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02-05-07 PCITEM 2.7 OTSEGO PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING OTSEGO CITY HALL FEBRUARY 5, 2007 7:00 PM 1. Chair Nichols will call the meeting to order. Chair Nichols called the meeting to order at 7:04 PM. Roll Call: Chair Richard Nichols; Planning Commission Members: Pam Black, Tammie Fallon, David Thompson, Doug Hackman, Troy Watring and John Thelen, Alternate. Excused: Planning Commission Member Jim Kolles City staff: Mike Robertson, City Administrator; Judy Hudson, City Clerk/Zoning Administrator; Daniel Licht, City Planner; Laurie Shives, Associate Planner; Ron Wagner, City Engineer; Brent Larson, Assistant Engineer and Tami Loft, Administrative Assistant. 2. Consider the following minutes. 2.1. January 2, 2007 Planning Commission Meeting. Commissioner Black motioned to approve the minutes. Seconded by Commissioner Thompson. Voting For the Motion: Chair Nichols; Commissioners: Black, Fallon, Thompson, and Hackman. Abstained: Commissioners Watring and Thelen (not in attendance). Motion carried. 3. Planning Items: 3.1. Terra Development: A. Site and Building Plan Review. Laurie Shives presented the Planner's Report. Tom Brown, Terra Development, stated they agree with all the conditions. Chair Nichols questioned is there enough room on the west side of the building for truck traffic and turning. Mr. Brown feels there is enough room and will continue to work with staff to make sure. City staff concurred with Mr. Brown's assessment. Commissioner Thelen motioned to recommend approving a site and building plans for an office/warehouse building located on Lot 3, Block 1, Otsego Commercial Park, subject to the twelve conditions listed in the Planner's Report. Seconded by Commissioner Black. All in favor. Motion carried. 3.2. Eagle Trucking, Inc, Frattalone Companies, Inc. (Cont'd from 1/2/2007): A. CUP/Grading Permit for Gravel Mining. Mike Robertson and Daniel Licht went over the procedures for conducting Public Hearings, the application process, participants in planning process and development application decisions as outlined on the attachments. They reviewed the legal constraints on cities with regard to applications. Mr. Licht went over the Petition for preparation of an EAW and the updated Planner's Report dated February 1, 2007. Ron Wagner went over the Engineering Items in reference to the proposed excavation and their office's Engineering Review dated February 1, 2007. Mr. Licht also explained the function of the Planning Commission, which is an advisory commission to the City Council and serves as volunteers. Chair Nichols stated that typically there are two opportunities at the Public Hearing for public comment, because the Public Hearing was opened for Public Comment on January 2, 2007 he will re -open this evening for one opportunity for public comment and then will close it. He asked that if anyone spoke at the last Public Hearing not to do so again unless they have something new to add. Chair Nichols re -opened the Public Hearing at 8 PM. Joel Kolles, 8925 Mason Avenue, reiterated his opposition from the January 2, 2007 Public Hearing and he read his statement opposing the proposed use. (Statement is attached). Mr. Kolles stated he feels these streets were not constructed to allow this type of use, the streets are inadequate and this proposed use is a burden to the residents on Mason Avenue. He asked that all this information be taken into consideration for action. He said that the residents and taxpayers want City staff and City Council to watch out for their interests. Melora Koop, Mason Avenue, addressed City staff statements that the City hasn't received any complaints from the residents in the town homes on CSAH 37. She contacted a representative of the Homeowner's association who told her they have received complaints on dust, noise and trucks lining up on the streets. Mrs. Koop stated that Mason Avenue has 12 foot lanes but no shoulders and reducing the speed limit to 40 MPH won't help. The ditches are very steep. She referred to pictures that were displayed showing school buses and gravel trucks meeting on Mason Avenue (which were also included as part of the petition for an EAW made part of the record). She was also concerned with visibility of driveways on Mason Avenue and at intersections, and the gravel trucks destroying the streets and who will pay for the repairs. Tim Bienias, Large Ave, stated his opposition to the use as he feels his property values will go down. He is also concerned with the welfare of his wife and children. Krishona Martinson, Nashua Avenue, stated her opposition to the use with research based information as stated on the attached Disadvantages of the Proposed Otsego Gravel Pit: Noise and Air Pollution. Alayne Fair, 72nd Street, (Martin Farms) stated she is opposed to the use as she feels it will lower her market value. She is concerned that at the end of the three year period, they will want to extend the use. Ms. Fair is concerned with the School District not developing a school on the property if the use is approved. She also feels the land can't be used again if there is to be a crusher on site and questioned the change in acreage for the pit since 40 acres is the threshold for an EAW. Ms. Fair doesn't want this in her area, it is not a good use and feels the tax base will dwindle. Troy Harrison, 56th Court, stated he is a licensed realtor and stated he disagrees with City staff's advice not to use property values as a criteria for a decision. Mr Harrison stated he believes area property values will be negatively effected by the proposed use and is opposed to approval of the use. . Ben Bastyr, 87th Street, read his report on Rationale for Denying the CUP Request Relative to Otsego's Land Use Plan. (attached) Denny MacAlpine, Nashua Avenue, Mac's Well & Pump Service, feels the wells in this area are too shallow and removing the hill will damage Ben Bastyr's well. He stated he opposed the use in this area. Nancy Fehn, 83rd Street, her attached statement on Case Law which she feels will help give the City factual reasons to deny the CUP. Ms. Fehn stated she is against this use and that people have purchased homes in this area with the idea that there will be a school here. Anatoliy Mantsevich, 79th Street, stated he opposes the use as he doesn't see as a benefit to the City. He moved here for a quiet life and wants the new school built in this area for his kids. Philip Bryans, 93rd Circle, stated he moved here when Otsego was all farms. He opposes the use as he is concerned with the truck traffic that will go onto CSAH 39 from Mason Avenue. He feels there is already a lot of traffic on CSAH 39 and a fully loaded gravel truck will cause accidents. Gary Quernemoen, MacKenzie Avenue, stated his back yard borders MacIver Avenue and is concerned that dust and noise from the truck traffic the generated by the use will be insurmountable and unbearable. He opposes the use. Thomas Kiel, LaSalle Court, opposes the use and wants to raise his child here. Randy Carstensen, 80th Street, stated that he feels the City has the legal tools to deny the use. Comparing use to the grading for area developments is not applicable as all dirt graded there was kept on the property. He opposes the use. Randy Begin, Napier Avenue, stated support for the use as outlined in his attached statement and noting the concerns of dust, fumes, traffic and safety can be addressed. Carol Roden, Nashua Avenue, stated her opposition to the use based. She is a Registered Nurse and previously emailed her research to City Hall which she read and is attached. Mark Bezek, Superintendent of School District 728, wanted to clarify the action the School Board took regarding this use. The School Board motioned that if the mining was to continue after construction of a school, they consider the need for another site. A referendum may held be this fall. Chair Nichols asked if the referendum was passed this fall what would be the construction schedule. Mr. Bezek said the Elementary School could be open in 18 to 20 months after approval, Middle School takes up to 22 months to construct and the high school would be years down the road. Janell Henry, former 728 School Board Member and was on the School Board when this land was purchased. She said they purchased this land in good faith that they would be surrounded by homes. Ms. Henry lives near the border of Otsego and Albertville and the use would be less than 2 miles from her home and she doesn't want it. Alan Evans, 13600 Commerce Blvd, Rogers, said he will be moving to Otsego in two months and will be close to the proposed use. This use has no impact on his decision about moving here. He feels Otsego is growing and gravel can be used to help save money for Otsego and is a good resource. Chris Johnson, Lander Avenue, He loves the people and quiet in Otsego and if he known about this proposed use he wouldn't have moved here. John Skogman, 83rd Street, he said he talked to Wright County Soil and Water Conservation District who looked at the property and he said they believe it will go over the 40 acre threshold and will be more than 10 feet deep and they recommend an EAW and Mr. Skogman also wants an EAW. Angie Young, 66th Street, said they just moved into Otsego and were under the impression that this area would be residential. They have two children and came here for the peace and quiet. Their neighborhood is all kids and they want the school there. She doesn't want this use in area. Rebecca Mathis, Mason Avenue, said that she is a stay at home Mom and is concerned with all the trucks coming down Mason Avenue if this use is approved she doesn't feel this will be a safe for children to be outside. Applicant Butch Belair, Eagle Trucking, Inc. introduced representatives from Frattalone Companies, Inc. They are concerned with all the issues that have been brought up and believe that they have been addressed as part of their plans or recommended conditions for approval. They plan on grading the site of approximately 36 acres down to a grade that can be used in the future for development. This site has gravel and Otsego would benefit from the excavation of these resources. They would be done in 3 years which would not interfere with a potential school. Regarding the crusher, they are proposing to run it two weeks out of each year. The majority of the work on -side would be grading and hauling out excess sand material. He said their average loads per day are 71 loads for 10 months a year. Their company is very safety conscious. He hopes this is taken in consideration and would like to move forward on this permit. Nancy Fehn, 83rd Street, stated that in the first meeting the initial request for the use was much greater than 39 acres and the notification area is 500 feet. There are statements in the Comprehensive Plan to protect us and we will live in a dust bowl. She wants the use turned down as it would affect the quality of life in the area. Nancy Anderson, Mason Avenue, said that one of the reasons Mason Avenue has steep ditches is that the City didn't construct it right. Ms. Anderson feels the City is trying to please the school but what about the residents. Suzanne, Ackerman, former resident of Otsego, stated this has come to her attention on what is going on in the City. She said you have all the recommendations from the Planner, Engineer and Attorney and your main responsibility is to the people of Otsego 5, 10, 15 and 20 years down the road. Betty Benson, Mason Avenue, when she submitted a subdivision request there was no deviation from the Comprehensive Plan at that time. She asked now, not to circumvent the plan to allow this use. Ben Bastyr, requested to change gravel mining from a conditional use to an interim use within the A-1 District. Mr. Licht explained what an IUP is in comparison to a CUP as established by Minnesota Statues. Carol Roden, Nashua Avenue, questioned if the City will value human life or dollar value and she would be against the use Scott Purcell, 77th Street, stated he hasn't been as involved as others but was concerned if this would be creating a lake. He is concerned with the increase of traffic on MacIver Avenue would wreck the street and the creek. Mr. Purcell also stated that if this would generate money for the City you will probably lose money in home sales. Krishona Martinson, Nashua Avenue, stated that the applicant stated there would be 71 trucks a day, but coming in and going out would double that number. Ms. Martinson said this is going against the Comprehensive Plan and detrimental to the wells in the area. Chair Nichols closed the Public Hearing at 9:32 PM. City Clerk Judy Hudson stated that the City had received a letter from Wright County SWCD dated February 1, 2007 regarding the proposed use which is entered as part of the record. Chair Nichols asked if all grading use require EAWs. Mr. Licht replied that Minnesota Rules required an EAW for grading over 40 acres with a mean depth of 10 feet. Chair Nichols asked if any of the material graded on was any hauled off site. Mr. Wagner replied that none was hauled off but they do have a stockpile on site. Chair Nichols asked if it is in the plan or a condition that all materials moved off ending in 2009. Mr. Licht said that is what is in the current plan submitted by the applicant and City staff recommends it be made a condition of approval. Mr. Robertson complimented everyone on their testamentary and all the work they have done. He wanted to clarify two rumors: First, the rumor that the City is purchasing the Pouliot property. This is not true. Second, the rumor the City will make 4.5 million dollars in fees. This is not true. Fees collected from the use would be more in the range of $38,000 to $40,000. Commissioner Hackman questioned if the City has elevations of the wells. Mr. Wagner said he has received 32 soil borings and half of them show water tables at 45 to 50 feet deep. Chair Nichols asked what traffic counts on MacIver Avenue and Mason Avenue are. Mr. Wagner estimated traffic counts on Mason Avenue at 400 to 500 daily vehicles. He hasn't done any traffic counts recently on MacIver Avenue, which is changing every day but generally it is 10 car trips per household per day. Commissioner Hackman also asked if when MacIver Avenue was built you take into account amount of traffic and the loading it would take with semi trucks. Mr. Wagner explained they take into account that there will be 15% truck traffic on that type of street and use 20 years as the life of the street. Commissioner Watring asked if this site will turn into a lake or will the grading be at ground level. Mr. Wagner explained the slope would drain towards the creek and storm ponds would be installed for treating and they would not go below grade and there would not be a lake. Commissioner Thelen asked what would be the impact to the potential school site. Mr. Licht said that in discussions with the School, the elementary school would be at the southern end of the site and to the north of that would be the middle school with shared althetic fields in between. Mr. Licht described where future MacIver Avenue and 85th Street would be. Mr. Robertson said that the City hasn't seen a site plan and assumes they would be removing the material off. Commissioner Thompson suggested a High School on the Pouliot property and what would be needed to be done to the property. Mr. Robertson doesn't see how a high school could be built without taking the hill down. Mr. Licht agreed that the site would need grading. Commissioner Thelen said there would be transportation issues with this use but also with potential schools. Mr. Robertson explained how MacIver Avenue would be extended to CSAH 39 and the explained the 85th Street Parkway. Commissioner Thelen asked if there was no exportation of gravel/sand off of the subject site, could the hill be knocked down and spread out over site. Mr. Wagner said the site can be leveled off and but would depend on how it would mesh with neighboring properties. Commissioner Thelen said he is concerned with this proposal as he lives next to Norin Landing where there was excavation of a swimming pond with trucks hauling on Kadler Avenue which is also narrow like streets accessing the property. Commissioner Hackman asked if the City can limit to certain trucks. Mr. Licht said a limintation on the number of trucks per day can be made a condition of approval. Mike Fiedler, Frattone, said that Eagle Trucking and Frattalone will have control over this operation. Commissioner Black stated concern with the lack of adequate turning lanes on the streets the streets being narrow for buses and trucks meeting. Mr. Wagner said Mason Avenue is substandard in shoulder width and ditch slopes with respect to the City's standard street specifications. Chair Nichols doesn't think that Mason Avenue is good haul route and asked about the overland haul route mentioned in the Planning Report. Mr. Wagner described this would be an gravel roadway generally following the future MacIver Avenue corridor up to CSAH 39, which is proposed in the City's Transportation Plan. Commissioner Watring asked how many residents currently live on MacIver. Mr. Wagner said there are three properties that have direct access to MacIver Avenue. Mr. Licht said there are many lots that back up to MacIver Avenue that have berms and trees planted as buffers from traffic on MacIver Avenue, but that the potential impact to these properties needs also to be considered. Commissioner Hackman said in his opinion this location isn't set up for truck hauling due to the construction of existing streets accessing the property. Commissioner Thelen agreed. Commissioner Hackman also agreed and said that the Planning Commission needs to consider the site location and the proposed haul roads. Commissioner Thompson also agreed that even though this property has a natural resource the adequacy of the existing streets are a bigger consideration. Chair Nichols stated that with the construction of current streets accessing the property he can't support approval of the use right now unless an overland haul road is put in going north to CSAH 39. Commissioner Thelen asked if there are resources to extend MacIver Avenue north to CSAH 39 at this time. Mr. Robertson explained the extension of MacIver Avenue would be funded primarily from fees collected by adjacent development benefiting from the street. Commissioner Hackman motioned to recommend denying the application as the request is inconsistent with the Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Ordinance based on the five findings listed in the Planner's Report dated February 1, 2007. Seconded by Commissioner Watring. Mr. Licht read the findings into the record. All in favor. Motion carried. 4. Any other Planning Commission Business. 4.1. Update on City Council actions by Councilmember Heidner. Councilmember Heidner updated everyone on recent Council action. 4.2. Update on future Planning Commission Agenda Items by Judy Hudson. Mrs. Hudson informed everyone that the next Planning Commission Meeting has been cancelled due to lack of agenda items. 4.3. Election of 2007 Planning Commission Chair and Vice Chair. Commissioner Black nominated Richard Nichols for Chair. Commissioner Thompson nominated Pam Black for Vice Chair. All in favor. Motion carried. 5. Adjournment by 10 PM. Commissioner Thompson motioned to adjourn. Seconded by Commissioner Black. All in favor. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 10:45 PM. BY: Chair Richard Nichols Attest: Judy Hudson, Clerk/Zoning Administrator