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<br />ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION - JANUARY 20, 2009 <br /> <br />18 <br /> <br />Mr. Spack stated based on his national database the Walgreens parking lot will <br />need 35 parking spaces for peak hours and that the neighboring potential restaurant <br />site would need roughly 50-60 spaces. He explained the long term vision for this <br />site does include changing the intersection to avoid the wait time during peak <br />hours, along with increasing the safety for pedestrians. <br /> <br />Community Development Director Lehnhoff reiterated that these traffic concerns <br />are mostly for peak hours and not 24 hours of the day. <br /> <br />Gary Hay, Hay Dobbs Architects thanked the Council for their time and attention <br />to this item and that they picked up on most of the areas of concern. He felt the <br />signage issues could be addressed and that this should be addressed with the <br />signage of the entire redevelopment. Mr. Hay indicated the traffic flow at this <br />time was confusing and would need to be reworked. He stated the orientation of <br />the building seemed a bit odd for this client based on the pedestrian movement. <br /> <br />Clay Zimmerman questioned if the lot would be owned by Walgreens. <br /> <br />Mr. Wellington stated this would be their first preference but that they would not <br />own the proposed restaurant site. <br /> <br />Clay Zimmerman asked if the 5,000 square foot retail building could be placed on <br />the east side of Walgreens to allow the drive through to be placed on another side <br />of the building and allow access off of Lexington. <br /> <br />Greg Larson commented that the Council needs to see the plan for the entire <br />development before this proceeds instead of approaching this in pieces and not <br />knowing what will happen with adjacent parking. He stated he was underwhelmed <br />by this site plan and that there was no imagination or excitement infused into this <br />plan. Mr. Larson encouraged the Council to ask for more from this site as it will <br />begin the B2 redevelopment design standards. He stated the design lacked <br />imagination and that more should be expected from Walgreens. <br /> <br />Mr. Spack stated the retail side of development at this time was problematic and <br />that there were thresholds. He explained that if Walgreens really wants this site <br />they would be more willing to negotiate but if not, they would have to be <br />convinced. <br />