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1999-03-23 Planning Comm MinutesCITY OF MENDOTA HEIGHTS DAKOTA COUNTY, MINNESOTA PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES MARCH 23, 1999 The regular meeting of the Mendota Heights Planning Commission was held on Tuesday, March 23, 1999, in the Large Conference Room at City Hall, 1101 Victoria Curve. The meeting was called to order at 7:35 p.m. The following Commissioners were present: Duggan, Koll, Lorberbaum, Tilsen, Betlej, and Kleinglass. Commissioner Friel was excused from the meeting. Also present were Meg McMonigal of MFRA, Public Works Director Jim Danielson, and Administrative Assistant Patrick C. Hollister. Mr. Hollister took the minutes. MINUTES Commissioner Betlej moved to approve the February 23, 1999 minutes with revisions. Chair Kleinglass seconded the motion. AYES: 6 NAYS: 0 PLANNING CASE #99 -06 MOEN LEUER CONSTRUCTION, INC. REZONING AND CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT FOR A PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT Jim Resop of Resop Reality introduced himself and Debra Brodsho, architect, and reviewed the application for an office building on the `Bisanz" parcel at Interstate 35E and Mendota Heights Road. Commissioner Lorberbaum asked Mr. Resop to clarify the lighting and signage for the building. Chair Duggan said that the lighting should not be as bright as the lighting for the SuperAmerica on Mendota Heights Road. Chair Duggan said that the light should be bright enough for safety but not bright enough to disturb the neighbors. Chair Duggan said that the revised plans had good landscaping and overall design. Commissioner Betlej said that the location of the sign was not within the setback. Mr. Danielson said that it had been the City's practice in the past to grant setback variances for signage in the industrial park. 1 Commissioner Betlej said that Staff should review the grading and erosion control plan. Commissioner Betlej asked about the chain link fence to the south. Mr. Danielson said that the fence actually belongs to MnDOT. Commissioner Betlej asked about the exterior building materials. Mr. Resop said that the building would be treated with brick and colored rock -face block with stucco accents. Commissioner Koll said that she was worried about the massive retaining walls. Ms. Brodsho said that the retaining walls were against Mendota Heights Road and the 35E interchange. Commissioner Koll asked about the traffic counts for the building. Ms. Brodsho said that the peak traffic would be between seven and eight o'clock in the morning and five and six in the evening, but that she would not now the exact traffic counts because the tenants have not been decided yet. Ms. Brodsho said that it would be possible to generate 145 cars in the morning and 145 cars in the evening. Commissioner Tilsen asked if the drive was lined up with Patterson Dental's drive on the north side of Mendota Heights Road. Ms. Brodsho said that it was. Commissioner Tilsen said that he was also worried about the retaining walls. Chair Duggan, seeing no -one in the audience present to comment on this application, moved to close the public hearing. Commissioner Lorberbaum seconded the motion. AYES: 6 NAYS: 0 Commissioner Koll said that the applicant should provided more information about the lighting. Chair Duggan suggested that that could be a condition of the motion. Commissioner Tilsen asked how high the light poles would be. 2 Ms. Brodsho said that she did not know, but that they would be the minimum height necessary. Commissioner Tilsen moved to recommend approval of the rezoning of this .parcel from B l -A to LB -PUD. Commissioner Betlej seconded the motion. AYES: 6 NAYS: 0 Commissioner Betlej moved to recommend approval of the Conditional Use Pei niit for a Planned Unit Development for the 22,679 square foot office building as proposed under the following conditions: 1. that the applicant clarify the lighting plan for the Council 2. that the entrance from Mendota Heights Road aligns with the entrance to Patterson Dental to the north 3. that appropriate fencing or landscaping (such as a dense hedge) be provided on the east side of the site to screen the building from the Tousignant parcel and the pond 4. that Staff review and approve the grading and drainage plans 5. that the applicant return to the Planning Commission and the City Council for separate approval of the building and monument signage 6. that the retaining walls be adorned with some type of plantings where feasible Commissioner Kleinglass seconded the motion. AYES: 6 NAYS: 0 PLANNING CASE #99 -10 MENDOTA HOMES, INC. WETLANDS PERMIT Erin Mathern of Mendota Homes introduced herself and her application for a Wetlands Permit for a new home on Diego Lane. Chair Duggan said that the new home would decimate trees on the lot. Chair Duggan said that the applicant should provide a soils survey map and show all drainage and vegetation within 500' of the property. Commissioner Koll asked how far the home will be from the wetland. Ms. Mathern said that it would be 20' from the wetland. 3 Chair Duggan asked Mr. Danielson if the City had a map showing the exact location of the wetland. Mr. Danielson said that the City had no such map. Ms. Mathern said that she is defining the edge of the wetland as the area between the 984 and 982 contours. Chair Duggan said that the site is low and that runoff would enter the site from the street. Chair Duggan said that the City wants to know what type of trees would be removed from the development. Commissioner Betlej said that the most significant trees would be the maples in the southeast corner and that they should be protected. Ms. Mathern said that she intended to use a movable silt fence during construction. Commissioner Betlej said that the plan does not really reflect the site, and that the contours do not show that some fill would be required. Chair Duggan said that there was a drop of four feet on the site, and that fill kills trees. Commissioner Betlej asked Ms. Mathern how long she has owned the property. MS. Mathern said that she has owned the property for three months. Commissioner Lorberbaum asked Ms. Mathern if she knew how much fill was required. Ms. Mathern said that she did not know. Commissioner Lorberbaum said that the new house cannot be any closer to the street than the houses on the either side. Commissioner Tilsen said that Ms. Mathern should hire a professional wetland delineator to determine if a wetland exists, and if so, what its boundaries are. Commissioner Tilsen said that he would not want to see the house flood in the case of a hundred year flood. Commissioner Tilsen asked if the house would have a basement. Ms. Mathern said that it would have a basement with a fire access window. Commissioner Tilsen said that the basement should have a drain tile or a sump pump. Commissioner Tilsen said that discussion of this application should be tabled until a professional wetland delineator can be hired by the applicant. Chair Duggan then declared the public hearing open. 4 Mr. Chester Boyke of 150 Chester Lane said that there was no real wetland on the property, and that there had been no standing water on the property since the public streets were improved in 1974. Mr. Boyke said that the trees on the property were only scrub trees and that his only concern was that the new house be as far away from his house as possible. Commissioner Tilsen moved to table discussion of this application to next month. Commissioner Lorberbaum seconded the motion AYES: 6 NAYS: 0 CASE 99 -11: NORTHERN STATES POWER CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT Mr. Patrick Cline of NSP introduced himself and explained NSP's Conditional Use Permit application. Mr. Cline said that NSP needs to upgrade its substation at Mendakota and its power line through Mendota Heights to carry additional backup power due to the increased load in the southeastern metro area. Mr. Cline reviewed the need for the improvements, the plan for the improvements, and the construction schedule. Mr. Cline showed before and after pictures depicting the doubling of the circuit lines in the poles in Mendota Heights. Commissioner Betlej asked if more power meant more noise from the substation. Dave Calahan, engineer for NSP, said that this was not the case., that the hum was determined by load, not capacity. Commissioner Betlej asked why NSP could not bury the power lines instead. Mr. Calahan said that burying the power lines was too expensive and not justified. Commissioner Lorberbaum asked for an existing example in the Metro Area of these types of power lines. Mr. Calahan said that NSP had recently made very similar upgrades to the power lines near the Maplewood Mall. Commissioner Koll asked if the upgrades would mean an increase in the Electromagnetic Field (EMF). Chair Duggan said that he was also concerned about EMF. 5 Commissioner Tilsen asked if the poles could possibly also be sites for Cellular Antennae. Mr. Calahan said that that would be possible. Commissioner Tilsen asked what was involved in burying a power line. Mr. Calahan explained the process of burying a power line. Commissioner Tilsen asked if burying a power line would reduce the amount of EMF. Mr. Calahan said that burying the power line would actually increase the amount of EMF because the line would be closer to a person standing on the ground. Commissioner Lorberbaum said that she felt that the towers needed to be painted the same color as the City's water tower. Chair Duggan then opened the public hearing for comments from the audience. Mr. Sam Asher of 2225 Rogers Court said that NSP's answers to some of the questions were not complete. Mr. Asher said that he would like to know exactly how many new homes NSP predicts being built in the near future as a basis for the need for the increased capacity. Mr. Asher said that these new homes are not being built in Mendota Heights, and that Mendota Heights would be paying the price in terms of EMF for power that is actually needed elsewhere. Mike Black of Mendakota Court said that NSP should do a better job of community outreach, and that NSP should hold a community meeting to answer questions from residents. Commissioner Lorberbaum asked Mr. Black if he thought that NSP had lived up to their commitments in terms of landscaping for their recent approval from the City for upgrades to the substation. Mr. Black said that NSP had fulfilled its commitments for landscaping from the previous CUP approval. Mr. Dick Bebel of Wagon Wheel Trail said that the metal poles were unsightly and that wooden poles would be better. Mr. Bebel said that if the cost of burying the lines were offset by increased rates for all beneficiaries, it would not cost that much. Mr. Bebel asked if an EIS was required to do this improvement. Mr. Calahan said that the EMF would be reduced by having lines going in both directions, whether those lines were underground or above ground. 6 Mr. Lou Lischter of Mendakota Estates said that he felt that NSP was not being completely forthcoming in their long -range plans and was always asking for piecemeal incremental changes. Mr. Lischter said that the community should know what the long - range plans are. Mr. Calahan said that NSP could provide those long -range plans. Dr. Greg Lee of Dodge Nature Center said that he was concerned about the height of the poles and EMF effects. Dr. Lee said that the improvements would lead to decreased property values. Dr. Lee said that NSP should have to sign an agreement not to sell power to other states. Dr. Lee said that NSP was motivated in part by the desire to rent out more cell phone space. Lou Schatz, Sunfish Lake resident, said that a citizens group in Sunfish Lake had filed a petition with the Environmental Quality Board to required an Environmental Assessment Worksheet. Chair Duggan moved to continue the public hearing on this issue to next month to provide time for NSP to submit information regarding the number of people served by the substation, their 15 -year improvement plan, and to provide information about EMF. Commissioner Lorberbaum seconded the motion. AYES: 6 NAYS: 0 Chair Duggan asked NSP to set up a community meeting to answer residents' questions before the next Planning Commission meeting. Mr. Cline agreed to do this. CASE #99 -08: THOMAS ADEMITE, 804 PARK PLACE DRIVE FOUR FOOT FRONT YARD SETBACK VARIANCE Mr. Tom Ademite and Mr. Dick Bjorklund, Jr. presented their application for a four foot front yard setback variance for a garage addition to create a "mud room" for the house at 804 Park Place Drive. Mr. Ademite cited the fact that the house is on a "peninsular" lot with three front yards, each requiring a 30 -foot setback, as a hardship justifying the variance. Commissioner Lorberbaum, after searching for an acceptable hardship, moved to recommend denial of the four foot front yard setback variance for the garage addition, citing a lack of sufficient hardship. Chair Duggan seconded the motion. 7 AYES: 6 NAYS: 0 Chair Duggan told Mr. Ademite that the Commission was sympathetic to the request, but that they could not justify the variance under the City's zoning ordinance as currently written. CASE #99 -09: GARY R. GUSTNER, 1459 CLEMENT STREET TWENTY -EIGHT FOOT REAR YARD SETBACK VARIANCE Gary and Holly Gustner presented their application for a rear yard setback variance for an addition for their house at 1459 Clement Street. Mr. Gustner explained that their neighbors' recent home addition had left both homes in a situation where neither had sufficient privacy in their back yards. Chair Duggan pointed out that although the Gustners had applied for a six foot rear yard setback variance, they actually needed a twenty -eight foot rear yard setback variance due to the provision in the zoning ordinance that defines a rear yard as 30 feet or 20% of the total length of the lot, whichever is greater. Chair Duggan moved to recommend approval of the twenty -eight foot rear yard setback variance for the home addition. Commissioner Kleinglass seconded the motion. AYES: 6 NAYS: 0 VERBAL REVIEW Mr. Danielson provided the verbal review of previous planning cases. ADJOURN Motion made to adjourn by Betlej and seconded by Duggan. AYES: 6 NAYS: 0 The meeting adjourned at 12:05 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Patrick C. Hollister 8