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The Official City Newsletter for Arden Hills Residents May 2015 by Susan CatheyTwo vacant buildings on County Road E2 near the intersection of New Brighton Road will be replaced by upscale single-family homes over the next 18 months. The properties at 1901 and 1941 County Road E2 have been sold by Bethel University to Land- mark of Arden Hills at a purchase price of $856,000 for the 4.77 acres. Hanson Builders, a partner of Landmark, has submitted a proposal to construct seven two-story homes on the land, to be called Valentine Bluff. Several things had to happen before this development could be approved. City Planner Ryan Streff presented the pro- posal to the Planning Commission at its March 4, 2015, meeting. The developer requested a Preliminary and Final Plat, Rezoning, and Comprehensive Plan Amendment (CPA) in order to subdivide the two contiguous parcels of land into seven single-family lots. The property at 1941 County Road E2 is the site of the former Arden Hills branch of the Ramsey County Public Library Sys- tem, which closed in 2010. It was zoned R1 (Single-Family Residential). The building at 1901 was occupied for many years by the Minnesota Baptist Confer- ence but is now vacant. It was zoned NB (Neighborhood Business). In the City’s 2030 Comprehensive Plan, both properties were guided for NB. The Comprehensive Plan lays out the future land uses that are anticipated for all properties within the City, allowing for planning for future needs and appropriate land use regulation. The developer sought a rezoning to R2 (Single and Two-Family Residential). The property would also be designated Very Low Density Residential, which is defined as 1.5 to 3 units per acre. One of the conditions of granting this request was that the project be contingent on approval from the Metropolitan Council, which has the final say on whether to al- low a CPA. The City must also allow adjacent governments, affected special districts, and affected school districts the opportunity to review the proposed CPA. The Arden Hills Subdivision Ordinance requires a park dedication from developers to the public. Based on the purchase price, the six percent fee in this case is $51,360. A 68-foot park, trail, and recreation ease- ment will be provided by the applicant to the Ramsey County Parks and Recreation Department for a future trail connection through the wetland complex in Tony Schmidt Regional Park, which borders the property to the north and east. Lots in the proposed plan will be devel- oped to preserve as many of the highest quality trees as possible. One hundred- nine new trees will be planted, exceeding the City’s requirement. Other information was provided to the Planning Commission by City staff: • No new streets are included. There will be four driveways from County Road E2, three of them shared by two homes each, and the easternmost lot having its own. A traffic study was Valentine Bluff development to begin Lot total area (square feet) Width Depth Zoning Code 11,000 85 120 1 44,483 139 320 2-7 27,202 85 320 This chart shows the size of the proposed lots and how they comply with zoning codes. continued on page 5 Valentine Bluff model home design