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ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL — JANUARY 25, 2021 9 <br />Community Development Manager/City Planner Mrosla estimated that at least 25 stalls would <br />be provided. <br />Councilmember McClung recommended the cross access agreement with Bethel University <br />provide a minimum of 25 stalls. He commented further on the concerns he has regarding the tree <br />loss and questioned how the City came up with the $20,000 payment amount. He supported the <br />developer provide a cash payment in the full amount of the deficiency. He suggested the <br />developer review the plans again to see if any additional trees can be added to the site. <br />Community Development Manager/City Planner Mrosla reported the applicant has been <br />pointing out the number of trees on the site and have maximized the number of trees that can be <br />planted on site. He stated additional trees were being planted along the access road. He explained <br />the site could support more trees but then the health and wellness of the trees would come into <br />question. He explained per City Code, the cash in lieu payment was supposed to cover the cost of <br />materials, installation plus 10%. He requested the applicant address this question further. <br />Florent Ilazi explained he had maximized the number and size of the trees on the site. He <br />reported additional trees would be planted on Bethel Drive. He stated every square inch has been <br />addressed for tree plantings. He reviewed the number of tree inches that would be replanted and <br />commented a previous applicant was allowed to make a cash contribution to the City. For this <br />reason, he was proposing to make a contribution in lieu of trees in the same amount as this <br />previous applicant. He commented from a design standpoint, he has done all he could to work <br />trees and landscaping onto the site. <br />Community Development Manager/City Planner Mrosla stated he understood the City liked to <br />preserve trees. He commented on the Scannell Development project and noted a cash payment <br />was made not for tree replacement but rather was made for caliper inch migration. He noted the <br />Scannell developer donated $12,000 to the City because the site could not handle the minimum <br />number of caliper inches required by City Code. He noted the Scannell site did not have any <br />significant trees, while this site did have significant trees. <br />Councilmember McClung commented on the previous case and explained the Scannell <br />Development did not set a precedent. He understood the current applicant was asking for <br />flexibility in other areas and therefore the City could ask for things as part of the PUD to make up <br />for the flexibility. He did not believe the City was asking for too much, but rather was asking for a <br />fee to be paid that equals the difference between what could be planted on site and what was <br />missing. He questioned what this amount equated to. <br />Community Development Manager/City Planner Mrosla stated he could not answer this <br />question at this time. He turned this question over to the applicant. <br />Florent Ilazi reported the $20,000 was below the amount it would cost to replace the caliper <br />inches. He indicated he did not have an exact number, but understood it was higher than $20,000. <br />He commented on the quality of the trees on the site, noting cottonwoods were not high quality. <br />He stated he could work to determine a more accurate price with City staff. <br />Councilmember Holden asked if cottonwood trees were significant trees. <br />