASSED. Meeting adjourned at 8:53 p.m. Planning and Zoning Assistant Date Planning Commission Minutes October 14, 2003 8