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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09/04/20021. Call to Order 2. Roll Call 3. Approval of Agenda MAPLEWOOD PLANNING COMMISSION Wednesday, September 4, 2002, 7:00 PM City Hall Council Chambers 1830 County Road B East 4. Approval of Minutes a. August 19, 2002 5. Public Headng None 6. New Business a. Highwood Farm (Highwood Avenue East) Prelimina~ Plat Zoning Map Change (F to R-l) b. Conditional Use Permit-Budget Towing (1291 Frost Avenue) Unfinished Business None 8. Visitor Presentations 10. 9. Commission Presentations a. August 26 Council Meeting: Mr. Ledvina b. September 9 Council Meeting: Ms. Dierich c. September 23 Council Meeting: Mr. Rossbach Staff Presentations a. Meeting with other first-ring suburbs at Richfield City Hall - September 9, 7:00 p.m. 11. Adjoumment MINUTES OF THE MAPLEWOOD PLANNING COMMISSION 1830 COUNTY ROAD B EAST, MAPLEWOOD, MINNESOTA WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2002 I. CALLTO ORDER Chairperson Rossbach called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. I1. ROLL CALL Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner Mary Dierich Lorraine Fischer Matt Ledvina Jackie Monahan-Junek Paul Mueller Gary Pearson William Rossbach Dale Trippler Tushar Desai Present at 7:13 p.m. Absent Absent Present Present Present Present Present Present Staff Present: Ken Roberts, Associate Planner Lisa Kroll, Recording Secretary Chris Cavett, Assistant City Engineer present at 7:30 p.m. II1. APPROVAL OFAGENDA Mr. Roberts said because there are some engineering issues with the Highwood Farm that Chris Cavett the assistant city engineer should be present for, staff would like to change the order of New Business moving Budget Towing to item a. and Highwood Farm to item b. Mr. Cavett was attending a neighborhood meeting and would not be present until 7:30 p.m. Commissioner Pearson moved to approve the agenda as amended. Commissioner Trippler seconded. Ayes- Monahan-Junek, Mueller, Pearson, Rossbach, Trippler, Desai The motion passed. IV. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Approval of the planning commission minutes for August 19, 2002. Commissioner Trippler moved to approve the planning commission minutes for August 19, 2002. Commissioner Pearson seconded. Ayes- Monahan-Junek, Mueller, Pearson, Trippler, Desai Abstention - Rossbach Planning Commission Minutes of 09-04-02 -2- V. PUBLIC HEARING None. VI. NEW BUSINESS a. Conditional Use Permit - Budget Towing (1291 Frost Avenue) Mr. Roberts said Roy Carlson of Budget Tire of Minnesota, Inc. (Budget Towing and Tire) is proposing to lease the old gas station/repair shop located at 1291 Frost Avenue for a towing and tire repair business. Mr. Carlson is proposing to display 10 tire racks, with approximately 180 tires, on the exterior of the property during daytime business hours. Mr. Roberts said the exterior display of goods or materials requires a conditional use permit. Mr. Roberts said Mr. Carlson currently runs two towing/tire repair businesses. One is located at 846 Earl Street in St. Paul and the other is located at the Sinclair Gas Station at 223 Larpenteur Avenue East in Maplewood. At both locations Mr. Carlson operates a towing dispatch center and tire repair business. No vehicles are stored on either site. Mr. Roberts said when Mr. Carlson first moved to the Sinclair Gas Station approximately one year ago, he began displaying tires on the exterior of the building. City staff became aware of this and informed Mr. Carlson of the city's ordinance which requires a conditional use permit for this type of display. Mr. Carlson immediately complied with the ordinance and began displaying his tires only on the inside of the building. At that time, however, Mr. Carlson expressed a desire to apply for the conditional use permit in the near future for the display of the tires at that location. Mr. Roberts said soon after this, Sinclair Oil Corporation applied to the city for a conditional use permit to expand the Sinclair Gas Station on Larpenteur Avenue. Sinclair Oil Corporation is preparing to begin that expansion soon, and then Mr. Carlson's lease will terminate. Mr. Roberts said Mr. Carlson proposes to operate the same type of business at 1291 Frost Avenue as he has at the St. Paul site and the Larpenteur Avenue, Maplewood site. The business will consist of a towing dispatch center and tire sales and repair with no overnight storage of vehicles. The hours of operation will be from either 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. or 8 a.m. to 8 pm., depending on traffic flows once the roundabout construction is complete. The business will be open Monday through Saturday and will have two to three tow vehicles in operation during the day, with only one two vehicle stored outside in the back of the building during the evening. Mr. Roberts said the exterior display of tires at a very visible intersection is not the most desired scenario for the city. However, given the problematic background of the property, the improvements proposed, Budget Towing and Tire's clean and reputable business background, and the fact that the situation will be temporary, staff is supportive of the proposal. Planning Commission Minutes of 09-04-02 -3- Commissioner Trippler said the current structure is a real eye sore for that corner so he is happy to see something is going in there. He does have some concerns about the proposal. Mr. Carlson stated that the display of tires is an integral part of the business because unless the customer can see the tires they will not buy them. If that is the case why does he want to put the tires on the west side of the building where the customers can't see them. Why not put the tires on the East side of the building from Frost Avenue and English Street. Mr. Roberts said Mr. Carlson he would prefer to have the tires more visible. It was suggested that the city might not approve the storage of the tires on the east side of the building because of how it might look. The city is trying to make that intersection look better and the thought was to try to make the tires less visible by keeping them on the west side of the building. Commissioner Trippler asked if the applicant is proposing to leave the screened in area where the oil tank is but remove the oil tank and use the screened area for the dumpster. If that screened area stays and the racks are put next to the screened area there will not be 20 feet anymore. The commission did not get a lot line designation with the packet. He said it does not tell members where the property lines are. Mr. Trippler spoke to the owner of the liquor store and the owner is concerned about having enough room for his customers to get through there. Mr. Roberts said the liquor store building is right up to the property line. The property between the buildings goes to the repair building. He would contend that the liquor store has plenty of room on the other sides of the building for his customers to get through. Commissioner Trippler said the black top around the building is in terrible condition. He did not see anything in the conditions regarding the repair or replacement of the black top. Mr. Roberts said that could be included as a separate condition. Mr. Roy Carlson, the owner of Budget Towing at 846 Earl Street, addressed the commission. Mr. Carlson said to answer the question about the black top. The owner will end up doing something with blacktop. Right now he is not sure what. As far as the space between the buildings and the clearance from the tire racks, the racks are only about five feet wide and the cars should be able to get through. Chairperson Rossbach asked Mr. Carlson if he assumed that the owner of the property would do something with the blacktop. Mr. Carlson said the city is cutting half of the corner off when the round about gets finished. But until the round about is finished he does not know what the owner would end up doing. Chairperson Rossbach asked Mr. Carlson if he could elaborate on some of the things he would be doing to enhance this property. Mr. Carlson said nothing more than paint and signage along with some planters. He wants to make the area look decent. Their intention is to get started before the weather gets bad. Commissioner Desai asked what the term of the lease is. Mr. Carlson said the lease with Mr. Benjamin (the property owner) is good for up to two years. Planning Commission -4- Minutes of 09-04-02 Commissioner Pearson asked if this item would be reviewed by the CDRB. Mr. Roberts said this item would not be reviewed by the CDRB because they are not proposing any major design items. Commissioner Trippler moved to adopt the resolution on pages 15 and 16 of the staff report. This resolution approves a conditional use permit for the exterior display of tires at 1291 Frost Avenue. Approval is based on the findings required by the code and subject to: (changes are in bold). 1. The exterior display of tires is limited to normal business hours (either 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. or 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.). All tires must be stored inside the building during close of business. 2. The exterior display of tires is limited to 10 tire racks that hold 18 tires each. 3. The exterior display of tires is limited to the west side of the building and toward the front of the west garage door. 4. The conditional use permit shall be reviewed for compliance with the required conditions in the event the property is leased to a new business that intends to operate an automobile related business with exterior tire display. 5. If the conditional use permit for exterior display of tires is abandoned and ceases for a continuous period of one year or more, the conditional use permit will become null and void. 6. The conditional use permit for the exterior display of tires shall be reviewed again in one year. 7. The owner shall have the parking lot resurfaced by June 1, 2003. Commissioner Pearson seconded. Ayes - Monahan-Junek, Mueller, Pearson, Rossbach, Trippler, Desai The motion passed. Mr. Roberts said this item goes to the city council on September 23, 2002. b. Highwood Farm (Highwood Avenue East) Mr. Roberts said Mr. Charles Cox, representing CEC Development, Inc., is proposing to develop a ten-lot plat for single dwellings called Highwood Farms. It would be on a 3.71-acre site on the south side of Highwood Avenue, east of Dennis Street. To build this project, Mr. Cox is requesting that the city approve a preliminary plat to create the new street and the ten lots in the development. In addition, city staff is proposing to change the zoning for the site from F(farm residence) to R-l(single dwellings). Planning Commission Minutes of 09-04-02 -5- Mr. Roberts said developing this site into anything more than its current use of a house and accessory building will be a challenge. There are several existing factors including the shape of the property (173 feet wide by 1,100 feet deep), its one access point (on Highwood Avenue) along with its characteristic of generally sloping from west to east that make the development difficult. With the existing conditions on the property, there are not many options for designing a subdivision to fit the site. The proposed preliminary plat, with its street and lot design, raises many issues for the city and for the neighbors. Mr. Roberts discussed the major issues with this proposal. Mr. Roberts said Chapter 30 of the city code (subdivisions) regulates the platting or subdividing of property in Maplewood. The purpose of this part of the code is "to protect and promote the public health, safety and general welfare, to provide for the orderly, economic and safe development of land...". As such, the city must balance many interests when reviewing and considering a subdivision in Maplewood. These include the interests of the property owner, the developer, the neighbors and the city as a whole. To this end, Section 30-6 of the code says that "the planning commission may recommend and the city council may require such changes or revisions of a preliminary plat as deemed necessary for the health, safety, general welfare and convenience of the city." Mr. Roberts said as proposed, the lots in the plat would range from 10,000 square feet to 12,388 square feet with an average lot size of about 10,266 square feet. The city requires each single dwelling lot in the R-1 (single dwelling) zoning district to have at least 75 feet of width at the front setback line and be at least 10,000 square feet in area. All of the proposed lots would meet or exceed the standards in the city code. Mr. Roberts said the proposed plans show a new street right-of-way along the west property line of the site with walk-outs on the east of the new street. This design, however, puts the new street directly behind the houses on Dennis Street and would in effect create double street frontage for eight existing lots. Section 30-89(f)(6) of the city code says, "double frontage lots shall not be permitted, except where topographic or other conditions render subdividing otherwise unreasonable. Such double frontage lots shall have an additional depth of at least 20 feet in order to allow space for a protective plant screen along the back line." Mr. Roberts said several of the neighbors on Dennis Street have expressed concerns about this design and have questioned why the street is not proposed for the east side of the development. The developer told staff that the proposed design would save at least 20 large trees along the east side of the site and would create nicer lots for houses and they would be walk outs. Chris Cavett noted in his comments that the street as proposed, "would intercept the drainage from the west, which could be treated in a first flush rainwater garden located at the northeast corner of Lot Mr. Roberts said, based on staff's review of this site and the existing conditions, the proposed plans are not unreasonable. The lots on Dennis Street have extra depth (they range from 138 to 229 feet deep) so that the existing houses will not be right on top of the proposed street. Many of these existing homes have fences and landscaping along their east property lines to help provide privacy and separation from the proposed development. If the street was put in on the east side of the site, it would not create double frontage lots but probably would require more grading and tree removal and would create less desirable lots as they would back up to or back into a hill. Planning Commission Minutes of 09-04-02 -6- Mr. Roberts said related to the point about the location of the street right-of-way is the questions possible future platting of the land to the east (the site with the cell phone tower). Several city staff members believe that the owners of the existing cell phone tower will eventually have it removed which would then make the site available for development. If this occurred, staff wants to ensure that any approvals or actions on the applicant's site would not preclude the sensible use of the adjacent property to the east. An initial concern of city staff with this proposal was its possible effect or limiting it would put on the future use of the property with the cell phone tower. That is, would this proposal effectively prohibit or severely limit the possible future development or redevelopment of the adjacent property. Is it necessary to provide a street right-of-way to the cell tower site from this development? To answer these questions, city staff prepared several sketch plans of the area. These plans show what the owners might do for the platting on both properties - if they were platted in a coordinated manner or if the owners develop them separately. Specifically, the plan on page 19 of the staff report shows one cul-de-sac serving both properties with 16 lots. The second sketch plan on page 20 of the staff report shows how the owners of the cell phone tower site might plat their property separately from the applicant's site. This plan has a cul-de-sac entering the property form Highwood Avenue and would have nine lots for houses. The important thing that this plan shows is that the owners of the cell phone tower property should be able to develop their property independently from the applicant's site. Mr. Roberts said page 21 of the staff report has the third plan for the area prepared by city staff. This plan shows a new street on the east side of the applicant's site that would turn east into the adjacent property. The street might continue back out to Highwood Avenue or could possible end in a cul-de-sac in the center of the property with the cell phone tower. This plan would have about 18 lots for houses. Mr. Cavett also had comments about the proposed street, its location and whether the street should be private or public. He noted, "due to the liabilities of one-sided frontage and the considerable amount of retaining wall along the street, public works staff does not feel that a public street at the proposed location is in the public's best interest". Therefore, staff does not recommend a public street along the proposed alignment." Mr. Roberts said as proposed, the contractor for Mr. Cox would grade almost the entire site to create the street right-of-way and the house pads. This grading would remove about 45 large trees and leave about 20 large trees on the 3.71-acre site. In addition, the plans show the planting of 13 ash trees along the new street. Commissioner Pearson asked staff if the cell phone tower is still functioning and if so, is it scheduled to be taken down. Mr. Roberts said it was originally put up by MCI. The city has not heard that the cell phone tower is scheduled to be taken down. Commissioner Trippler asked why the applicant doesn't want to put the road on the east side and put the rainwater gardens along the west. He asked wouldn't that capture more runoff. Planning Commission Minutes of 09-04-02 -7- Mr. Cavett said the way the grades are proposed they have positive boulevards in the front. Potentially the rainwater gardens can capture part of the street. There are a lot of what ifs. The way the drainage is managed will change dramatically whether the street is on the west side or the east side. Commissioner Dierich said she was late because she was stopped by a number of neighbors at the site. The neighbors have a lot of concerns with the drainage. The people that are downhill from this site and have a well and a septic system. She said as soon as you change the grade on the site you are going to contaminate the wells and septic systems. On Dennis Street the trees are on the outside of the peoples fences. The trees that are going to stay put are on the applicant's side. The beautiful trees are outside the fences as the screening. The residents are irate about the drainage is going to run down hill. Highwood Avenue is already very icy. For six months of the year the road is a skating rink. She counted only one sewer for water to run into. There needs to be more sewer drains added because the amount of water that cascades down will make for a dangerous situation. Ms. Dierich said this site is environmentally sensitive. In this proposal to put the road in you are going to plow through at street level. The lot itself starts about 10 feet up from the street and then level that area off in order to make a building pad. She is not comfortable nor are the neighbors with changing the site to this degree. Mr. Roberts said condition e. at the bottom of page 6 talks about the applicant submitting a landscaping and screening plan for the areas along the private street. It was the city's intent that the applicant preserve as many trees as possible along the west side of the new street, assuming it goes in on the west side. Condition d. on page 6 talks about drainage and it is always a condition of the city, that any development capture their storm water on site so there is no more drainage leaving the site after the development then there is now. Mr. Roberts said if that means larger rainwater gardens or some other facilities on the site to take care of that problem then the developer and the engineers would need to get together to make that work. That is a common concern and it is very understandable. The rate of water leaving the site will not be greater than what it sits at now. He said he cannot disagree with Ms. Dierich regarding the grading. Commissioner Dierich said her other concern are the mosquito's she encountered standing on the crest of the hill. This proposal is dropping the hillside and adding a rainwater garden. Rainwater gardens are supposed to empty in a short amount of time but if there are that many mosquitoes already you are just adding another issue. She would rather put in city sewer and water and make it a public street. The other issue is noise abatement. She and her husband were standing next to each other on the hill during rush hour and had to scream at each other and there are trees on the site already. She wonders how people are going to buy these lots with that kind of noise. She believes the city should require the developer to install something for noise. These people would never be able to sit out on their decks and have a conversation because it would be so noisy. Chairperson Rossbach said he would like to comment on that. He said people live right on the freeway along the entire metro area. He said for some reason people buy in that area. Commissioner Mueller said the road is an issue. The reason the developer wants the road on the west is because it will have more sellable property when the homes are put in. Planning Commission Minutes of 09-04-02 -8- Mr. Roberts said in his conversations with the applicant and his engineer, they could make the lots work but they would come off the road you would have a little bit of a back yard, and it would go up into a slope. Having lots with walkouts and saving more trees would be a better overall site then having the street on the east side and grading from property line to property line. There aren't lots with play areas but they will have trees and decks. The developer thought this was a better style in the developer's opinion. Commissioner Mueller said the future neighbors are more concerned about the trees next to them then they are about the trees in the proposed neighbors front yards. If the road gets put on the east side, does that mean that all those wonderful evergreen trees will have to be removed to put in the oak trees. Mr. Roberts said no. Commissioner Trippler said his guess is that the mosquito problem is probably from the sixty or so tires that have standing water in them. He said he spoke with a very unhappy resident on Dennis Street she thinks she is going to be squeezed between two streets. He is happy to hear that Maplewood has an ordinance against that from happening. He thinks he would like this proposal better if the street were put on the east side rather than on the west side. The applicant, Mr. Charles Cox of CEC Development, 1111 McKnight Road South, addressed the commission. He said he is disappointed for lack of support of this project. His group spent a lot of time in the design of this project keeping in mind the conditions of the property and what would be best for the neighborhood and not what would be best for the developer. Everyone knows what the real estate market is doing right now. We should leave the buying of these homes up to the consumer. There are many other developments right on the freeway and he would hope the commission would not use the location for deciding on this proposal. Commissioner Desai said he agrees with the applicant regarding the real estate market being hot right now. However, it leaves a question in his mind that the lot between 1060 and 1242 on Dennis Street is a pretty large lot and it is still sitting empty so if the real estate market is so hot why hasn't that lot been sold already. Mr. Cox said clearly it hasn't been sold because the owner doesn't want to sell it. If they put a for sale sign up it would be sold very quickly. Commissioner Trippler asked Mr. Cox to explain why the road would be better placed on the west rather than on the east. Mr. Cox said standard building practices state that roads go on the high side of the development. He would like to have his engineer come forward to address the commission. Mr. John Farachi of 1296 Hudson Road, the project engineer, addressed the commission. He said if the road is put in on the west side the would have to take out 10 significant trees. If you put the road on the east side, by the time you grade the lots there would be 23 trees taken out. Planning Commission Minutes of 09-04-02 -9- Mr. Farachi said the neighbors with concerns about their septic systems and wells, it is his understanding that when they bring the sanitary system up to the site they would leave service out for them to get connected. He said the St. Paul Water Department would bring water to the site from the corner. If the people had problems with their wells, perhaps they could get that addressed with the St. Paul Water Department. The way he understands it, the planning commission and the city council are to look at the rules, tree ordinances, minimum lot sizes, drainage, grading, sewer and water. He believes the design with the road on the east side as opposed to the west side is the better design. This is a very hard piece of property to develop. He said any developer would rather have lots on both sides so when the developer sells the lots he doesn't have to pick up the cost of the entire street. Another lot owner shares half the cost of the work. That makes this project expensive to develop along with tying in the cost of the sewer with the street intersection. Commissioner Mueller asked Mr. Farachi what difference it makes to the developer if the street is public or private. Mr. Farachi said with a private road the developer has to maintain the road. That means the neighborhood has an association and they pay dues to have the snow plowed. They hire the lowest bidder and the mailman can't get in, the garbage man can't get in etc. Homeowners are already paying to have their snow plowed. If it is a public road and they had to rebuild the street the homeowner would be assessed for half the street. If it is a private road the homeowners would pay for the street. If it was good to have private roads they would be all over the place like in town home developments. Commissioner Mueller asked Mr. Farachi if you put the road on the east side how would the developer have to take care of the runoff on the west side. Mr. Farachi said the runoff would go towards the back lot lines and it would get directed into swales and onto the street. Commissioner Dierich said as a planning commission they have an obligation to talk to the neighbors and read their comments and understand the issues involved. The neighbors were not notified of tonight's meeting. She lives in the neighborhood and she is affected by this development. Saying the developer meets the city code is fine but the planning commission also has the obligation to ask questions. She said if you put the road in on the west side you are going to affect a lot more neighbors then if you put the road in on the east side, Ms. Dierich said regarding the septic systems, the developer has an obligation to not contaminate the well and the septic system. How are those people supposed to afford the hook up for city sewer and water. It may be a good will gesture to hook those people up at the developers cost. The real estate market has nothing to do with this development. Ms. Dierich said there are several of empty lots and homes in the Engstrom Development across the street. She said the planning commission needs to think about how they want to develop this. Whether the real estate market is hot or not has nothing to do with this. She said the planning commission should recommend this based on safety, aesthetics, being environmental correct, traffic and drainage. She said these decisions are for any development in Maplewood not just for this one. Planning Commission Minutes of 09-04-02 -10- Ms. Dierich said the association situation is a real problem for her. She has an association in her neighborhood. After she moved into her home, the rules were not finalized and they still are not finalized. Many times homeowners are not sure of the rules and then they can be unhappy with the rules when its too late. Commissioner Monahan-Junek said after listening to all the comments and reading the neighbors comments, this just reinforces to her that she does not like this plan. She said there should be some more effort to moving the road to the east side of the property instead of on the west side. Mr. Cox said if the proposal was approved as it is now they would work with city staff on screening along the west side to any degree the city would like to satisfy both the neighbors and the city. Chairperson Rossbach said he does not like this plan the way it is and he would move if this were to happen in his backyard. Having the road on the east side would be the best for the drainage situation. It does not make sense to him to put the street where it will be a double frontage lot situation. Eventually the people that live there will have to pay for the street to be replaced whether it is private or public. Chairperson Rossbach said the retaining walls that are going to be holding the street bed up would be a problem for the city. The engineer said however, that would not be the case if the road was on the other side. He would go for the private street. You would not have to have the rainwater gardens in the front yards because they would then be on the other side. The houses can be setback 20 feet from the street. He would think the best thing for the planning commission is to recommend that the road goes on the east side and make the street a private street. Commissioner Monahan-Junek asked staff if the road were on the east side and it is a private road at any point can the street be made a public street or are you restricted. Mr. Roberts said if it isn't a dedicated right of way on the plat, it would be very difficult to go back later and make it a public street. Commissioner Mueller said he likes having the street on the east side but he does not like having the street a private street. If it were a public street it would take away a lot of the problems for the property owners. Commissioner Pearson said based on this proposal with the road on the west he would not support this proposal. After standing on one of the lots next to the freeway at 1:30 p.m., he cannot see how anyone could stand the existing noise levels. Commissioner Trippler moved to approve the Highwood Farms preliminary plat moving the road to the east property line and making it a public road (received by the city on August 7, 2002). The developer shall complete the following before the city council approves the final plat: (changes are in bold, deletions have a strike through). 1. Sign an agreement with the city that guarantees that the developer or contractor will: Complete all grading for overall site drainage, complete all public improvements and meet all city requirements. Planning Commission Minutes of 09-04-02 -11- b. *Place temporary orange safety fencing and signs at the grading limits. Have Xcel Energy install Group V rate streetlights in two locations - primarily at the street intersections and at the cul-de-sac. The exact style and location shall be subject to the city engineer's approval. d. Pay the city for the cost of traffic-control, street identification and no parking signs. e. Provide all required and necessary easements, including any off-site easements. Demolish or remove the existing house and garage from the site, and remove all other buildings, fencing, trailers, scrap metal, debris and junk from the site. Cap and seal all wells on site that the owners are not using; removing septic systems or drain fields, subject to Minnesota rules and guidelines. Complete all the curb and gutter on Highwood Avenue on the north side of the site. This is to replace the existing driveways on Highwood Avenue and restore and sod the boulevards. Commissioner Trippler recommended having the city engineer approve final construction and engineering plans. The applicant shall have these plans revised to follow the comments of the city engineer and shall include the grading, utility, drainage, erosion control, tree and street plans. The plans shall meet the following conditions: (changes are in bold, deletions have a strike through). a. The erosion control plans shall be consistent with the city code. b. The grading plan shall show: (1) The proposed building pad elevation and contour information for each home site. The lot lines on this plan shall follow the approved preliminary plat. (2) Contour information for all the land that the construction will disturb. (3) House pads that reduce the grading on sites where the developer can save large trees. (4) The proposed street grades as allowed by the city engineer. (5) All proposed slopes on the construction plans. The city engineer shall approve the plans, specifications and management practices for any slopes steeper than 3:1. On slopes steeper than 3:1, the developer shall prepare and implement a stabilization and planting plan. At a minimum, the slopes shall be protected with wood-fiber blanket, be seeded with a no-maintenance vegetation and be stabilized before the city approves the final plat. Planning Commission -12- Minutes of 09-04-02 (6) All retaining walls on the plans. (7) Sedimentation basins or ponds as required by the watershed board or by the city engineer. (8) No grading beyond the plat boundary without temporary grading easements from the affected property owner(s). c. The street and utility plans shall show: (1) The street shall be a 9-ton design with a maximum street grade of eight percent and the maximum street grade within 75 feet of the intersection at two percent. (2) The street with continuous concrete curb and gutter, except where the city engineer determines that curbing is not necessary. (3) The removal of the unused driveways and the completion of the curb and gutter on the south side of Highwood Avenue and the restoration and sodding of the boulevards. (4) The coordination of the water main alignments and sizing with the standards and requirements of the Saint Paul Regional Water Services (SPRWS). (5) All utility excavations located within the proposed right-of-ways or within easements. The developer shall acquire easements for all utilities that would be outside the project area. (6) The plan and profiles of the proposed utilities. (7) A detail of any ponds, the pond outlets and the rainwater gardens. The contractor shall protect the outlets to prevent erosion. (8) The cul-de-sac with a pavement radius of at least 42 feet. d. The drainage plan shall ensure that there is no increase in the rate of storm water run-off leaving the site above the current (predevelopment) levels. The developer's engineer shall: (1) Verify inlet and pipe capacities. (2) Submit drainage design calculations. Planning Commission Minutes of 09-04-02 -13- Change the plat as follows: a. b. Add drainage and utility easements as required by the city engineer. Show drainage and utility easements along all property lines on the final plat. These easements shall be ten feet wide along the front and rear property lines and five feet wide along the side property lines. Label any common areas as outlots, Label the ~ public street as Farrell Street on all plans. ~ove the street to the east edge of the propeKy. 4. Pay for costs related to the engineering department's review of the construction plans. 5. Secure and provide all required easements for the development including any off-site drainage and utility easements. These shall include, but not be limited to, an easement from the culvert draining the pond at the northwest corner of the plat. 6. The developer shall complete all grading for public improvements and overall site drainage. The city engineer shall include in the developer's agreement any grading that the developer or contractor has not completed before final plat approval. 7. Sign a developer's agreement with the city that guarantees that the developer or contractor will: a. Complete all grading for overall site drainage, complete all public improvements and meet all city requirements. b. *Place temporary orange safety fencing and signs at the grading limits. c. Provide for the repair of Highwood Avenue (street, curb and gutter and boulevard) after the developer connects to the public utilities and builds the private driveway. 8. Record the following with the final plat: ,~j! ~ ........... , b. A covenant or deed restriction with the final plat that prohibits any driveways on Lot 1, Block 1 from going onto Highwood Avenue. c. A covenant or deed restriction that prohibits any further subdivision or splitting of the lots or parcels in the plat that would create additional building sites unless approved by the city council. Planning Commission Minutes of 09-04-02 -14- The applicant shall submit the language for these dedications and restrictions to the city for approval before recording. 10. Obtain a permit from the Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District for grading. 11. If the developer decides to final plat part of the preliminary plat, the director of community development may waive any conditions that do not apply to the final plat. *The developer must complete these conditions before the city issues a grading permit or approves the final plat. Commissioner Trippler moved to adopt the zoning map change resolution on page 36 of the staff report. This resolution changes the zoning map from F (Farm Residence) to R-1 (Single Dwelling Residential) for the proposed Highwood Farm plat on the south side of Highwood Avenue. The city is making this change because it will: (changes are in bold, deletions have a strike through). 1. Be consistent with the spirit, purpose and intent of the zoning code. Not substantially injure or detract from the use of neighboring property or from the character of the neighborhood, and that the use of the property adjacent to the area included in the proposed change or plan is adequately safeguarded. 3. Serve the best interests and conveniences of the community, where applicable, and the public welfare. 4. Have no negative effect upon the logical, efficient, and economical extension of public services and facilities, such as public water, sewers, police and fire protection and schools. 5. Serve the site better as the owner plans to develop this property for lots for single-family houses. Commissioner Trippler moved to allow a reduced setback using a minimum of 20 feet from the right of way setback line. Commissioner Mueller seconded. The motion passed. Ayes - Dierich, Monahan-Junek, Mueller, Pearson, Rossbach, Trippler, Desai Mr. Roberts said this item has not been scheduled yet, however, it may go to the city council on September 23, 2002. Planning Commission Minutes of 09-04-02 VII.UNFINISHED BUSINESS None. VIII. VISITOR PRESENTATIONS -15- None. IX. COMMISSION PRESENTATIONS a. Mr. Ledvina was the planning commission representative at the August 26, 2002, city council meeting. Mr. Ledvina was absent from the meeting so no report was given. b. Ms. Dierich will be the planning commission representative at the September 9, 2002, city council meeting. c. Mr. Rossbach will be the planning commission representative at the September 23, 2002, city council meeting. X. STAFF PRESENTATIONS a. Meeting with other first-ring suburbs at Richfield City Hall - September 9, 7:00 p.m. Mr. Roberts said everyone is welcome to attend the meeting. Mr. Roberts reminded commission members that the appreciation dinner will be at Battle Creek Park at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, September 5 for all commissions to attend. Mr. Roberts said he would be checking with Melinda Coleman to see if the Maple Grove tour would still be scheduled for September 30, 2002. XI. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 9:13 p.m.