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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/18/1999MAPLEWOOD PLANNING COMMISSION Monday, October 18, 1999, 7:00 PM City Hall Council Chambers 1830 County Road B East 1. Call to Order 2. Roll Call 3. Approval of Minutes a. September20, 1999 4. Approval of Agenda New Business a. House Building Request (Harrisons) (Ripley Avenue and Jessie Street) 1. Construction Agreement 2. Alley Vacation b. Comprehensive Parks Plan Update - Summary Report 6. Visitor Presentations 7. Commission Presentations a. September 27 Council Meeting: Mr. Thompson b. October 11 Council Meeting: Mr. Rossbach c. October 25 Council Meeting: Ms. Fischer d. November 8 Council Meeting: Mr. Pearson 8. Staff Presentations a. White Bear Avenue Corridor Study Update 9. Adjournment MINUTES OF THE MAPLEWOOD PLANNING COMMISSION 1830 COUNTY ROAD B EAST, MAPLEWOOD, MINNESOTA OCTOBER 18, 1999 I. CALL TO ORDER Chairperson Fischer called the meeting to order at 7 p.m. II. ROLL CALL Commissioner Lorraine Fischer Commissioner Jack Frost Commissioner Matt Ledvina Commissioner Paul Mueller Commissioner Gary Pearson Commissioner William Rossbach Commissioner Michael Seeber Commissioner Milo Thompson Commissioner Dale Trippler Present Present Present Present Present Present Present Present Present III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. September 20, 1999 Commissioner Frost moved approval of the minutes of September 20, 1999 with the following changes: Commissioner Ledvina moved approval of the minutes of August 16, 1999 and Commissioner Seeber seconded; Commissioner Trippler made the statements on page two (paragraph three, four, and five) that were attributed to Commissioner Pearson; Commissioner Trippler also made the comment on page three that was credited to a Commissioner Carlson; Commissioner Rossbach (on page three), not Commissioner Ledvina, asked how the pipes were cleaned out; Commissioner Rossbach clarified that he said (on page three, paragraph four) that Kline unloads vehicles on the public streets and parks them on the little driveway which is actually the church parking access; and Commissioner Ledvina asked to have his statement (page five, paragraph one) amended to say that this proposal was not similar to other proposals because of the large area of buffer variance requested. Commissioner Rossbach seconded. Rossbach, Seeber, Thompson, Trippler Ayes--Fischer, Frost, Ledvina, Mueller, Abstain--Pearson The motion passed. IV, APPROVAL OF AGENDA Commissioner Pearson moved approval of the agenda as submitted. Commissioner Ledvina seconded. Ayes--all The motion passed. Planning Commission Minutes of 10-18-99 -2- VI. NEW BUSINESS House Building Request (Harrisons--Ripley Avenue and Jessie Street): Construction Agreement and Alley Vacation Ken Roberts, associate planner, presented the staff report. Ken Haider, city engineer, felt it would be possible to vacate a portion of the right-of-way. He said a sanitary sewer goes down the middle of the right-of-way so at least a twenty-foot easement (ten feet on each side) would be needed. Mr. Haider pointed out that vacating all the right-of-way would mean that there would be no access to this property except through the front. He said if the street was vacated, the land would go to the adjoining properties and this would deny access to this site. Mr. Roberts said that if a new home is built more than 150 feet of a paved street, the fire code requires that the new driveway be built to a standard that would support a fire vehicle. He said this will be a condition of the Harrisons' building permit. In response to Commissioner Trippler's question about the wetland, Mr. Roberts described the buffer area (required by the wetland ordinance) as the wetland itself plus another fifty feet from the edge of the wetland. Even though the site has been disturbed somewhat by the previous owner, the city" wants no further activity in the wetland or in the wetland buffer unless it was to restore the conditions or clean up a mess or disturbance that may have occurred. Essentially from now on it would be grandfathered in." Commissioner Thompson asked that this statement be included in the minutes as a protection for the homeowner. Commissioner Ledvina referred to the condition that holds the city harmless for liability and asked if the city had an absolute obligation to get to every house on a private. Mr. Haider prefaced his answer by stating that it obviously was not a legal opinion, but this was recognition that the city took into account that it was granting a variance to a code which was set up with public safety in mind. James Harrison, the applicant, had no questions. He was "very pleased with the packet that the city" had presented. Commissioner Trippler asked Mr. Harrison what his plans were for upgrading and maintaining the pond. Mr. Harrison said he would upgrade the water quality of the pond by cleaning the debris and dead trees from it. Mr. Harrison said he was not "extremely happy" with the required hold harmless agreement but would accept it if that was what it would take for him to build a house on this property. Commissioner Mueller was concerned about putting a liability issue on this house because of the length of the driveway. Mr. Harrison asked if there was a possibility that the city might take his driveway away because it would be on city land. Mr. Haider said the city was guaranteeing that there would be right-of-way there. H e said the city could not vacate right-of-way if it is serving a public interest and access to this home would seem to be a public interest. Mr. Harrison inquired if he would be required to maintain the complete right-of-way or just ten feet of it. There evidently are some large trees in the right-of-way that overhang a neighboring house and should be removed. Mr. Haider said the agreement would require maintenance of the pavement itself. He said the rest of the right-of-way was still the responsibility of the city. Commissioner Mueller asked why, if the applicant would be required to meet the fire code pertaining to the driveway, he would need to sign a hold harmless agreement with the city. Mr. Haider said this is the fire code not the subdivision code. Since there is a variance from the code, he thought it seemed "reasonable for the city to have a hold harmless agreement." Commissioner Trippler did not see any portion of the site that would be flat enough to put a house and garage. Mr. Roberts indicated that Mr. Harrison said he would have a contractor do Planning Commission Minutes of 10-18-99 -3- site grading to prepare for a house if he received approval from the city. Mr. Harrison said there is" a pretty substantial point" at the north end of the pond for a "60- to 70-foot run" that is at grade with his current property. Commissioner Frost moved the Planning Commission recommend: Ao Adoption of the resolution which approves an agreement to build one house on a property that does not front a publicly dedicated and maintained street. The city approves this agreement because: 1. The situation is unusual. 2. The property owner did not cause the existing conditions. 3. Having one additional house in the area would not alter the neighborhood's character. 4. The city has approved other homes on private driveways. This resolution requires that the property owner complete the following conditions before the city issues a building permit: All construction shall follow the site plan approved by the city. The City Engineer shall approve the driveway and turnaround location and designs. The Director of Community Development may approve minor changes to the plans. ° Record the following with Ramsey County: a. An agreement that allows the property owner or users of this property to use the existing Jessie Street right-of-way for ingress and egress from the parcel to Ripley Avenue. An agreement against the property that: (1) Holds the city harmless from any liability for using the private driveway or any delay in emergency vehicles finding the structure(s). (2) States that the property owners shall maintain, plow and sand this driveway to the satisfaction of the Director of Public Works. The city attorney shall prepare these agreements. The property owner shall provide the city with copies of all recorded documents. Install a sign at Ripley Avenue and the driveway that states the property address and that the driveway is private. Record with Ramsey County a wetland buffer easement for the wetland and a 50-foot- wide buffer around the wetland on the site. This easement shall prohibit mowing, cutting, filling, dumping or grading in the wetland or in the wetland buffer. 5. Combine all the parcels on the site into one property for tax and identification purposes. Approve the resolution which vacates the undeveloped alley between Bradley Street and the Jessie Street right-of-way, south of Ripley Avenue. The city should vacate this alley because: 1. It is in the public interest. Planning Commission Minutes of 10-18-99 -4- The city and the adjacent property owners have no plans to build an alley or utilities in this location. 3. The adjacent properties have access to public streets and utilities. Commissioner Rossbach seconded. Ken Roberts confirmed that the buffer area as an easement was being deeded to the city, not outright ownership. He said clean up in the buffer area is allowed, but removing live vegetation and disturbing the ground in the area is not allowed. Mr. Harrison walked the area with Rob Langer of the Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District. He felt that Mr. Langer was satisfied with the proposed clean up. Ayes--all The motion passed. B. Comprehensive Parks Plan Update - Summary Report Ken Roberts, associate planner, presented the staff report. Bruce Anderson, Director of Parks and Recreation, was present, along with members of the Parks Commission. Mr. Anderson discussed the details of the summary report on the Parks, Open Space, and Trail System Plan. Commissioner Frost said he thought that a small portion of the parcel of land off of County Road D was going to be used for the Bruentrup farm and the rest would be open space or designated a neighborhood preserve and wanted to know if that was still the case. Mr. Anderson said that the city has indicated that 2.5 acres would be designated for the Bruentrup farm and the remaining 21.5 acres would be open space. Mr. Anderson said that the property presented some real challenges from an ecological standpoint and, therefore, it was labeled as a special use park site. Commissioner Frost asked about Ramsey County's plans for extension of the Burlington Northern trail through St. Paul. Mr. Roberts said the county would be building the piece south of Frost Avenue next year. Commissioner Frost asked if the plan outlined what was going to happen with the open space properties as far as a separate plan for each. Mr. Anderson said they were in the planning process at this time and preliminary plans for seven of the sites have been received. Commissioner Thompson questioned where revenue would be coming from since the city is substantially developed and PAC (park availability charge) money will diminish. Mr. Anderson said one source that the implementation plan identified as a potential funding sources for parks, open space, and trail development was the referendum on the ballot for November 2. Other possible funding sources would be more grant options through the Land and Water Conservation Fund, community development block grants, ISTA money, local property taxes and bonds, fees and enterprise funds for participation in athletics, etc., and partnerships with the school district and other agencies. Chairperson Fischer asked if sidewalks are counted as part of our trail system because there is a sidewalk on McKnight, as you cut across Larpenteur, that doesn't show up on the map that was part of the summary plan. Mr. Anderson said that sidewalks are a part of the trail system and that a lot of the smaller internal trails are shown on individual park maps. Mr. Anderson agreed that this area was a significant part of the trail system and should be shown on the map. Planning Commission Minutes of 10-18-99 -5- Chairperson Fischer asked if connector trails on Highway 120 were not included and money became available for them, would it be considered that we didn't want them. Mr. Anderson said he didn't think so. Mr. Anderson said that the Park Commission made a decision during the planning process that McKnight was the logical north/south corridor and that they couldn't justify doing it on Century and McKnight. Commissioner Rossbach asked what kind of shape we'd be in if we didn't get the referendum funding for parks improvements. Mr. Anderson said that we would be in bad shape if the referendum wasn't passed, and it would take 18 years to complete the $3.4 million projects proposed. Commissioner Rossbach asked if the referendum form of funding would be something used fairly frequently in the future. Mr. Anderson said the only similar referendum was in 1976 and it wasn't successful. Mr. Anderson said that the upcoming referendum would cost a nickel per day for the average home in the city and less than $18 per year. He felt it was the job of the city staff, park commissioners and residents to show the benefit of that $18.00 to the community. He said if we were able to do that then maybe we could try another referendum in another 10 years and so on. Commissioner Mueller spoke about problems at the Western Hills Park in his neighborhood. His concern was safety in the parks. Mr. Anderson mentioned that, as a first-ring suburb, many nonresidents frequent Maplewood parks. He felt security lights "tend to allow negative behavior rather than creating a sense of security" for other participants. Mr. Anderson said he will distribute a report from the Maplewood police chief that indicates Maplewood parks are safe. Mr. Mueller also inquired about the removal of basketball courts from the park. Mr. Anderson said the courts were removed at some sites in St. Paul but were then put back up. He said the height of the hoops will be reduced at some small neighborhood parks in order to serve the population up to about 14 years of age. Fourteen other parks will have hoops that are ten feet in height. Two half courts will be used instead of a full court in order to reduce the intensity of the basketball play. Mr. Anderson said he definitely did not foresee the city council acting to convert open space land to park use. Removal of snow on city trails is a public works function, and Mr. Anderson said, as a general policy, the city will not be removing the snow. Commissioner Trippler said he was "very impressed by the amount of work" that went into the park plan. He then questioned the amount of money that will be spend on ballfields. Mr. Anderson answered that this is a "one-time correction" to create community playfields to "take that tremendous emphasis" that has been on neighborhood parks and "give these parks back to the neighborhood." There would be four community playfields--Hazelwood, Harvest, Afton Heights and Goodrich. Commissioner Rossbach moved the Planning Commission accept the Parks and Recreation summary report as presented and pass on to them great appreciation for all the work they have done on this. Commissioner Pearson seconded. Chairperson Fischer asked if there is now a definition on open space trails. Mr. Anderson said they have not. They are looking at crushed aggregate and concrete (a marble look) as one option but will consider each site independently. He said the preference is to avoid blacktop trails. Ayes--all Planning Commission Minutes of 10-18-99 -6- The motion passed. VI. VISITOR PRESENTATIONS There were no visitor presentations. VII. COMMISSION PRESENTATIONS September 27 Council Meeting: Ms. Coleman reported on this meeting. October 11 Council Meeting: Ms. Coleman reported on this meeting. Commissioner Trippler moved the Planning Commission recommend that the city council consider the possibility of having city staff provide them with information on an enforcement program for conditional use permits, particularly as it relates to dealerships parking vehicles on unauthorized property. Commissioner Rossbach seconded. Ayes--all Ms. Coleman spoke about the six-month moratorium on development in the Maplewood Mall area. She said the consultant will also be looking at the White Bear Avenue Corridor, particularly in the vicinity of the Builders Square site. October 25 Council Meeting: Ms. Fischer is scheduled to attend this meeting. November 8 Council Meeting: Mr. Pearson is scheduled to attend this meeting. VIII. STAFF PRESENTATIONS IX. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 9:13 p.m.