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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPC 08-06-2003 . MINUTES CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA PLANNING COMMISSION . WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 6, 2003 7:00 P.M. - ARDEN HILLS CITY HALL CALL TO ORDER Chair Sand called the meeting to order at 7:10 p.m. ROLL CALL Present were Commissioners Clayton Larson, Ken Bezdicek, Elizabeth Modesette, Megan Ricke, Cathy Smithknecht, Clayton Zimmerman, and Chair David Sand. Absent: None. Also present were Council Members Gregg Larson and Brenda Holden, City Planner Peter Hellegers, and Recording Secretary Kathleen Altman. A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING HELD ON JULY 9. 2003. Commissioner Zimmerman requested the following changes: Page 5, the balance of the . minutes was missing regarding what the decision was by the Planning Commission. Mr. Hellegers replied he would follow-up on this. Commissioner Zimmerman moved, seconded by Commissioner Bezdicek to approve the July 9,2003 minutes as amended. The motion carried unanimously (7-0). PUBLIC HEARINGS B. PLANNING CASE #03-18 - INSTY PRINTS. 1207 COUNTY ROAD E WEST. VARIANCE Chair Sand opened the public hearing at 7:13 p.m. Mr. Hellegers stated applicants were requesting a Sign Standard Adjustment from the Sign age Ordinance criteria for a freestanding sign along County Road E. Staff recommended approval based on the following findings: I. There are site conditions, which require a sign adjustment to allow the sign to be reasonably visible from a street immediately adjacent to the site. . 2. The sign adjustment would allow a sign of exceptional design or a style that will enhance the area or that is more consistent with the architecture and design of the site. -- - --- ARDEN HILLS PLANNING COMMISSION - AUGUST 6, 2003 2 3. The sign adjustment will not result in a sign that is inconsistent with the purpose of . the zoning district in which the property is located. Commissioner Larson asked if the All American Engineering property was a conforming use. Mr. Hellegers replied it was grand fathered in and it was allowed as a current use. Commissioner Larson expressed concern about the looks of the outdoor storage at the All American Engineering site. Chair Sand asked if it was proper that the non-owner of a piece of property apply for a sign variance. Mr. Hellegers replied this situation had occurred in the past, and it was acceptable. Chair Sand stated he did not have any problems with the lnsty-Print sign, but he had a concern about grandfathering in the All American Engineering sign. He stated he would not have this concern if each property submitted its own request, but one property owner should not apply for both property owners. Mr. Hellegers noted there would be one sign that would serve both businesses, and the proposed sign would be more attractive than the existing sign. He indicated the older signs presently on the property would be removed. He stated if there were issues with the All American Engineering storage, the City had other ways of dealing with this type of a concern. Commissioner Larson noted maintenance was lacking in this area and it needed to be . addressed. Chair Sand requested staff inform Ramsey County about the condition of the easement. Commissioner Zimmerman stated he believed that separate applications should have been submitted. Mr. Hellegers stated he would look at the zoning for All American Engineering and check to see what the Ordinance said at that time and if they were not in compliance, he would turn this over to the Code Compliance Officer. Chair Sand asked if they could put a condition on this that All American Engineering had to clean up their property before the sign could be put in. Mr. Hellegers replied they could do it, but it could present problems. Commissioner Modesette expressed concern about the height of the sign and asked if it would block Carroll's Furnitute sign. Mr. Hellegers stated he believed it would not block the Carroll's Furniture sign, and the owner of Carroll's had indicated he had no problem with this variance as long as it did not block his sign. Chair Sand invited anyone for or against the variance to come forward and make comment. . Dale Beane, owner ofInsty-Prints, stated his proposed sign would not block the Carroll's Furnitute sign. He noted All American Engineering was not paying for any of this sign, but All American Engineering had agreed that he could remove their existing sign and put up a new sign. He stated he was not getting any compensation from All American Engineering for this sign. ARDEN HILLS PLANNING COMMISSION - AUGUST 6, 2003 3 . Chair Sand closed the public hearing at 7:45 p.m. Commissioner Ricke stated she understood the Commissioners concerns regarding the condition of All American Engineering property, but she did not believe they should tie the condition of the property to this sign, especially since the sign was an improvement to what was presently there. She noted lnsty-Prints should not be punished because of the condition of the All American Engineering property. Commissioner Zimmerman state he believed they should table this for additional information, and he wanted All American Engineering to be a part of this process also. Commissioner Larson stated he believed they should approve this sign as submitted and directed staff to follow-up on their concerns regarding the All American Engineering property. Chair Sand agreed they should let this sign go forward as proposed and let the City Code enforcement deal with the condition of the property of All American Engineering. He noted it was not fair to Insty-Prints to punish them for the condition of a property not owned by them. Commissioner Larson moved, seconded by Commissioner Ricke to recommend approval of Planning Case No. 03-18, lnsty-Prints, 1207 County Road E., Variance, subject to the . four conditions as outlined in staff s August 6, 2003 report and adding a fifth condition which would remove the two existing signs. The motion carried (6-1 Commissioner Zimmerman). C. PLANNING CASE 03-19: CAROLYN MORN. 3459 SIEMS COURT. SRORELANDSETBACKVARlANCE Chair Sand opened the public hearing at 7:52 p.m. Mr. Hellegers stated applicant was requesting a nine-foot variance to the Lakeshore setbacks established in the Zoning Ordinance and the Shoreland Management Ordinance. Staff recommended approval of the variance with conditions as noted in their August 6, 2003 report. Commissioner Ricke expressed concern that the shoreline could erode even further. Commissioner Zimmerman agreed. Commissioner Zimmerman asked what the variance was based on. Mr. Hellegers replied it was based on the ordinary high water mark. Commissioner Ricke asked if the Rice Creek Watershed District and the DNR approved . this plan. Mr. Hellegers replied the Rice Creek Watershed District had submitted a letter indicating their approval and the DNR had indicated verbally tlley did not have any problem with this request. ARDEN HILLS PLANNING COMMISSION - AUGUST 6, 2003 4 . Chair Sand invited anyone for or against the variance to come forward and make comment. Carolyn Mohn, 3459 Siems Court, stated they liked living in their neighborhood and wanted to stay in their home. She noted she had health problems and it was necessary to put everything on the first floor. She indicated they had intended upon working within the setback for their improvements, but discovered that the survey they were relying on was inaccurate. She indicated only a small portion of the home would be located within the setback. Steve Erickson, architect, stated he had been assisting the applicants for over a year in developing plans for their addition. He stated they had discovered only recently that they would need to request a variance because the previous survey prepared was inaccurate. He stated they would not be encroaching eloser to the lake than what the existing deck was encroaching now. He indicated applicants were very concerned about maintaining the shoreline. Commissioner Bezdicek asked if they would be removing any trees. Mrs. Mohn replied they would not be removing any trees. Commissioner Zimmerman asked if applicants had discussed this project with their neighbors. Mrs. Mohn replied they had spoken personally with their neighbors and no one had any objection to this project. . Mr. Hellegers noted staff had received no objections to this project. Chair Sand closed the public hearing at 8:20 p.m. Commissioner Bezdicek moved, seconded by Commissioner Zimmerman to approve Planning Case No. 03-19, Carolyn Mohn, 3459 Siems Court, Lakeshore Setback Variance (Shoreland OrdinancelZoning Ordinance) subject to the two conditions as noted in staffs August 6,2003 report. The motion carried unanimously (7-0). UNFINISHED AND NEW BUSINESS A. Zoninl! Ordinance Update Mr. Hellegers noted staff was recommending the following: Reformatting the Zoning Ordinance to become Chapter 12 of the City Code. Adding two new zoning districts - PII - Public and Institutional, and PlOS - Parks and Open Space. Added exception for covered front porches for Single Family Detached Dwellings. Changing Special UseslSpecial Use Permits to Conditional Use Permits to be consistent with State Statutes. Introduce Interim Use concept and compiling related ordinances (Flood Plain, Shoreland, . Signs, Adult Uses, Erosion Control, Excavation) into one to be Chapter 12 of the City Code. He asked for the Commissioner's comments and suggestions. Commissioner Ricke noted there were many grammatical errors in the document that needed to be corrected. She also noted if they were changing the wording of special use ARDEN HILLS PLANNING COMMISSION - AUGUST 6, 2003 5 to conditional use, the definitions would need to be rearranged. Mr. Hellegers replied . with scanning and reformatting the original document, some of the words did not come across accurately. He stated staff would review the document and correct what they found and asked the Commissioners if they noticed any errors to send them to him for correction. Commissioner Ricke stated she was comfortable with the concepts presented. Chair Sand asked what type of guidelines would they have for TCAAP. Mr. Parrish replied the City would be developing design and development regulations for the TCAAP property in the future. He indicated they hoped to have something in place to present to the Commission in early 2004. The Commission stated they wanted to discuss this in depth at a future work session. REPORTS A. Planning Commissioners Chair Sand stated he had expressed concern regarding the condition of the property (i.e. tall grass/weeds and a broken sign) on County Road D and Cleveland at their last meeting and he requested an update from staff. Mr. Hellegers replied he had turned this over to the City Code Enforcement officer and would follow-up with him on this. . Commissioner Smithknecht left the meeting at 9:00 p.m. B. Staff None. C. Council Member Council Member Larson updated the Commission on recent City Council actions and TCAAP developments. ADJOURNMENT Commissioner Zimmerman moved, seconded by Commissioner Ricke to adjourn the meeting at 9:30 p.m. The motion carried unanimously (6-0). .