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City of Arden Hills City Council Meeting for August 27, 2018 P:\Planning\Planning Cases\2018\PC 18-019 - Subdivision Code Amendment - Park Dedication Ordinance\Memos_18-019 Page 2 of 3 Public Works Design Manual The City is currently working with Kimley-Horn on a Public Works Design Manual that will detail requirements for street and utility construction within the City. Staff anticipates the manual will be completed in fall 2018. Staff is recommending an amendment to the Subdivision Code that would require developers to complete street and utility improvements for subdivisions in accordance with the Public Works Design Manual. Going forward, the City will be able to update the Public Works Design Manual as needed without having to amend the Subdivision Code each time construction standards change. Public Use Dedication Development results in new residents and employees that have an impact on a community’s existing public infrastructure. State law authorizes cities to require as part of a subdivision approval that a reasonable portion of land be dedicated to the public for parks, recreational facilities, trails, or open space. The City’s current public use dedication requirements are found in Chapter 11 – Subdivisions, Section 1130.08 of the Arden Hills City Code (Attachment C). The City last updated its public uses dedication requirements in December 2015 to ensure that sufficient land and funds will be available for park development on the former Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant (TCAAP) site. In December 2016, the City Council entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the TCAAP Master Developer that formalizes the agreed upon improvements for the three public parks in the Creek, Hill, and Town neighborhoods on TCAAP. Staff and the Master Developer evaluated the anticipated cost of the planned improvements and determined that the current park dedication fees would not be sufficient. It was recommended that the park dedication fees be adjusted to cover the anticipated cost of the park development on TCAAP. The City has since increased its residential per unit park dedication fee as part of the adopted 2018 fee schedule. Staff has been working with the City’s financial consultant and the City Attorney to update the commercial park dedication requirements and these revisions are included in the Planning Case 18-019 amendments. Findings of Fact Municipalities have broad discretion when reviewing and adopting subdivision regulations. The Subdivision Code is a tool used to implement the City’s comprehensive plan and it is important to understand the connection between the two documents when reviewing proposed amendments to the Subdivision Code. The Planning Commission offers the following findings of fact for consideration: 1. The proposed amendment advances the public facilities, services, and infrastructure goals in the 2030 Comprehensive Plan by ensuring subdivisions are developed to provide reliable and high-quality transportation, water, sanitary sewer, and stormwater systems.