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Regular Planning Commission Meeting <br />Minutes – Wednesday, October 7, 2015 <br />Page 14 <br />and west of the townhomes immediately to the west of these two subject properties. Mr. <br />649 <br />Buck noted that there were also numerous schools in that same vicinity as well as <br />650 <br />Sandcastle Park, resulting in high pedestrian, bicycle and school bus traffic, each in turn <br />651 <br />creating challenges at and near this 5-way intersection including right-of-way issues. Mr. <br />652 <br />Buck admitted he feared for the safety of his two sons at this intersection. <br />653 <br />Mr. Buck noted that this property had been considered one of the City of Roseville’s <br />654 <br />“anomaly properties” during the rezoning and comprehensive plan update process, and <br />655 <br />had been guided HDR with current single-family land use now. Mr. Buck admitted that at <br />656 <br />that time, neither he nor most of the neighbors didn’t understand the ramifications of that <br />657 <br />HDR designation, but noted it was necessary for a majority of citizen voices to be heard <br />658 <br />when considering future land use applications to ensure a potential developer met city <br />659 <br />code. As the community grasped the ramifications of that designation, admittedly late in <br />660 <br />that process, Mr. Buck advised that they raised their concerns, but the neighborhood had <br />661 <br />come too late to the party in voicing those concerns. <br />662 <br />Mr. Buck stated that he was passionate about safety concerns based on past property <br />663 <br />uses, but also given today’s changing demographics in that area of mostly single-family <br />664 <br />residential parcels along Old Highway 8 and up to County Road D. Mr. Buck advised that <br />665 <br />those concerns were included in the packet materials and involved, traffic, safety and the <br />666 <br />overall fit between HDR and MDR, building height, units per acre, and maximum <br />667 <br />improvement area – all relevant in addressing his concerns. <br />668 <br />Mr. Buck opined that he had found the 2010 rezoning and comprehensive plan process <br />669 <br />extremely disappointing, referencing the City Council meeting minutes from October 25, <br />670 <br />2010 when they chose not to take action from MDR even with recommendation from the <br />671 <br />Planning Commission. While it had been a mixed dialogue, Mr. Buck opined that the <br />672 <br />majority of the citizens didn’t understand the process, with only one strong advocate for <br />673 <br />Low Density Residential (LDR) designation that was not supported and concerns about <br />674 <br />public safety, traffic and other suggestions for a comprehensive traffic study requested <br />675 <br />from neighbors not done then nor to-date from his knowledge even with neighbors <br />676 <br />repeatedly making that request over the last few years. <br />677 <br />Mr. Buck further opined that the potential for development of these two parcels as HDR <br />678 <br />was felt by neighbors to be a negative impact in attempting maximum density, and stated <br />679 <br />that lower density would mitigate many of those concerns. Mr. Buck expressed his hope <br />680 <br />that it was clear from written and verbal comment to-date that this was not only a dispute <br />681 <br />between adjacent property owners, but involved the broader neighborhood in attempting <br />682 <br />to evaluate how they could get a voice in this matter. Mr. Buck advised that neighbors <br />683 <br />considered it from an environmental assessment standpoint, thus the petition signatures <br />684 <br />that had not been completed due to the previous development proposal stalling for other <br />685 <br />reasons, but not negating the neighborhood’s desire to revisit it. <br />686 <br />Mr. Buck stated his sympathy for property owners seeking to maximize land value, but <br />687 <br />noted that the city had the ability to influence the outcome of those two parcels and <br />688 <br />where it was appropriate for HDR zoning versus the basis of investment made on the <br />689 <br />parcels over the last two decades or more, including values and tax rates for single-family <br />690 <br />residential uses versus HDR. <br />691 <br />Mr. Buck concluded by highly encouraging the Commission to support MDR as a solution <br />692 <br />for the neighborhood to mitigate these community concerns, address neighborhood <br />693 <br />problems, and balance the desires of the property owner to developer these parcels. Mr. <br />694 <br />Buck opined there remained an additional need for the City to pursue efforts to <br />695 <br />encourage civic engagement and respond to public safety concerns. <br />696 <br />Rita Mix, 3207 Old Highway 8 <br />697 <br />Ms. Mix displayed a map of the Woods Edge Townhomes, and clarified her property as <br />698 <br />th <br />the 4 unit in from the west side and located in Roseville and in Ramsey County. <br />699 <br />Ms. Mix provided her historical perspective on development of this area and <br />700 <br />encroachment issues on adjacent property that she had been initially unaware of until <br />701 <br /> <br />