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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-28-16-SWS --ARPEN HILLS Approved: January 9, 2017 CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION NOVEMBER 28,2016 6:00 P.M. - ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, Mayor Grant called to order the Special City Council Work Session at 6:00 p.m. Present: Mayor David Grant, Councilmembers Brenda Holden, Fran Holmes, Dave McClung and Jonathan Wicklund Absent: None Also present: Interim City Administrator Sue Iverson, Interim City Planner Eric Zweber, Interim Public Works Director/City Engineer Andy Brotzler, Stacie Kvilvang, Ehlers & Associates and City Clerk Julie Hanson 1. AGENDA ITEMS A. TCAAP TRC Interim City Planner Zweber stated on October 31, 2016 the City Council met in a work session with the Master Development Team to review proposed changes to the TCAAP Redevelopment Code (TRC) and the Regulating Plan. Based on the feedback provided by the City Council, staff has updated the red-lined draft of the TRC. Staff has incorporated revisions in the document where there was consensus support for a proposed change. Interim City Planner Zweber reported on November 21, 2016 the City Council met in a work session to discuss parks costs and the results of the November 16, 2016 Open House. Following that conversation, the City Council mentioned a number of issues that would need to be resolved prior to approving the TRC including: • Reconcile the cost of the Parks. • The future use of the Civic Property. • The Town Center Zoning. • Cedar, Composite or Concrete decking on Front Porches. • Double clad solid core garage doors. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION—NOVEMBER 28, 2016 2 Interim City Planner Zweber explained the cost of the parks is addressed in the memorandum from Stacie Kvilvang from Ehlers to be discussed later on this agenda. An agreement on the payment of parks costs can be discussed at the December 12 City Council Work Session. Interim City Planner Zweber stated there was concern about the control of the future use of the Civic property was raised at the November 21 Work Session. Staff has discussed with the City Attorney the City's options if a civic use could not be identified and a rezoning was requested to another use. Since the uses allowed in the Civic zone are not normally revenue generating, recent court decisions would support a rezoning to another zone that has economic opportunities. If the City Council is concerned about the future land uses of the Civic property, two of the available opportunities existing for some surety of its ultimate use include: I. The City's acquisition of the property. 2. An agreement with the developer including at least: a. A minimum timeframe in which a civic use will be pursued. b. The opportunity for the City to acquire the property after that timeframe has expired. C. The general use of the property if the City chooses not to acquire the property. Interim City Planner Zweber indicated there may be additional options available. Staff requests direction from the City Council on the surety that is needed about the ultimate use of the Civic property. Staff discussed the proposed zoning for Town Center and requested feedback from the Council. Mayor Grant questioned how the Council wanted to manage the Civic District. Councilmember Holden believed the City Attorney made it very clear that the City of Arden Hills would not own this property. Mayor Grant was in favor of the City acquiring the Civic property, which was 1.6 acres in size. Councilmember Holmes asked how much this property would cost. Stacie Kvilvang, Ehlers & Associates, stated the developer would be acquiring this property from the County and the City would then have to purchase the property from the developer. If the City were not to purchase the Civic property, it would have to be rezoned. Councilmember Wicklund inquired how long it would take the City to acquire this property. Councilmember McClung encouraged the City to purchase the Civic property and to come up with plans for the property over the next five to seven years. Bob Lux, Alatus, stated he was working to bring certainty into the development and did not want to see the Civic property sit vacant for too long. It was his hope that the City would develop this site as it would be a great focal point for the Town Center. He supported a seven to ten-year timeframe. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION—NOVEMBER 28, 2016 3 Councilmember Wicklund recommended the City set a timeframe of five to seven years to ensure action was taken on the Civic property. Councilmember Holden believed the City should outright own this property and recommended the timeframe be seven to ten years. Councilmember McClung stated the thought of moving City Hall to the Civic property was growing on him. However, it was his opinion the Council needed a great deal more time to plan the future of this site. Mayor Grant was pleased the Council was supportive of owning the Civic property outright. He wanted to see something nice on this site. Councilmember Wicklund believed the Council should only buy the land when it had a plan in place. Mayor Grant suggested the property be sold back to the City at a pass-through price and if the City decides not to develop the site as a Civic use it could be sold back to the developer. Ms. Kvilvang questioned what the zoning of this property would be if it were sold back to the developer at some time in the future. Mr. Lux stated it would be good to have some certainty in place in order to protect the property values of the parcels surrounding the Civic property. Councilmember McClung suggested the parcel be zoned residential if not used for Civic. Councilmember Holden commented she would like to see a Community Center on the Civic property noting this would greatly benefit the youth of Arden Hills. Further discussion ensued regarding the future of the Civic property. Councilmember McClung explained he was willing to commit to putting a Civic use on this property. Mayor Grant believed a bridge between old and new Arden Hills might be created by placing a Community Center on TCAAP. Councilmember Holmes questioned why the City could not receive the Civic property for free. Mr. Lux discussed the budget for TCAAP land acquisition. He stated that the budget is a fixed $14.5 million that includes the land acquisition and all the improvements to the property. He assumed that the County would be turning over all park land to the City. There is no direct payment being made to the county for that land. He continued that the burden of the park system will be on their shoulders in what they are paying for the land. Councilmember Holmes again asked if the 1.6 acres could be given to the city for free. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION—NOVEMBER 28, 2016 4 Mayor Grant commented the City could try and make this request. Councilmember Holmes believed it would be easier for the City to make future plans for the Civic property if the land were free. She questioned what the potential price tag for this parcel would be. Ms. Kvilvang explained the price would greatly depend on what would be located on the land. Mr. Lux stated he would be willing to negotiate in good faith on behalf of the City to ensure there was a nice development on the Civic property. Councilmember Holden did not support TC3 given the surrounding uses. She recommended the Council consider NR4. Mr. Lux believed TC3 would be more in keeping with the fit of the mall area. Councilmember Wicklund commented that he would support TC3 on the Civic property if it were not to be developed by the City in ten years. Councilmember Holmes asked how the City would pay for the land and a future building. She indicated she did not support TC3 on the Civic parcel and suggested the land be zoned NR3 or NR4. She believed that TCAAP was already too dense and did not want to see the Civic parcel have an additional 40+ units. Councilmember Holden believed the Council could put a special taxing district in place to assist with covering the cost of the Civic property. Councilmember McClung supported TC3. Councilmember Wicklund did not believed NR3 or NR4 fit with the vibrancy of the surrounding properties. Mayor Grant recommended the property be zoned NR4 if the site could not be developed as a Civic use in seven to ten years. He requested staff provide the Council with a rough estimate on what a community center building would cost on the Civic property. He summarized the Council's comments and stated there was consensus to purchase the Civic property and to have it developed over the next seven to ten years. If the property was not developed after ten years, the property would be rezoned to TC3 and be turned back over to the developer. He requested staff speak with the County to see if the Civic property could be deeded over to the City of Arden Hills. Councilmember Holmes believed an NR4 zoning would incentivize both the City and the County to develop the Civic property as a Civic use. Mayor Grant recessed the Special City Council Work Session meeting at 6:56 p.m. Mayor Grant reconvened the Special City Council Work Session meeting at 8:05 p.m. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION—NOVEMBER 28, 2016 5 Mayor Grant requested staff pursue an agreement with the County for the Civic property based on the terms discussed by the Council. Interim City Planner Zweber stated the next issue that needed to be addressed by the Council was the Town Center zoning. He discussed the current zoning and requested comments or questions. Councilmember Wicklund did not understand where the 75% retail issue had come from given the fact it was not in the last set of meeting minutes. Councilmember Holden explained this issue had been previously discussed with Ms. Kvilvang and it was always understood retail had to be included in the mall area. Interim City Planner Zweber commented no specific percentage was discussed by the Council, however the need for a requirement was addressed. He reported he met with Mayor Grant and Councilmember Holden where it was suggested 75% be offered for discussion. Councilmember McClung stated he would not support 75%. Councilmember Holmes questioned how much space would be set aside for retail. Tom Shaver, Inland Development Partners, indicated 42,500 square feet had been set aside for retail, which would be approximately 50%. Mayor Grant suggested 75%be changed to at least 50%. Interim City Planner Zweber commented on minimum unit sizes and requested comment from the Council. Councilmember Holmes reviewed the City's current minimum sizes for efficiency, one bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments. Councilmember Wicklund questioned why this issue was coming up now since it had not previously been addressed by the Council. Interim City Planner Zweber indicated this issue was discussed at a meeting he had with the Mayor and Councilmember Holden. Mayor Grant commented the language was simply being added to the TRC in order to properly reflect the City's minimum size standards. Councilmember Wicklund asked for comment from the developer on the proposed minimum size standards. Mr. Lux stated he would come back to the City with numbers that were smaller than the proposed minimums because his units were quite efficient. He preferred that the TRC not have minimum standards and to allow the market to dictate this. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION—NOVEMBER 28, 2016 6 Mayor Grant commented the City's standards were set by the market. Mr. Lux described how the rental market had changed over the past few years and noted renters were looking for smaller units with numerous amenities available onsite. He requested the Council allow him to react to the numbers and that he be allowed to respond at a future meeting. Councilmember Holden supported the numbers being written into the TRC. Councilmember Holmes questioned if the TRC should be forwarded to the Planning Commission if the developer hasn't had a chance to respond to this matter. Mayor Grant believed the TRC could move forward and receive comment from the Planning Commission. Councilmember McClung suggested the TRC move forward as is without the numbers, with the understanding Arden Hills City Code would apply. He indicated the developer could then respond to this issue. Mr. Lux looked forward to discussing this item with his team and reporting back to the City Council. Interim City Planner Zweber discussed the frontage requirements and Town Center specific issues with the Council. He discussed the proposed restaurants and retail planned for the Town Center and requested comment from the Council on the proper line for office and retail. Councilmember Holden believed additional office should be considered. She had the understanding that higher paying jobs were associated with office versus retail. Councilmember Holmes stated the Council wanted to see more office. Further discussion ensued regarding the retail, commercial and office uses within TCAAP. Mayor Grant asked if the line had to be horizontal. Councilmember Wicklund questioned what the Council wanted for these two areas so the main issues can be addressed and a solution can be found. Councilmember Holden stated the area is currently divided 50/50. The reason for this was because commercial property brought in more per square foot and higher paying jobs. She recommended the parcels not be zoned based on speculation. Councilmember McClung was willing to accept the office/retail line on Attachment A as is. Councilmember Holmes had an issue with the proposed restaurants. She indicated the space was zoned for restaurants and parking and feared restaurants may not come to this portion of the development. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION—NOVEMBER 28, 2016 7 Mayor Grant asked if the Council could support a 50/50 mix for the retail and commercial space. Councilmember Holden supported this recommendation. Councilmember Wicklund stated for the record that he supported the office/retail line on Attachment A. Councilmember McClung explained in the past he wanted to see more space of office/mixed- use. He wanted to see this done through a reduction of flex-office. He hoped the City could offer flexibility to the developer's vision while still allowing for some level of retail. He suggested the dark blue office line be slid down in order to address the developers concerns. Mayor Grant reviewed how the light blue flex-office line and dark blue office line would be realigned. Councilmember Holmes supported this recommendation. Mr. Lux commented on how the restaurants would assist in supporting the surrounding office and corporate users. Interim City Planner Zweber stated the last items that needed discussion was the requirement for residential garage doors to be double clad solid core doors and decking for front porches shall be grade II or better, being made of cedar, composite or concrete. Todd Stutz, Robert Thomas Homes, supported this requirement. The Council supported the recommendation from staff. Mayor Grant asked for any last comments from the Council. Councilmember Holmes requested staff fix the pagination of the document. Councilmember Holden recommended the definition of Civic be addressed within the Code. She questioned if the Council supported the developer being able to reduce the park sizes by 10%. Mayor Grant suggested the 10% language be removed from the TRC. Mr. Lux asked that 5%be written into the code to allow for some variation. Councilmember Holden suggested the percentage be no more than 3%. Mayor Grant supported 3%variance in park sizes. Mr. Lux stated he could go along with 3%. Councilmember Holden discussed the garage percentages and asked that 20-25% be added for the houses that do not have large garage percentages (50-55%). ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION—NOVEMBER 28, 2016 8 Mr. Stutz supported this change. Interim City Planner Zweber reviewed how the TRC would be amended to reflect this change. Councilmember Holden asked that all references to brand name building materials be removed from the TRC. She commented on the brick panels that were now being created and asked if the Council wanted these to be allowed. The Council supported the use of individual bricks. Councilmember Holden believed too much signage was being allowed between corridor, monument signs and directional signs. She proposed that only one corridor or monument sign be allowed if two directional signs were being placed on the property, if on a 500-foot property. Interim City Planner Zweber commented on the current sign code language requirements and suggested the length between the signs be increased. Councilmember Holden believed the Town Center would still be well signed and supported the sign distance being increased to 700 feet. Mr. Lux stated his only concern with making a change to this language was that he wanted to see the Town Center well signed. He questioned if there was a potential to have a directory/informational sign within the Town Center. He believed this would greatly benefit the businesses in this area. He suggested monument signs be allowed at intersections within Town Center. The Council consensus was to support the distance between signs as 700 feet. Councilmember Holden recommended the language referring to electronic signs be removed from the TRC. Councilmember Holmes agreed. Mr. Lux described how he defined electronic signs and requested this type of sign be allowed within parking garages and on the theater parcel. Ms. Kvilvang recommended an electronic sign also be allowed on the Civic property. Councilmember Holmes did not support the City having an electronic sign on the Civic property. Mayor Grant recommended an electronic sign only be allowed on the theater, parking ramp and Civic property. The Council was in agreement stating the electronic signs were not to change more than once every 15 minutes. Councilmember Holden questioned if a liquor store should be considered a permitted use on TCAAP. Mr. Lux asked that a liquor store be allowed on TCAAP within TC1, TC2 and TC3. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION—NOVEMBER 28, 2016 9 The Council supported this recommendation. Councilmember Holden requested theater be removed from the mixed-use, retail, office, Town Center 1 and Town Center 2 uses. She recommended that a library be allowed within office/mixed use, retail/mixed use or flex-office. The Council supported both of these recommendations. Councilmember Holden suggested a municipal building be allowed within the flex-office zoning district. She then asked that all of the gateway signage be updated within the plan. She discussed the Town Center parking and proposed Table 6.1 be removed from the TRC. Interim City Planner Zweber commented on the parking requirements within the TRC and believed the current plant was a one-size fits all and should be reconsidered. He reported if the table was removed the developer would have to comply with the existing parking requirements within City Code. Mr. Lux agreed with this assessment and stated he would reevaluate the parking requirements for the various zoning districts. Mayor Grant supported the parking requirements being reevaluated to ensure the development was adequately parked. Ms. Kvilvang stated after completing numerous parking studies for different municipalities she found that one parking stall per bedroom was adequate. She reported that the developer could push this up to 1.5 if desired. Interim City Planner Zweber stated he would review the parking requirements with Interim Public Works Director/City Engineer Brotzler. Councilmember Holden discussed the 50% garage staggering language. She then asked why the commercial use and entertainment height was not separated from the residential height within the Town Center. Mr. Lux stated as the Town Center was developed and the hotel or theater operator was brought on board, the current language would allow for some flexibility. He believed the TC3 zoning district should be allowed to remain at five stories. Councilmember Holden questioned if a 100,000-square foot maximum should be set for the retail development. Councilmember Holmes asked how many 100,000-square foot developments could fit on the retail site. Interim City Planner Zweber reported only one development of this size would fit on the retail site. Councilmember Holmes and Councilmember Wicklund did not see a need to change the TRC. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION—NOVEMBER 28, 2016 10 Councilmember McClung asked if the developer was seeking at least 100,000 square feet in order to find an anchor. Mr. Lux stated this would be adequate. Councilmember Holden requested the Civic district be a maximum of 52 feet in height. Mayor Grant requested staff look at the parking requirements again. He then reviewed the allowed Civic uses and requested club or house of worship be removed. He asked that staff speak with the Council and work on the Civic agreement. He recommended the park standards also be addressed. Ms. Kvilvang offered a word of thanks to Senior Planner Matthew Bachler and Interim City Planner Eric Zweber for their assistance with the TRC. Councilmember McCluu questioned the timing of the TRC. He suggested the Council approve the TRC on December 12' . He did not want to see the Council holding a Special City Council meeting on December 19tn Mayor Grant believed this would be a good goal for the Council and staff. He recommended the Council meet in a worksession on December 121n at 6:00 p.m. B. TCAAP Parks This item will be addressed at a future worksession meeting. C. 2017-2021 Capital Improvement Program (CIP) This item will be addressed at a future worksession meeting. D. 2017 Fee Schedule This item will be addressed at a future worksession meeting. E. Arden Hills Notes Proposal This item will be addressed at a future worksession meeting. F. Moratorium Zoning Study and Subcommittee This item will be addressed at a future worksession meeting. 2. COUNCIL COMMENTS AND STAFF UPDATES None. ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION—NOVEMBER 28, 2016 11 ADJOURN Mayor Grant adjourned the City Council Work Session at :35 p.m. � r ie Hanson David Grant ty Clerk Mayor "'It, --A DEN HILLS Request for Special City Council Work Session A special meeting may be called by the Mayor or by any two Councilmembers. Reason for meeting: 1. TCAAP TRC 2. TCAAP Parks 3. 2017-2021 Capital Improvement Program (CIP) 4. 2017 Fee Schedule 5. Arden Hills Notes Proposal 6. Moratorium Zoning Study and Subcommittee Requested Date: 11/28/16 Requested time: 6:00 pm Open meeting X Closed meeting Signature of person(s) making request: hM4/1;?6t4i 11 / 23 / 16 Mayor or Council Member Date Council Member Date -This section to be completed by City staff- Date received: / 2 / 1'0 Date meeting to be held: 11/28/16 Time of meeting: 6:00 pm Location: City Hall All necessary posting and notices have been completed. �6i�- (L (4), (� / --1-3/ f�1-9 Sit ture of City Clerk Date City of Arden Hills • 1245 West Highway 96 • Arden Hills,MN • 55112-5743 Phone 651.792.7800 • Fax 651.634.5137 • www.ei.arden-hills.mn.as