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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08/21/2007 MINUTES OF THE MAPLEWOOD PLANNING COMMISSION 1830 COUNTY ROAD BEAST, MAPLEWOOD, MINNESOTA TUESDAY, August 21, 2007 I. CALL TO ORDER Chairperson Fischer called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. II. ROLL CALL Vice-Chairperson Tushar Desai Chairperson Lorraine Fischer Commissioner Harland Hess Commissioner Gary Pearson Commissioner Dale Trippler Commissioner Joe Walton Commissioner Jeremy Yarwood Commissioner Robert Martin Commissioner Joseph Boeser Staff Present: Present Present Present Present Present Present Present Present Present Chuck Ahl, Public Works Director Ken Roberts, City Planner Tom Ekstrand, City Planner III. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Commissioner Pearson moved to approve the agenda. Commissioner Trippler seconded. The motion passed. IV. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Ayes - All Approval of the planning commission minutes for July 17, 2007. Commissioner Trippler had a correction on page 2, 3rd paragraph from the bottom, 3rd line down, remove the second "and insert" so the sentence reads, "... and insert and incert "Planning Commission"... ." Commissioner Trippler stated that the first paragraph on page 3 was a little confusing. Staff verified the numbers and changed the wording of that sentence to read, "He questioned the numbers in the draft budget compared to the C.I.P. because they appeared inconsistent with each other." Commissioner Trippler had a correction on page 5, 2nd paragraph from the bottom on the 6th line; replace "pointed" with "suggested that" so the sentence reads, "Commissioner Trippler pointed suqqested that the proposed..." Planning Commission Minutes of 08-21-07 2 Commissioner Walton had a correction on page 6, on the last line of the page; insert "forest" so the sentence reads, "...trying to save the forest canopy." Commissioner Yarwood had a correction on page 9, in the first line of the first paragraph and the first line of the 2nd to the last paragraph, Commissioner Yarwood should be replaced with Commissioner Hess. Chairperson Fischer had a correction on page 9, second paragraph, at the end of the 9th line, the sentence should read, "She voiceg a concern..." Commissioner Walton had a correction on page 14, after nays, Commissioner Boeser said nay, not Commissioner Walton. The voting shall read that Commissioner Boeser voted nay. The following paragraph will start with, "Commissioner Boeser..." Commissioner Trippler moved to approve the planning commission minutes for July 17, 2007 as ammended. Commissioner Hess seconded. Ayes - All Abstains - Yarwood, Martin, Boeser V. PUBLIC HEARING The Regents Senior Housing Development (Kennard Street & Legacy Parkway) (7: 11-8:55) a. Planned Unit Development (PUD) Revisions b. Parking Reduction Tom Ekstrand introduced the proposal. The applicant is requesting that the city approve a proposed increase in the number of units from 120 units to 150 units and a reduction in the size of the memory care units from 580 square feet to 400 square feet, which is under the minimum 580 square feet required by city code for an efficiency unit for a multi-family residence. The Applicant is also requesting approval of a parking reduction to 145 parking spaces. With this proposal, the overall density of the Legacy Village Development would be under the approved limit of 618 units by 26 units. Staff does not find any problems with the overall density of the development. There is no proof of parking shown in the proposal. City staff is in favor of the proposed number of parking spaces and overall density. City staff also is in favor of the reduction in size of the memory care units. Chairperson Fischer confirmed that the proposed parking spaces meet the required 9.5 feet minimum. Chairperson Fischer asked how the parking variances compare to the proposal presented to the Planning Commission last week regarding the size of the units and the number of parking stalls. Planning Commission Minutes of 08-21-07 3 Mr. Ekstrand responded that there is a higher parking ratio with this development compared to the number of parking spaces the city approved for The Shores project on Frost Avenue. Commissioner Trippler pointed out that the parking spaces are labeled in the packet as 9 feet wide. Mr. Ekstrand responded that the revised map shows the parking spaces as 9.5 feet wide. Staff will have to review the parking stall size and verify the width. Commissioner Trippler stated that the Planning Commission has made it very clear that 9 foot wide parking stalls for mainly elderly residents is ridiculous and he will not vote for any proposal that has 9 foot wide stalls. He is also uncomfortable voting for the reduction in size of the memory care units to 400 square feet. The city needs to define specific requirements for room sizes instead of granting variances for special situations, which could possibly become reoccurring requests. Chairperson Fischer asked iflhere are any standards set for nursing home unit sizes and iflhere are any standards set by the state. Ken Roberts responded there are no standards set by the city, but the architect may know. If the whole commission feels strongly about the parking issues and unit sizes, then the staff would recommend that the commission should make a separate recommendation to the council to ask the council to direct staff to do research for possible code amendments. Chairperson Fischer asked if it is a correct assumption that everything proposed here is out of the wetland situation and meets the entire requirement for that. Mr. Ekstrand said yes. Commissioner Hess stated that he has similar concerns as Commissioner Trippler in regards to the parking stall sizes and the undersized units. There is a ten acre out-lot on the map for a park. Commissioner Hess asked if that was provided by the city or the developer. Mr. Ekstrand stated that out-lot was provided by the original developer to the city and is already in existence, it is for the Sculpture Garden. Commissioner Martin asked how far this development is from the Myth Night Club. Mr. Ekstrand stated that it is about 2-3 blocks away. Commissioner Martin stated that he can foresee traffic flow issues with this development being so close the night club. It is a possibility the people may park in the Regent's parking area when attending the night club. Mr. Ekstrand stated that he does not foresee a problem and that this is far enough away that parking should not be a problem. This exact type of development was approved with the PUD in 2003, as far as the use concern, this has already been allowed. This meeting is just covering the proposed changes in density. Planning Commission Minutes of 08-21-07 4 Commissioner Martin stated that he also has similar concerns as Commissioner Trippler in regards to density issues. Mr. Roberts stated that most of the proposed parking will be underground in a secured facility. Commissioner Walton stated that this proposed development has a smaller amount of acreage but a similar amount of parking and number of units compared to the Shores. Commissioner Hess asked what the finished floor elevations of the building would be, as they relate to flood potential. Chuck Ahl, Public Works Director, stated that the entire storm sewer system for the Legacy Village area was a very complex plan and was developed as part of the entire plan. There was a very detailed analysis done on flooding potential and the overflow from the ponds. The last thing that was done was providing storm water overflow corridors, should an intensive rainfall occur. Commissioner Hess stated on Page 5, the last point under the Building Official's Comments, should read as, "The developer ehould shall have a preconstruction meeting with the contractor..." just ensure that the meeting does happen. Mr. Roberts said that staff will bring that to the Building Official's attention. Commissioner Yarwood stated that the applicant should provide some justification as to why the memory care units should be reduced to 400 square feet. He is hesitant to approve units in this city that are this small, in the case they may not always be used for senior housing. If the applicant is having trouble finding enough space for adequate parking space, then maybe the applicant should rethink the number of units in the development. Frank Janes, with Hartford Group, addressed the commission. This development was approved for a slightly different senior use last fall. Due to residential and housing market changes, we have re-Iooked over the project as a senior housing use. Hartford has a number of senior housing projects going on in the metro-area currently. After speaking with Mr. Ekstrand about concerns about the proposal before this meeting, Hartford Group made some revisions to address some of those concerns. Every parking stall above and underground is 9.5 feet wide. There are 102 underground parking spaces, and 45 surface parking spaces. This project would be a continuum care facility. This offers a number of different options to the residents of the development. The different types of units include independent, assisted care suites and memory care, which are categories of units to help define the services provided. The independent use is not an age restricted senior condo or apartment building. The independent units would occupy about half of the non-memory care units. This usually would attract an older demographic compared to other senior housing developments. The next level of care is the assisted living, which has more services provided including 3 meals a day. Planning Commission Minutes of 08-21-07 5 The care suites would have a 5-to-1 full-time staffing ratio for residents who require a high level of medical and personal care. These units are not considered nursing home units; however, residents would not be driving. The memory care, dementia, or Alzheimer's units provide services including an enclosed outdoor walking area. These residents would also not be driving and require a higher level of care and staff ratio. In regards to parking, this site is comparable to the Regents facility in Burnsville, which has 136 total units, with 92 underground parking stalls and 45 surface parking stalls. At anyone time the most spaces that are occupied at a time are 40 spaces. With this project, there are 150 total units, but the memory care and the care suites are taken out because those residents are not driving. Then there are 120 units, for which there are 102 underground parking spaces, and 45 surface stalls. This gives the facility 147 parking stalls for 120 units of potential drivers. From experience with past projects, there will still be plenty of parking spaces for the residents as well as staff and visitors. Regarding the proposed reduction in size of the memory care units, 400 square feet units is the size that is provided all over the market in the metro-area and in other areas. It is necessary to have a smaller unit because it has been found that the larger units tend to be more confusing and difficult for the residents to get around in. Hartford Group is confident that 400 square feet is an appropriate size for the unit. The sizes of the independent and assisted living units are much bigger, as they should be. The memory care and care suites are designed to be smaller on purpose and that is the norm. Commissioner Martin asked how much smaller can these rooms get. Mr. Janes responded that he cannot answer that but the project architect may be able to answer that more in depth. It is not possible that this facility could be used as a senior apartment building in the future because of the amount of parking and the facilities inside of the building, which include an industrial sized kitchen and other common space. This facility is too specifically designed to be converted for another use later on. Commissioner Martin stated that in other areas of the country, there are studio apartments that are smaller than this. Why is the developer not making these rooms smaller? Mr. Janes responded that those types of units would not be marketable. Commissioner Trippler Confirmed that the 400 square feet units are for both the 15 intensive care units and the 15 memory care units. Commissioner Trippler stated that in the given documentation, it only requests the reduction for the 15 intensive care units. Mr. Janes said that the commission has the original submission. Revisions have been made and city staff has those revisions. Commissioner Trippler asked iflhere is a restroom facility included in each of the intensive care units, if so, how large is it. Planning Commission Minutes of 08-21-07 6 Mr. Janes asked Tom Wasserman to address the commission. Tom Wasserman, the director of architecture with the Hartford group, addressed the commission. Mr. Wasserman went overthe floor plans forthe units. Typically, in other projects, room sizes range from 300-1 000 square feet. The typical nursing home suite is between 250-300 square feet. A 400 square foot room is typically for 2 people sharing a space. Also, the residents in these memory care and care suites are usually short-term residents. The restrooms are a minimum of 6 fl by 8 ft spaces. The memory care and care suites residents will utilize the common space more than the independent and assisted residents. This helps in the healing process. Commissioner Yarwood stated that it is clear that there is no provision in the Maplewood code for this particular type of housing unit. Before the commission moves forward with approving a concept like this, the city needs to direct city staff to get a reference point as to how and if city code should accommodate these types of unit. The commission does not have the basis to approve a 400 square foot unit. Commissioner Desai asked what the average time a person spends in this intensive care unit. Mr. Wasserman said they can stay anywhere from 2-3 weeks to as long as a year and a half. The average is 3-6 months. Commissioner Pearson stated he is not concerned about the room sizes because he has had his mother and mother-in-law stay in assisted living before they died. Their final years were in a 12 by 14 foot room and he did not feel in any way that their dignity was compromised in any way. The City of Maplewood should try to have a variety of spaces for residents to choose from, which will fit their physical and financial needs. Commissioner Boeser asked iflhere is a health care professional that can speak to the issues of room size as for quality of life. Mr. Wasserman said there is none at this meeting. Also, addressing concerns of density on this 3 acre site, the size of this facility was determined at the beginning of Legacy Village project and there is also a 9 acre city park with walking trails, the Sculpture Park and the new city library adjacent to the site. Chairperson Fischer opened the discussion to the public. Don Shiek of 1601 Woodlynn Avenue addressed the commission. Mr. Shiek is concerned about the impact this proposal could have on the housing values in the neighborhood. He does not like the fact that the building is four stories, where the majority of everything is two stories in the neighborhood. Mr. Shiek requests that the building be lowered in height. Commissioner Walton asked for clarification on the height of the building and if this is in the scope of discussion. Mr. Ekstrand stated that this building has already been approved as a four story building. This is a story higher than city code states for an apartment/multi-family structure. Planning Commission Minutes of 08-21-07 7 Chairperson Fischer stated the Planning Commission is not looking at a new plan, but a revision on a previously approved plan. Commissioner Hess asked iflhere are any other four story buildings in the Legacy Village area. Mr. Ekstrand stated there are no other four story buildings, only two stories. Mr. Roberts stated the new medical office building is to the north of the Regents site and that building is about 2.5 stories. The office building is also at a higher elevation so the Regents will not look out of scale. Commissioner Trippler asked staff iflhere is any indication of an office complex being built in the future that is more than four stories high near this site. Mr. Ekstrand stated that another structure similar to the medical office building may be built to the east of the existing building. Judith Johannesen of Legacy Village addressed the commission. Ms. Johannesen expressed concern about the placement of the structure and that it is placed to close to the street. She feels that it will feel like a four story wall next to the street. Ms. Johannesen stated that she is concerned about the number of parking spaces on holidays for visitors and is afraid that overflow parking may come into the street. Ms. Johannesen urges the commission not to approve the building as a four story building. Commissioner Trippler if the building is scaled down to three stories, will it be any less obtrusive than a four story being that close to the street. Ms. Johannesen stated that her main concern is the fact that it will not fit the scale of the rest of the area. Ron Cockeral of 943 Century Avenue addressed the commission. Mr. Cockeral asked if the runoff will be retained on the site. Mr. Cockeral is concerned about park funding. He is also in favor of the fourth story but wants to know if the city has the necessary safety needs in case of an emergency. Mr. Ahl stated that there are requirements that have to be met for water infiltration and runoff. Rain gardens will be installed on the property to aid in this. All of the water retention requirements have been met. The sculpture garden and park were developer funded on the site. These units will not help fund the parks. Mr. Wasserman stated that the building plans have been reviewed by fire safety officials and it is up to applicable codes. Patrick Sarver, the director of development with Hartford Group addressed the commission. Mr. Sarver went over the elevations of the building. He also stated that the building was encouraged to bring the building closer up to the road, to help create an urban front. Planning Commission Minutes of 08-21-07 8 Mr. Wasserman stated that this building has always been a four story building and was approved in the master planning as a four story building. The public hearing was closed. Commissioner Yarwood stated that the height of the building is out of scope for what is before the board at this meeting. He is still concerned with the reduction in room size. Commissioner Yardwood would prefer to table this until an ordinance is in place that deals with these types of developments. Mr. Roberts stated that there isn't enough time to table this as this proposal has to go to the council by September. Mr. Ekstrand stated that it is possible to do research and bring that back to the commission at the next meeting to aid in this decision. This would just be information, not a code amendment. Commissioner Trippler stated that commission can make an amendment to the staff recommendation to say the units may not be less than 500 square feet. Commissioner Trippler stated that on page 5, under C, the date should be changed to read, "Approve the revised plans date-stamped August 20, 2007...." Mr. Ekstrand stated that the Planning Commission is only supposed cover items A and B. Chairperson Fischer asked if the case arises that the use of this building changes, is there any way to have verbiage in the proposal stating that the city has the right to demand more parking be added. Mr. Ekstrand said that can be done. Mr. Roberts said that it may be in the original proposal. That will be verified before this goes to council and if it is not in the proposal it will be added. Commissioner Pearson said he does not have a problem with reducing the care suites and memory care units to 400 square feet. Commissioner Walton stated that this proposal asks for an additional 90 square foot reduction from what was already approved for the Shores. This creates a slippery slope of more reductions in room sizes and a line should be drawn. Chairperson Fischer asked what types of common areas are there. That would help make this decision on whether this size would be adequate or not. Mr. Ekstrand said that will be looked into. Commissioner Yarwood said the appropriate action to be taken would be to approve the same size units that were approved for the Shores which was no less than 490 square feet. Anything lower should be done by a revision to the city ordinance. Planning Commission Minutes of 08-21-07 9 Commissioner Trippler recommended adoption of the attached resolution to the revision to the previously-approved PUD concept plan allowing the Regent at Legacy Village senior building to increase the number of units from 120 to 150. This PUD revision also allows the reduction in the square-foot area of the intensive-care and memory care units from 580 square feet to 400 not less than 490 square feet. Approval is based on the findings required by ordinance and because of the following reasons: 1. The proposed built-out density of the entire Legacy Village PUD will be less than that originally approved by 26 units. 2. The affect on the site itself should not cause an overcrowding problem since the residents on this site would not generate the quantity of traffic a normal multi-family development would. 3. The minimum floor-area requirement of 580 square feet was intended for typical "efficiency" apartments. The proposed unit sizes should suffice in this instance since they are for persons with limited mobility that need medical assistance. B. Approval of a parking waiver to provide 100 underground and 45 on-grade 9.5 foot wide parking spaces rather than the 300 required by ordinance. Approval is because the proposed senior housing complex would not generate the amount of traffic associated with typical multi-family uses. This parking reduction of ~ 155 spaces is subject to the requirements of city ordinance should the use of the building be proposed for a change to a higher traffic-generating use. Commissioner Pearson seconded the motion. Ayes - Desai, Fischer, Pearson, Trippler, Walton, Yarwood, Martin, Boeser Nays - Hess The motion passed. This will go before the city council on September 10th, 2007. Commissioner Yarwood motioned that the city council direct city staff to examine the ordinance for minimum square footage for assisted care and memory units to appropriately revise the city ordinance. Commissioner Pearson encouraged commissioners to tour local senior facilities in the area. Commissioner Martin seconded the motion. Chairperson Fischer made a friendly amendment that staff also research a parking amendment for senior facilities. Ayes - All Planning Commission Minutes of 08-21-07 10 The motion passed. This will go before the city council on September 10th, 2007. VI. NEW BUSINESS a) Gladstone Neighborhood Streetscape Study (Presentation by Kimley-Horn) Mr. Ahl stated this is not an action item. Staff is looking for reaction input from the commission. The intent of this presentation is to receive guidance so staff can come back to the commission in the fall with the overall designs for implementation for next year. Tom Harrington from Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc. gave a presentation on his streetscape proposal. These projects are scheduled to start in the spring and fall of 2008. Commissioner Hess stated he favored the antique style light fixtures, but thinks a different light fixture might work better, one that is dated further back. Benches would also make a nice addition to the area. Commissioner Walton favored the eco village. The historic element and the looking to the future element work well together. Commissioner Desai favored the historic look. He enjoys existing historic parks and thinks that this would make a good addition to the City of Maplewood. Commissioner Pearson stated he favored the historic look as well. If benches are placed in the area, some thought should be given as to where the shade will be so the benches are not always in the sun. Commissioner Trippler would like to see an incorporation of all three of the ideas, mixing the recreational, historic, and eco village use. Mr. Ahl stated another intention of this phase is to change to atmosphere of Frost Avenue to encourage the use of the listed speed limit. The current atmosphere makes it difficult to follow the speed limit because of how wide the street is. Once this happens, pedestrian traffic can be enhanced. Commissioner Trippler asked if it is still a possibility of turning Frost Avenue into a Boulevard. Mr. Ahl said the phase one concept never included the transformation of Frost Avenue into a boulevard. Planning Commission Minutes of 08-21-07 11 Commissioner Boeser stated that the people that live in that area should have input on this decision. He favors the historic plan but likes other aspects of the other plans as well. Commissioner Walton warned the architect about the use of public art and to be sure to select pieces that will not lend itself to becoming defaced. He asked what types of potential artwork has been considered. Mr. Harrington no specific type of art has been considered at this point. Commissioner Yarwood would also like to see a combination of the different plans. Commissioner Martin favors the eco village. Chairperson Fischer that safety of pedestrians needs to be considered as well. The discussion was opened to the Historic Preservation Commission. A representative of the commission spoke. The commission would like to capture the historic aspect of the neighborhood and area through signage and other developments, as proposed at this meeting. A possible idea would be to have information posted on what used to be on that site. The theme chosen for this area could also be continued throughout the entire city, to give identities to the communities in the City of Maplewood. Mr. Ahl said the input given at this meeting was very helpful and will try to combine these ideas to create a proposal to bring back to the council later this fall. b) Planned Unit Development Clarification - Saint Paul's Monastery (2675 Larpenteur Avenue) Mr. Ekstrand stated that the city council approved the PUD for the development plans for the Monastery site on May 14, 2007. This included a 40 unit seniors building, a 50 unit townhouse development, and the change in the Monastery building to be owned and house by the Tubman Family Alliance for their family violence shelter and residence, which has 37 housing units. Since that approval, there was a merger between Tubman and Chrysalis. At the June 11, 2007 city council meeting, the council questioned the impact that this would have on the neighboring area in regards to traffic. The Planning Commission is to discuss this matter and forward their comments to the city council. Chris Brinkman, the director of administration at Tubman Family Alliance, addressed the commission. After Tubman obtained the Monastery site, the organization was approached by Chrysalis, a non-profit which has chemical dependency and mental health services. There is no intention that this facility would be used for the services that they provide. Tubman was asked to sign a confidentiality waiver until the merger was completed. That is why the city of not notified of the merger until after the PUD had been approved. The merger was completed on May 23, 2007. Commissioner Yarwood clarified that the merger with Chrysalis does not have any affect on the activities of this facility. Planning Commission Minutes of 08-21-07 12 Ms. Brinkman said it does not. This merger would possibly reduce the amount of staff at the Monestary because some administrative support may move to Chrysalis' new building in Minneapolis. Commissioner Yarwood asked if the use of this site were to change in the future, would the city have any say in the terms of that use. Mr. Ekstrand stated that when the PUD was approved, it was approved with the types of uses that would be operated there. It was never specified that the intensity of uses should not exceed a certain threshold. PUDs are reviewed annually to see if there are any problems that may have come up that may need to be addressed. Mr. Roberts stated that the PUD has to follow the approved site plan. The activities within the PUD have to follow the conditions of approval as adopted by the city council. If any significant changes are made, then approval has to be made by city council. This is more a merger of administrative functions rather than a merger of functions at the site. Chairperson Fischer stated that the whole site is zoned for higher residential use. The number of units the applicant requested was less than half of what they could have requested. Commissioner Pearson stated that the initial application relied on a statement by the administrator of the Bloomington Tubman operation. Does Chrysalis work with them as well? And how does the Tubman group plan to avoid turning away people suffering from family violence if they are taking on this additional function? Ms. Brinkman stated the Bloomington office does not have any Chrysalis type services and the site in Maplewood will also not be changing the current services. This is just a merger of administration functions. This merger does not take away from any of the planned use. Commissioner Trippler stated this was a non issue. c) Executive Summary Report - South Maplewood Study (South Carver Avenue) Commissioner Trippler motioned to table this item to the next meeting. Commissioner Yarwood seconded the motion. Ayes - All The motion carried. VII. UNFINISHED BUSINESS None. Planning Commission Minutes of 08-21-07 13 VIII. VISITOR PRESENTATIONS None. IX. COMMISSION PRESENTATIONS a) July 23 Council Meeting: Mr. Pearson Commissioner Pearson stated the only issue with that meeting was the Keller Lake Service Station and the propane tank. The council stated the station owner had not violated any code. A motion was made and passed to compensate the owner and require the removal of the propane tank within 90 days. b)August 13 Council Meeting: Ms. Fischer Chairperson Fischer stated that this meeting covered the Shores proposal. The city council vote on the land use clarification was 3-2. The street right of way vacation was ayes all, the public easement vacation was ayes all, the preliminary plat was 4-1, the conditional use permit 4-1, and the design review approval was ayes all with revisions. There were a few items that were tabled to August 16. Mr. Roberts stated that a decision was made to start getting the details together on the South Maplewood Study. This will be going back to the council in 6 weeks. c) August 27 Council Meeting: Mr. Yarwood The items to be discussed are the public hearing and the first reading of the code amendment for the Planning Commission Ordinance and the Planning Commission rules of procedure. d) September 10 Council Meeting: Mr. Desai Commissioner Desai stated he will be there. The commission had a brief discussion on conservation easements. X. STAFF PRESENTATIONS None. XI. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 10: 18 p.m. If one would like complete coverage of the meeting, a DVD copy of the meeting may be purchased from City Hall for $5.