HomeMy Public PortalAbout1975-005Village of Medina
Hamel, Minnesota 55340
RESOLUTION NO. 75= _ , CONCERNING THE PROPOSED IET CPOLITAN DEVELOP-
MENT FRAMEWORK OF THE METROPOLITAN COUNCIL
WHEREAS the Metropolitan Council has requested public response to
its proposed Metropolitan Development Framework Chapter; and
WHEREAS the residents and property owners of the city of Medina
will be substantially affected by the nr oposal ;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Medina City Council submits
the following comments concerning the proposed chapter, and requests
that they be distributed to each member of the Metropolitan Council:
1. We support the intentions of the chapter to preserve the quality
of life in the Twin Cities area; to promote wide housing choices for a
great number of families; to encourage efficiency in the use of public
facilities; and to protect the environment, including rural and semi -
rural areas.
2. We believe the proposed 'Transitional Area, which includes Medina,
should be treFted as separate and distinct from both the proposed Urban
Service Area and the Rural Service Area. The City of Medina, for in-
stance, is still semi -rural. But the density of population and the
level of governmental services -already is greater than that expected by
the Metropolitan Council for rural areas. We believe intelligent plan-
ning as reflected in lu!edina's Community Development Guide 1 dictates a
gradual development of housing and services in the community. The fact
that considerable farmland in Medina is held by persons who are not
farmers reflects just one of the situations that makes the 'Transitional
Area different from the proposed Rural Service Area.
3. We support the preservation of agriculture in rural --and trans-
itional --areas, so far as is possible. However, it does not seem to us
to be practical to zone or otherwise restrict farmland for commercial
agricultural use only. Continued development pressures, tax burdens and
changing family circumstances, for instance, could lead such restrictions
to work real hardships on many farm families.
4. We believe there are other uses in addition to agriculture which
play an important part in keeping rural areas open. Examples could in-
clude large hobby farms, woodlands, country clubs and other private
recreational facilities, and even land that is presently held by specu-
lators. The Metropolitan council should consider their role in pre-
serving open areas in rural and semi -rural areas. 2
1 -Copy enclosed.
2 -The need to protect rural and semi -rural land in addition to farms
was recognized in a bill proposed to the 1973 Legislature by Rep.
Salisbury Adams and Sen. George Pillsbury (HF 1251, SF 1271).
-1 -
r
5. We support the idea that tax policies and other fiscal incentives,
including the present Green.Acres law, should be used to encourage rural
and semi -rural areas to stay that way. But it must be remembered that
such tax breaks place increased burdens on other property owners in a
particular municipality or school district. We suggest that, if the
maintenance of rural areas is a metropolitan benefit, then taxes from
the entire metropolitan area ought to be used to subsidize that benefit.
6. The proposed Development Framework deals with guiding growth, but
utterly fails to deal with the idea of how much growth is good --rather
like a doctor treating a bleeding ulcer surgically without any regard
to diet. We see no way that the Twin Cities area can accommodate
533,000 more people, 400,000 more jobs and 380,000 more housing units
by 1990 without suffering substantially in quality of life. The Metro-
politan Council should join with the Minnesota State Planning Agency,
the Commission on Minnesota's Future, and other appropriate agencies to
draw a statewide population policy.
7. As part of such a policy, these agencies should encourage methods
by which small communities throughout Minnesota will keep their present
populations or grow. when large numbers of people leave these towns to
move to the metropolitan area, problems result in both places. And
under -used schools, sewer and water facilities, and other public invest-
ments can be as unfortunate elsewhere as in the metropolitan area.
8. A population policy should encompass city as well as rural areas.
6trict enforcement of air, odor and noise pollution standards in down-
town areas, limits on building heights and concentrations, and other
devices could help prevent over-all overcrowding of the metropolitan
area.
9. It should be remembered that continued over-all growth pressures
in the metropolitan area will make any agricultural preservation effort
more difficult because of the great demand for rural and semi -rural
living. Numerous surveys, including one taken by the Metropolitan
Council itself, indigate that large numbers of residents want to live
in uncrowded areas.
10. It would appear that the Development Framework proposal is large-
ly intended,then, to curtail the very type of lifestyle favored by a
significant number of residents. It is legitimate and desirable to
upgrade the quality of housing in the more urban areas. But severe
restrictions on rural and semi -rural housing denies the wide variety
of choices the Development Framework purports to foster and denies
a basic purpose of government, which is to aid in fulfilling the
aspirations of citizens, not to thwart them.
3 -Minnesota Poll, Minneapolis Tribune, Sept. 16, 1974: 32% prefer to
live in rural areas, another 40% in suburbs.
-Metro Council poll, Minneapolis Tribune, Oct. 18, 1974
- Speech by Bruce Thomson, Workshop on Metropolitan Growth, Oct. 30,
1974, 85% prefer single-family home in suburbs or country; over half
would continue to rent rather than buy high -density housing.
- Development Framework proposal, p. 18.
"
1 1 . T h e D e v e l o p m e n t F r a m e w o r k p r o p o s a l c a l l s f o r " b r o a d c o m m u n i t y
i n v o l v e m e n t i n p o l i c y - m a k i n g a n d i m p l e m e n t a t i o n d e c i s i o n s . " 4 I t w o u l d
a p p e a r t h e n t h a t t h e M e t r o p o l i t a n C o u n c i l w o u l d e i t h e r h a v e t o m a k e s o m e
p r o v i s i o n f o r t h e d e s i r e f o r s c a t t e r e d s i t e h o u s i n g o r w o u l d h a v e t o
i g n o r e i t s o w n c i t i z e n p a r t i c i p a t i o n p o l i c y . I g n o r i n g c i t i z e n d e s i r e s
c o u l d c o s t t h e p r o p o s a l t h e c o m m u n i t y s u p p o r t n e e d e d t o m a k e i t w o r k . 5
1 2 . W e b e l i e v e i t i s p o s s i b l e f o r t h e M e t r o p o l i t a n C o u n c i l t o r e -
s p o n d t o t h e d e s i r e f o r s c a t t e r e d s i t e h o u s i n g w i t h o u t g i v i n g i n t o
u n m a n a g e a b l e u r b a n s p r a w l , i f t h e r e s p o n s e i s c o u p l e d w i t h s u f f i c i e n t
f i s c a l i n c e n t i v e s t o h e l p p r e s e r v e r u r a l a r e a s . T h r e e e x a m p l e s c o u l d
a p p l y t o M e d i n a :
a ) P e r m i t t i n g g r a d u a l , p l a n n e d e x p a n s i o n o f s e v e r e d a r e a s , p e r h a p s
w i t h t h e r a t e o f e x p a n s i o n r e g u l a t e d b y a c o n t r a c t w i t h t h e m u n i c i p a l i t y .
S u c h g r a d u a l e x p a n s i o n i n t h e H a m e l a r e a c o u l d h e l p p r o v i d e d e s i r e d
s c a t t e r e d s i t e h o u s i n g i n a b a s i c a l l y r u r a l o r s e m i - r u r a l a r e a w i t h o u t
d e s t r o y i n g t h e c h a r a c t e r o f t h e s u r r o u n d i n g c o u n t r y s i d e .
b ) P e r m i t t i n g s o m e e x p a n s i o n i n c o n j u n c t i o n w i t h s e w e r p r o j e c t s
t h a t a r e n e e d e d t o s o l v e e x i s t i n g p r o b l e m s . I n t h e I n d e p e n d e n c e B e a c h
a r e a o f M e d i n a , a s e w e r i s b a d l y n e e d e d t o p r e v e n t p o l l u t i o n o f a l a k e
o f m e t r o p o l i t a n s i g n i f i c a n c e ; b u t s o m e n e w h o u s i n g w i l l b e n e e d e d t o
m a k e t h e p r o j e c t e c o n o m i c a l l y v i a b l e .
c ) P e r m i t t i n g l a r g e - l o t d e v e l o p m e n t t h a t w i l l p r e s e r v e , t o s o m e
e x t e n t a t l e a s t , t h e r u r a l o r s e m i - r u r a l c h a r a c t e r o f t h e a r e a . T h e
M e d i n a U i t y C o u n c i l h a s b e f o r e i t p r o p o s e d o r d i n a n c e s t h a t w o u l d s e t
l o t s i z e m i n i m u m s a t 2 i a c r e s f o r a r e a s t h a t a r e w i t h o u t c i t y s e w e r .
H o w e v e r , a c t u a l l o t s i z e s c o u l d b e e x p e c t e d t o b e m u c h l a r g e r f o r t w o
r e a s o n s : T h e m i n i m u m s m a y n o t i n c l u d e a n y s w a m p o r l o w l a n d , a n d t h e r e
i s c o n s i d e r a b l e l o w l a n d i n t h e a r e a ; T h e m i n i m u m s m u s t i n c l u d e a t
l e a s t 7 , 0 0 0 s q u a r e f e e t o f s o i l s t h a t a r e s u i t a b l e f o r o n s i t e s e p t i c
s y s t e m s .
1 3 . W e b e l i e v e t h e M e d i n a p r o p o s a l d e m o n s t r a t e s h o w t h e t r a n s i t i o n a l a r e a ,
t h r o u g h p l a n n e d a n d g r a d u a l d e v e l o p m e n t , c a n h e l p f u l f i l l t h e d e s i r e f o r s e m i -
r u r a l l i v i n g w i t h o u t d e s t r o y i n g s e m i - r u r a l c h a r a c t e r . W e b e l i e v e t h e p r o p o s a l
f o r u s i n g s o i l t y p e s a n d s o i l s c i e n c e t o p r o t e c t a g a i n s t p o l l u t i o n a l s o d e m o n -
s t r a t e s t h e n e e d f o r m u n i c i p a l i t i e s t o p l a n t h e i r o w n d e s t i n i e s w i t h i n v e r y
b r o a d g u i d e l i n e s . W e b e l i e v e i t i s i m p o r t a n t 1 O p r e s e r v e C I T I Z E N P O W E R t o
d i r e c t l y e l e c t o f f i c i a l s , a n d w e b e l i e v e i t i s i m p o r t a n t t o p r e s e r v e t h e a b i l i t y
o f l o c a l c o m m u n i t i e s t o i n n o v a t e w h o w i l l a d m i n i s t e r P l a n n i n g a n d Z o n i n g .
4 P o l i c y 6 , p . 1 8 .
5 T h e L e a g u e o f W o m e n V o t e r s o f t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s r e c e n t l y s a i d , " N o
g o v e r n m e n t a l l a n d u s e p r o g r a m c a n s u c c e e d w i t h o u t a s t r o n g c i t i z e n r o l e .
I t i s t h e c i t i z e n w h o i s u l t i m a t e l y a f f e c t e d b y l a n d u s e d e c i s i o n s ; w h o
e l e c t s t h e r e s p o n s i b l e l e a d e r s , w h o s u p p o r t s t h e l e g i s l a t i o n , a d m i n i s -
t r a t i o n , a n d e n f o r c e m e n t , a n d w h o p a y s t h e b i l l s . . . . " T h e N a t i o n a l
v o t e r , F a l l 1 9 7 4 , p . 5 .
14. Public services that may be affected by development include roads,
water and sewer facilities, storm drainage systems, transit, parks and
open space, police and fire service, schools, libraries and airports.
Semi-public services such as electric, gas and telephone utilities, and
health care facilities also are affected.
15. We support the idea that new development moving into a community
must bear its share of increasing the costs of services, even though doing
so may--regretably--increase housing costs. We also support the idea
that residents in a rural or semi -rural area should be warned not to
expect a complete range of urban services.
16. However, there are'two classes of services that rural residents
have a right to expect. In one category are services that they are paying
for through their tax dollars --services such as libraries, hospitals and
transit systems. The other is composed of services made necessary by
living in the metropolitan area. Increased police protection is needed,
for instance, because of heavy travel on area highways and because even
burglars are commuting more nowadays. We believe the Metropolitan
houncil and county boards may have to help financially in the providing
of such services --including back-up sheriffs' protection --that are needed
merely because a community is part of the metro area.
17. Care must be taken that a disproportionate share of resources is not
allocated to building up the central cities at the expense of the rural and
semi -rural areas. It must be recognized that considerable funds will be needed
to carry out the Development Framework proposals mandate to treat existing problems.
18. As to Policy 13 d., it should be noted that a soil scientist would be
preferable to or at least equal to a registered engineer in judging soil
characteristics.
PASSED BY THE MEDINA CITY COUNCII: THIS 4TH DAY OF FEBRUARY, 1975.
Donna Roehl, Clerk
Wayne Neddermeyer, Mayor