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the tank being proposed by Minnesota Coaches, above ground tanks can be designed to be safe. The attached materials from the City Fire Marshal, City Fire Chief, and the State Fire Marshal indicate that if above ground tanks are designed to the required standards, they are not a safety problem. A related safety issue would be if there was an explosion and the tank was screened, would the screening become a safety hazard. In discussions with the City Fire Marshal, it has been concluded that, because the danger from explosion is minimal for above ground tanks, screening would not be a problem. C. Aesthetics The issue here is whether or not the appearance of above ground tanks detracts from the aesthetic appearance of the area. It is staffs conclusion that while tanks may detract from the visual aesthetics of an area, this issue could be addressed with standards requiring location in rear yards where they would not be visible from public streets and where they can be screened appropriately. Tanks could be considered Iike other utilities and as such the design standards could be utilized to require screening with materials which are consistent with exterior building materials. d. Economic Issues One economic issue would be whether or not .the City incurs any liability if it requires that tanks be under ground and the tank leak and cause environmental damage. The City Attorney has advised staff that ID the City would not, in his opinion, incur any liability by requiring tanks to be.under ground. A second economic issue would be the economic impact on private property owners of above ground tanks vs. below ground tanks. In discussing this matter with the company that provides above ground tanks, staff has concluded that the cost to the private property owner would be less with an above ground tank vs. a below ground tank. The savings would come in the form of a 30% reduction in liability insurance costs, less cost to install the tank, and the above ground tank provides more flexibility to the property owner because it,can be moved and relocated to other sites at a much less cost than an under ground tank could be.