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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/01/1999MAPLEWOOD PLANNING COMMISSION Monday, November 1, 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. October 18, 1999 4. Approval of Agenda 5. New Business a. Used Car Sales Conditional Use Permit - Maplewood Auto Center (2525 White Bear Avenue) b. Choice Auto Rental Conditional Use Permit- LaMettry Collision Building (2923 Highway 61) 6. Visitor Presentations 7. Commission Presentations a. October 25 Council Meeting: Ms. Coleman b. November 8 Council Meeting: Mr. Pearson c. November 22 Council Meeting: Mr. Frost 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 NOVEMBER 1, 1999 I. CALL TO ORDER Chairperson Fischer called the meeting to order at 7 p.m. I1. ROLL CALL Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner Lorraine Fischer Jack Frost Matt Ledvina Paul Mueller Gary Pearson Commissioner William Rossbach Commissioner Michael Seeber Commissioner Milo Thompson Commissioner Dale Trippler Present Present Absent Present Present Present Present Present Present III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. September 20, 1999 Commissioner Frost moved approval of the minutes of October 18, 1999, amended to include Commissioner Trippler's statement below with his comments on page five, paragraph six. Commissioner Rossbach seconded. Commissioner Trippler felt the minutes of the meetings were "reflecting specific agendas rather than the discussions that are ongoing." There was some general discussion on transcription of minutes. Commissioner Trippler thought an important issue of the summary report on the Parks, Open Space, and Trail System Plan portion of the Comprehensive Parks Plan Update (considered by the planning commission at the October 18, 1999 meeting) was that a ranking system had been developed and they seemed "to have funded projects in a reverse order of the ranking system." The highest priority rankings were funded the lowest and the lowest priority rankings were funded the highest. In other words, the ranking system and funding priorities were in the reverse order. Ayesmall The motion passed. IV. APPROVAL OFAGENDA Staff requested that Staff Presentations be considered before New Business. Commissioner Frost moved approval of the agenda as amended. Commissioner Rossbach seconded. Ayes--all The motion passed. Planning Commission Minutes of 11-01-1999 -2- VIII. STAFF PRESENTATIONS A. White Bear Avenue Corridor Study Update Melinda Coleman, director of community development, said there was no new information on the White Bear Avenue study since the last meeting. She reminded the commission of a steering committee planning meeting on November 10, 1999, from 5 to 7 p.m. at Maplewood City Hall. She invited and encouraged the commissioners to become involved in this process. B. Planning Commission Minutes Melinda Coleman, director of community development, spoke about planning commission minutes and microphone usage. She complimented Chairperson Fischer on the manner in which she reiterates the motions, votes, etc. Ms. Coleman discussed various styles of minutes. Chairperson Fischer noted that she tries to identify the speaker but does not repeat their name if they have a number of questions. She emphasized that it was very important for each of the commissioners to read the minutes and amend them if they feel their statement, or that of someone attending the meeting, was not adequately covered. Commissioner Frost commented that the Maplewood Planning Commission minutes were "very adequate" for his purposes. If anything, he thought they should be "cut down." Commissioner Trippler wanted to be on the record as saying that he was not questioning the detail that was being provided but felt that the minutes did not always reflect the balance of the discussion for each of the issues. He thought the minutes seemed to cover "those comments and those issues that seem to be complimentary to the staff position and seem to be a little thin on those issues that are contrary to the staff position." V. NEW BUSINESS A. Used Car Sales Conditional Use Permit--Maplewood Auto Center (2525 White Bear Avenue) Ken Roberts, associate planner, summarized the staff report. The commissioners had no questions. Brian Pellowski of 6950 West 146th Street in Apple Valley, the owner of the Maplewood Auto Center, was present representing the applicant, Dale Martin. He explained that there were 124 parking spaces on the property. Mr. Pellowski pointed out that SuperAmerica, a tenant, uses very few parking spaces. Most of the other tenants do auto repair and use anywhere from five to ten parking spaces for two or three days. Commissioner Frost moved the Planning Commission recommend adoption of the resolution which approves a conditional use permit for used car sales at Maplewood Auto Center, 2525 White Bear Avenue. Approval is based on the findings required by the code and subject to: 1. All construction shall follow the site plan approved by the city. The director of community development may approve minor changes. 2. The proposed use must be substantially started within one year of council approval or the permit shall become null and void. The council may extend this deadline for one year. 3. The city council shall review this permit in one year. 4. There shall not be any vehicles displayed in the parking lot with "for sale" signs or any other forms of car-sale display or graphics. 5. Car sales on the site shall be by appointment only as proposed, not on a drop-by retail basis. Planning Commission Minutes of 11-01-1999 -3- Commissioner Pearson seconded. Commissioner Rossbach said he was going to vote against this recommendation because he did not want to set a precedent for selling vehicles on White Bear Avenue. He realized that this facility did not plan to sell directly to the public at this time, and that the request would probably not cause any problems. He observed that the city council recently allowed a new car dealership on Highway 61. Mr. Rossbach said "this showed me that the council was unable to see that this request for a variance was significantly different than the other ones that had come through." Commissioner Thompson asked if a policy had been formulated about auto sales on White Bear Avenue. Mr. Roberts said there was no city policy at this time. Ayes--Fischer, Frost, Mueller, Pearson, Thompson Trippler Nays--Rossbach, Seeber The motion passed. B. Choice Auto Rental Conditional Use Permit--LaMettry Collision Building (2923 Highway 61) Ken Roberts, associate planner, presented the staff report. Commissioner Trippler asked why the owner of the building would not be required to replace the dying evergreen trees on the site since it appeared that the applicant, Choice Auto, was basically asking for permission to rent from this building. Mr. Roberts said it normally would be done that way except that the LaMettry CUP was just recently reviewed and usually a CUP would not be brought back just to review dead landscaping. He pointed out that the recommendation did not specify who should replace the trees, only that they be replaced. Commissioner Frost asked if the city looked at the landscaping on all conditional use permits after the first year. Mr. Roberts said the site, in general, was reviewed. Commissioner Thompson pointed out that the storage bin is used for auto parts storage outside. The receptacle for waste is on the other side of the driveway. Brad Hoikka, 1854 West Burnsville Parkway in Burnsville, was present representing Choice Auto Rental. He is a manager of another Choice office. Mr. Hoikka had no comments or questions. Commissioner Trippler asked about responsibility for replacement of the dying trees. Mr. Hoikka said it wouldn't be a problem to replace the trees but it was his understanding that this would be negotiated between Choice Auto and Rick LaMettry, the owner of the property. Mr. Hoikka added that they have a good relationship with Mr. LaMettry and they share an office with him in Eden Prairie. He felt that replacing the trees would not be any problem. Commissioner Frost moved the Planning Commission recommend the adoption of the resolution which approves a conditional use permit for a car rental operation at LaMettry Collision, 2923 Highway 61 North. Approval is based on the findings required by the code and subject to: 1. All construction shall follow the site plan approved by the city. The director of community development may approve minor changes. 2. The proposed use must be substantially started within one year of council approval or the permit shall become null and void. The council may extend this deadline for one year. 3. The city council shall review this permit in one year. Planning Commission Minutes of 11-01-1999 -4- 4. All dead or dying trees shall be replaced in the spring or summer of 2000. Commissioner Mueller seconded. Commissioner Rossbach asked what type of reminder the staff had to check these trees in the spring of next year. Mr. Roberts responded that the city had a "high-tech system of recipe cards" that are reviewed monthly. Commissioner Trippler asked what the outcome would be if the tree issue was not resolved by the summer of 2000. Mr. Roberts said that Mr. LaMettry, as the owner of the property, would be "brought back in." Commissioner Thompson referred to the previous planning commission meeting where a motion was made asking for information on a type of enforcement program for conditional use permits. He thought staff has said that lack of enforcement is the "reason for such a passive posture." Mr. Roberts felt it probably wasn't as much a lack of enforcement as a lack of resources or priorities as set by the city council. He said that, when complaints are received, staff checks them out and tries to work with the property owner to resolve them. If there is not cooperation from the owner, then court action is sometimes necessary. Mr. Roberts said if more direction is received from the city council, it will be implemented. According to Mr. Roberts, staff reacts if they see something that needs attention, or if a complaint is received, but the city does not have the resources or time to drive by these places on a regular basis and "babysit people like that." Commissioner Rossbach asked if Commissioner Thompson wanted an item included in the motion to cover the trash container. Commissioner Thompson said he would have preferred to delete item four that referred to the dying trees and leave that to Mr. LaMettry to take care of. He was agreeable to staff viewing his comments about the dumpster as a complaint so they could investigate. Mr. Roberts asked Mr. Hoikka to mention the dumpster situation to Mr. LaMettry so that hopefully this could be cleared up before this item goes before the city council. Ayes--all The motion passed. VI. VISITOR PRESENTATIONS There were no visitor presentations. VII. COMMISSION PRESENTATIONS Chairperson Fischer asked about the CUP enforcement motion. Ken Roberts, associate planner, said the motion had been give to the city council but there was no response yet. Ao October 25 Council Meeting: Mr. Roberts reported on this meeting. November 8 Council Meeting: Mr. Pearson will attend this meeting. November 22 Council Meeting: Mr. Frost will attend this meeting. Chairperson Fischer reminded the commissioners that Tuesday, November 2, 1999, is election day. IX. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 7:48 p.m.