Planning Commission - 07/13/2009 APPROVED MINUTES
EDEN PRAIRIE PLANNING COMMISSION
MONDAY,JULY 13, 2009 7:00 P.M., CITY CENTER
Council Chambers
8080 Mitchell Road
COMMISSION MEMBERS: John Kirk, Katie Lechelt, Jacob Lee,
Alexander Martin, Jerry Pitzrick,
Peter Rocheford, Kevin Schultz,
Jon Stoltz, Travis Wuttke
STAFF MEMBERS: Stu Fox, Manager of Parks and Natural Resources
Michael Franzen, City Planner
Scott Kipp, Senior Planner
Regina Herron—Planner II
Rod Rue, City Engineer
Julie Krull, Recording Secretary
I. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE—ROLL CALL
Chair Stoltz called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Rocheford arrived during the first
public hearing.
II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA
MOTION by Schultz, seconded by Lechelt, to approve the agenda. Motion carried 8-0.
III. MINUTES
A. PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING HELD ON JUNE 22, 2009
MOTION by Pitzrick, seconded by Schultz, to approve the minutes. Motion
carried 6-0. Kirk and Lechelt abstained.
IV. INFORMATIONAL MEETINGS
V. PUBLIC MEETINGS
VI. PUBLIC HEARINGS
A. AT&T Cellular Tower—Olympic Hills - (continued)
Request for:
EDEN PRAIRIE PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES
July 13, 2009
Page 2
• Site Plan Review on 23.44 acres
Location: 12100 Pioneer Trail
James Ries,representing AT&T,presented the proposal. He started by going
over the items that were brought up by the Commission at the previous meeting
for staff and project proponent to address. The first item was to look at having a
co-location on the existing tower at 9813 Flying Cloud Drive. Mr. Ries stated
upon further investigation this would not be a feasible location because the
existing 87 foot tower would not provide the necessary coverage. The next item
would the possibility of co-location as part of the Pioneer Trail improvements that
are currently underway. After contact with Hennepin County, they stated no
structures would be included in the area taller than 30 feet. The next item would
be the relocation of the monopole on the church property. The project proponent,
City Staff, members of Pax Christi, and neighbors worked together to come up
with a new location. That location would be 170 feet to the south of the proposed
location,behind the northwest corner of the building. This location would add
additional screening.
Stoltz asked Kipp to review the staff report. Kipp stated Staff, church members
and representatives from AT&T met with neighbors and agreed on the new
location, which provides additional screening. Staff recommends approval.
Stoltz opened the meeting up for public input.
Matt Kleffner, of 9559 Woodridge Circle, wanted to thank everyone for
accommodations to his concerns over the original placement of the tower.
Schultz stated at the June 8th meeting he had concerns regarding the placement of
the tower and asked the project proponent to consider other options. He wanted
to thank the project proponent for going back to the drawing board and exploring
all possibilities.
MOTION by Kirk, seconded by Wuttke, to close the public hearing. Motion
carried 9-0.
MOTION by Kirk, seconded by Wuttke, to recommended approval of the Site
Plan Review on 23.44 acres, based on plans stamped dated June 29, 2009 and the
staff report dated July 10, 2009. Motion carried 9-0.
B. Variance 2009-04 by City of Eden Prairie Parks and Recreation
Request to:
• Permit a Shoreland setback variance from 100 feet to 4 feet for the
construction of an observatory structure. City requires a 100 feet setback
from the Ordinary High Water level.
Location: 13765 Staring Lake Parkway
EDEN PRAIRIE PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES
July 13, 2009
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Stu Fox, Manager of Parks and Natural Resources, presented the proposal. He
stated the City received the telescope from the Astronomical Society and they
would like to build a structure to hold the telescope. The telescope is
approximately the size of a hot water heater and would sit on a large pedestal. In
looking at the site at Staring Lake, the best unobstructed view would be the south,
southwest area of Staring Lake Park because you would not be getting the light
from the City of Minneapolis. The City hired an architect to draw up the structure
walls, which would be 4 1/2 feet high with a turn-off roof. It would look similar to
a house. The variance request is due to the shoreline setback.
Stoltz asked Franzen to review the staff report. Franzen stated there are three
items to be addressed when granting a variance request. The first item being
reasonable use of the property; this property cannot be put to reasonable use
without the variance. The question to ask is would it be reasonable to have an
observatory in a City Park next to the lake. The second item would be if there are
any unique circumstances to take into account. An observatory requires an
obstructed view and needs to be close to the Outdoor Center. The structure could
be located at the required setback, but that would require removal of several trees.
The third item to take into account would be by granting this variance request,
would it alter the character of the neighborhood. The proposed building is
replacing the existing building and would be somewhat smaller in size.
Stoltz opened the meeting up for public input. There was no input.
Stoltz asked Fox how many people could be in this structure at one time. Fox
stated if the people were viewing from a screen, the building could house a dozen
people.
Lechelt asked about security of the structure. Fox said the building would be
secured when not in use and stated the value of the telescope is approximately
$40,000. Lechelt asked if there would be a chance for flooding. Fox stated it
could be a possibility but the base portion of the telescope would be above the
flood stage.
Schultz asked if the telescope would be handicap assessable. Fox said there
would be a paved trail to the telescope and a ramp to accommodate wheel chairs
and a double door at the opening.
MOTION by Schultz, seconded by Kirk, to close the public hearing. Motion
carried 9-0.
MOTION by Schultz, seconded by Wuttke, to recommend approval of the
variance to permit a Shoreland setback variance from 100 feet to 4 feet for the
construction of an observatory structure,based on plans stamped dated June 18,
2009, and the staff report dated July 10, 2009 and based on the following
findings.
EDEN PRAIRIE PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES
July 13, 2009
Page 4
• The building needs to be located next to the lake to have an unrestricted
view for the telescope.
• Locating the structure at the required setback requires significant tree
removal.
• The proposed building is smaller and shorter than the existing building.
Motion carried 9-0.
C. Prairie Physicians Building
Request for:
• Guide Plan Change from Office to Community Commercial on 1.24 acres
• Zoning District Change from Office to Community Commercial on 1.24
acres.
Location: 16570 W. 78th Street
Matt Nicoll, a partner in the Prairie Physicians Building, stated he has been
involved in this project for the past six years. He pointed out the Prairie Physician
Building has been a challenge to fill occupancy and that is the reason for the
guide plan to community commercial. They feel they will be able to lease more
space by doing that. They will be doing nothing else to the building.
Stoltz asked Herron to review the staff report. Herron stated Staff recommends
approval and pointed out the site is adjacent to a commercial use and would
conform to the surrounding area.
Stoltz opened the meeting up for public input. There was no input.
Pitzrick asked if rezoning this to commercial would affect the parking
requirements. Herron stated the parking requirement would be the same as the
previous use.
MOTION by Schultz, seconded by Kirk, to close the public hearing. Motion
carried 9-0.
MOTION by Schultz, seconded by Wuttke, to recommend approval of the Guide
Plan Change from Office to Community Commercial on 1.24 acres and Zoning
District Change from Office to Community Commercial on 1.24 acres, based on
plans stamped dated June 25, 2009 and the staff report dated July 10, 2009.
Motion carried 9-0.
D. Light Rail Presentation
This is a presentation on Station Area Planning for light rail in the City.
Randy Newton, Assistant City Engineer, and Tom Dobbs, consultant for
Hennepin County,presented the Light Rail presentation.
EDEN PRAIRIE PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES
July 13, 2009
Page 5
Randy Newton addressed the Draft Environment Impact Statement(DEIS)
portion of the study. The DEIS is a required component of the project
development process for all FTA New Start projects. The scoping portion of the
DEIS took place in the fall of 2008, and involved community meetings. The
Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority (HCRRA) plans to complete the
DEIS by the end of 2009. Evaluation of alternatives has been ongoing since
completion of the scoping process. The next steps are to finalize the DEIS.
Currently, two alternative alignments are under consideration in Eden Prairie.
Alternative Alignment 1 would follow the LRT trail right-of-way, which
Hennepin County owns. Alternative 3 would run through the Golden Triangle
Area and end at Mitchell Road. There have been several changes to the
Alternative 2 alignment. The biggest change is through the Major Center Area.
Because of some fatal flaws with the alignment a recommendation was made to
move the alignment and station from the middle of the Town Center area. 5
public open houses are scheduled from August 1lth to August 19th. The Eden
Prairie open house will be held August 19th at the Eden Prairie City Center. In
September a preliminary LPA recommendation is expected to be made by the
Southwest Technical Advisory Committee (TAC.) A public hearing in front of
the SW PAC is also planned for September. In October the SW PAC is expected
to make a final LPA recommendation. The HCRRA Board will then need to take
action on the LPA and forward it to the Metropolitan Council for inclusion in the
Transportation Policy Plan. This schedule should then allow for the
Transportation Policy Plan to be amended in late 2009. Simultaneous to this
process the DEIS work will be wrapping up and should be completed by late
2009. With this schedule the project should be able to move into preliminary
engineering in early 2010.
Lechelt asked what fatal flaws were created by going through the Town Center
Area. Mr. Newton indicated the issues going through the area were significant
grade changes, traffic impacts and FHWA approval. In particular the alignment
would require all traffic going through a major intersection to stop every time an
LRT Tran would pass through. The revised alignment through the Town Center
Area addressed several of these issues but introduced a couple of property
takings.
Tom Dobbs presented the Station Area Planning portion of the presentation. The
station area planning study is for Alignment 3 only. There are five stations in
Eden Prairie. They are: City West Parkway/Shady Oak, Golden Triangle, Eden
Prairie Town Center, Southwest Station and Mitchell Road. The planning is
informed by City Comprehensive Plan, City Planning and Area Studies, Current
and Planned Development, DEIS Study, Visioning Sessions 1 and 2, Public
Meeting 1, Market Conditions and Forecasts, Traffic Analysis, Meetings and
Dialog with City Staff. The next steps will be the following: 7/14/09 —meeting
with EP City Staff, 7/22/09—EP Public Meeting#1, 8/19/09 - EP Public Meeting
#2, and 09/09 - Production and Publication of SAP.
EDEN PRAIRIE PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES
July 13, 2009
Page 6
Pitzrick asked, with the relocation of the Town Center, what are we going to do
with the Guide Plan. Franzen said we will select the final alignment of where this
would go and we would have to revisit it through a public process.
Lechelt stated she has some concerns with parking being closest to the stations
and could a mixed use setting be considered, possibly combining the parking
ramp with commercial use. Mr. Dobbs said that would be a great idea to
incorporate that. The reality is the County will provide components of property
and how it will be acquisitioned.
Schultz stated he has attended a few scoping meetings and noticed a lot of
residents come to the podium and express a lot of concerns,but has not seen a lot
of input from area businesses and asked Herron to address this. Herron stated the
Chamber of Commerce and business owners adjacent to the proposed station
locations have been invited to attend the visioning sessions and an open house.
Feedback was provided and the majority of it was positive. She stated this is an
ongoing process and the businesses will be kept informed.
VII. PLANNERS' REPORT
Franzen stated there will not be a Planning Commission meeting on July 27th. The next
meeting would be August loth. There will be two items on the agenda for that meeting.
The first item will be a public hearing on garage sale definition/regulations. The second
item will be a public hearing on the Heritage Preservation Ordinance.
VIII. MEMBERS' REPORT
IX. CONTINUING BUSINESS
X. NEW BUSINESS
XI. ADJOURNMENT
MOTION by Kirk, seconded by Schultz, to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried
9-0.
There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 8:26 p.m.