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ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION – SEPTEMBER 22, 2014 5 <br /> <br />Mr. Laberee recommended that the lit park be shifted closer to the spine road and businesses. He <br />believed that a lit ball field would not fit well into the proposed neighborhood and could hamper <br />values and desirability. He supported the smaller neighborhood park but suggested it be more <br />centrally located. <br /> <br />Ms. Kvilvang questioned what size pocket parks developers placed in neighborhoods. <br /> <br />Mr. Laberee stated that his preference is for the City to complete the park. He stated that if an <br />HOA were to complete the park, this would raise dues and could make the neighborhood less <br />desirable. He suggested that the two proposed parks be combined into one. <br /> <br />Mr. Pratt suggested that a larger park be centrally located in the Hill neighborhood. <br /> <br />Community Development Director Hutmacher explained that the proposed park location was <br />due to the slope and topography of the neighborhood. <br /> <br />Mayor Grant asked if there was an advantage to place more homes per acre in a neighborhood <br />for a developer. <br /> <br />Mr. Pratt stated that 10 units to the acre were for $200,000 homes, while a lower density would <br />increase the price of the home. He believed that the City would need a variety of housing and <br />wide range of pricing on TCAAP. <br /> <br />Mr. Laberee commented that people were paying more for single family homes today in most <br />communities than for townhomes due to land prices and the cost of construction. He did not <br />believe it would be in the City’s best interest to put a large number of units on each acre. <br /> <br />Ms. Kvilvang stated that based on the standards set by the City, builders would offer a variety of <br />lot sizes and types of housing. <br /> <br />Councilmember Holden indicated that originally it was thought that 1,700 units of housing <br />would have to be placed on TCAAP. However, maybe 1,000 units would bring in the same value <br />when selling the land. <br /> <br />Ms. Kvilvang indicated that the builders would have to go in and do their calculations based on <br />the land price before a determination could be made. <br /> <br />Mayor Grant anticipated that density numbers would be driven by the Town neighborhood. <br /> <br />Mr. Pratt questioned what was driving the 1,700 units. <br /> <br />Ms. Kvilvang reported that the City and County have been discussing this number along with the <br />overall expense to bring basic services to the property, while also cleaning the property. <br /> <br />Councilmember Holmes explained that the Council has not reached consensus or agreed to 1,700 <br />units. <br />