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Planning Commission - 06/11/2012 APPROVED MINUTES EDEN PRAIRIE PLANNING COMMISSION MONDAY,JUNE 11, 2012 7:00 P.M., CITY CENTER Council Chambers 8080 Mitchell Road COMMISSION MEMBERS: Steven Frank, Matt Fyten, John Kirk, Katie Lechelt, Jacob Lee, Jerry Pitzrick, Kevin Schultz, Jon Stoltz, Travis Wuttke STAFF MEMBERS: Michael Franzen, City Planner Rod Rue, City Engineer Stu Fox, Manager of Parks and Natural Resources Julie Krull, Recording Secretary I. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE—ROLL CALL Vice Chair Fyten called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Lechelt, Lee and Stoltz were absent. II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA MOTION by Pitzrick, seconded by Frank, to approve the agenda. Motion carried 6-0. III. MINUTES A. PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING HELD ON MAY 14, 2012 MOTION by Kirk, seconded by Pitzrick, to approve the minutes. Motion carried 2-0. Kirk, Pitzrick, Schultz and Wuttke abstained. IV. INFORMATIONAL MEETINGS V. PUBLIC MEETINGS VI. PUBLIC HEARINGS A. MASTER TECHNOLOGY GROUP, INC by Nelson LIMOC, LLC (Continued) Location: 7550 Market Place Drive Request for: Request for: • Planned Unit Development Concept Review on 2.93 acres • Planned Unit Development District Review with waivers on2.93 acres • Zoning District Change from I-2 to Office on I-25 acres • Site Plan Review on 2.93 acres EDEN PRAIRIE PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES June 11, 2012 Page 2 Franzen stated there is not an agreement relating to parking and the applicant is requesting a continuance to the July 9th meeting. Vice Chair Fyten opened the meeting up for public input. There was no input. MOTION by Wuttke, seconded by Kirk, to recommend a continuance to the July 9, 2012 meeting. Motion carried 6-0. Vice Chair Fyten said that new public hearing notices will not be mailed out. B. THE WOODS AT BRYANT LAKE by Landmark Development of MN, LLC Location: 6251 & 6263Beach Road Request for: • Planned Unit Development Concept Review on 6.95 acres • Planned Unit Development District Review with Waivers on 6.95 acres • Zoning District Change from Rural to R1-22 on 6.95 acres • Preliminary Plat of 6.95 acres into 5 lots Franzen stated applicant is requesting a continuance to the July 9th meeting. Franzen stated this proposal will be continued to the July 9th meeting. Vice Chair Fyten opened the meeting up for public input. There was no input. MOTION by Schultz, seconded by Wuttke, to recommend a continuance to the July 9, 2012 meeting. Motion carried 6-0. Vice Chair Fyten said that new public hearing notices will not be mailed out. C. HIGH POINT AT RILEY CREEK by Manley Development Location: 9765 Sky Lane Request for: • Zoning District Change from Rural to R1-13.5on 5.0 acres • Preliminary Plat on 5.0 acres into 12 lots Scott Carlston, of 8150 Drexel Court, Eden Prairie, who is part of the development group, said they have been working with City Staff and taking into consideration their recommendations. The issue that needs to be addressed is storm water ponding. Right now the drainage shoots streams of water over the MAC property and improvements need to be made for this. He stated they are also working with MAC on this issue and would like to move this proposal on to the next meeting. Vice Chair Fyten asked Franzen to review the staff report. Franzen stated that the project conforms to the requirements of the R1-13.5 Zoning District and that the staff recommendation is to continue the item to the next meeting to work out issues with the storm water drainage. EDEN PRAIRIE PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES June 11, 2012 Page 3 Pitzrick asked staff, in regards to the neighboring project and the talk of an additional road for egress, that since we are adding more homes, an alternate to having a secondary road would be to have the homes sprinklered. Given this, there is a 20% reduction in home insurance for doing this; which could be a very positive thing and eliminate the need for a secondary road. Schultz agreed with Pitzrick's suggestion and said it was a good idea. Vice Chair Fyten also agreed. Vice Chair Fyten asked the project proponent if a continuance to the next meeting would be a problem. The project proponent said it would not be a problem. Vice Chair Fyten pointed out if the project proponent came back to the next Planning Commission meeting,he could still make it to the next City Council meeting. Vice Chair Fyten asked Rue what type of piping would be better for this proposal; permanent or temporary. Rue said MAC prefers a permanent piping and the City would not be opposed to that,but would have to go through a detailed design with this type of piping. Mr. Carlston said the only reason they wanted to use temporary piping is for cost reasons; a permanent piping is very expensive. Vice Chair Fyten opened the meeting up for public input. There was no input. MOTION by Schultz, seconded by Wuttke, to recommend a continuance to the June 25, 2012 meeting. Motion carried 6-0. Vice Chair Fyten said that new public hearing notices will not be mailed out. D. THE MEADOWS AT RILEY CREEK 2012—REMFER/DRIVER By Marsh Cove, LLC Location: 9805 & 9845 Sky Lane Request for: • Planned Unit Development Concept Review on 10.11 acres • Planned Unit Development District Review on 10.11 acres • Zoning District Change from Rural to R1-13.5 on 10.11 acres • Preliminary Plat of 10.11 acres into 23 lots, 1 outlot and road right-of-way Steve Bona, of Homestead Partners,presented the proposal. He stated they are back tonight after working with City Staff on access issues,hauling significant material and storm water pipes. They believe a temporary pipe would be best because the MAC road would have to be torn up to put the permanent pipe in. If the MAC property develops in the future, then the temporary pipe can be removed. Mr. Bona stated a continuance to the next meeting can work for them as long as they can make it to the next City Council meeting. Vice Chair Fyten asked Franzen to review the staff report. Franzen stated that the project conforms to the requirements of the R1-13.5 Zoning District and that the staff recommendation is to continue the item to the next meeting to work out issues with the storm water drainage. EDEN PRAIRIE PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES June 11, 2012 Page 4 Vice Chair Fyten opened the meeting up for public input. There was no input. MOTION by Frank, seconded by Pitzrick, to recommend a continuance to the June 25, 2012 meeting. Motion carried 6-0. Vice Chair Fyten said that new public hearing notices will not be mailed out. E. MITCHELL CROSSING APARTMENTS 2012 by Eden Prairie Development LLC Location: Mitchell Road & Cochrane lane Request for: • Planned Unit Development Concept Review on 3.098 acres • Planned Unit Development District Review with waivers on 3.098 acres • Zoning District Change from Community Commercial to RM-2.5 on 3.098 acres • Site Plan Review on 3.098 acres Scott Carlston, of 8150 Drexel Court, Eden Prairie,presented the proposal. He showed a power point presentation. Mr. Carlston stated the land sat for a long time. He has met with the owner of the BP station and she is excited to have a neighbor. They are proposing an apartment complex and are asking for waivers for density, height, setbacks, parking and open space. The last apartment construction in Eden Prairie was in 2004. Eden Prairie is ready for this. There will be many exciting improvements. Mr. Carlson pointed out this is a 35 million dollar project. They are planning on building smaller units, studio apartments to cater to the younger people. The units are smaller, and because of that, we need to add more parking. The building will cater to the 20 to early 30 year olds, and keep them local. Barbara Halverson, President of Steven Scott Management Company, would be managing this property. She stated they have managed other properties in Eden Prairie, so they do have experience in the City. The millennial generation is the largest generation of kids coming out of school to 30 year old professionals. We are designing a different mix of apartments so it will be accessible to have your own unit without sharing it with roommates. The units will be mainly studio apartments and also some one and two bedroom units. Ms. Halverson also stated that in an apartment complex they manage in Eden Prairie, there seems to be adequate parking for a one to one ratio. She pointed out the problems arise, in regards to parking, when you have larger units of housing. Mr. Carlston said that he did not want to build just another apartment building so he is seeking out Carbon Creative to help them with this project. Cheryl Gordon, of Carbon Creative, stated why they will give the building a personality and soul. They want to incorporate the building into the largest market. They want to create a bond with the building and businesses around the area. EDEN PRAIRIE PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES June 11, 2012 Page 5 Mr. Carlston stated they will have a workout facility, an open community room, WiFi areas, and a lido deck above the parking garage with an outdoor BBQ area, fire pit outdoor sitting area and maybe a pool. They would also like to connect to the trails in the area and would like to have bike rentals. They would like to be a pet friendly apartment complex. They will have 280 underground parking stalls and would really like to have one stall per bedroom and not two stalls per bedroom. This project will not perform well with the current requirements. Mr. Carlston pointed out they did a parking study at the SW Station Complex and found only 48% of the stalls were being utilized. At Water Tower Plaza there were only 36% of the stalls being occupied. The Bluffs only 54% occupied. Buca, during dinner hour, still has parking space available. Mr. Carlston said they also talked about doing the Hour Car;renting cars by the hour. They have also talked to GE about working with them in regards to their electric cars. He stated they have designed 20 more parking stalls outside of the building. They would like approval of this project. Vice Chair Fyten asked Franzen to review the staff report. Franzen stated that the City went through a Guide Plan update several years ago which identified two growth areas that were appropriate for higher density housing which are Golden Triangle and Town Center. The density of this project would fit better in the Town Center where there will be a critical mass of housing and commercial in a walkable environment. In this area, the Town Center ordinance permits less parking. The housing would be within a the 10 minute walk of future light rail. This site is within 1/2 mile of the Mitchell Station but it is not a 10 minute walk. High density housing can be a appropriate on this site. The approved plan is 57 senior units and 6,000 square feet of commercial. Apartments on this site is acceptable subject to staff revisions related to meeting setback, parking and open space requirements. In regards to the request for less parking, it does not meet the conditions for practical difficulties since the circumstances are created by the applicant. A parking waiver would be a tradeoff for a better plan,however the project does not provide betterments. The best way to look at less parking is through a code amendment and look at actual parking utilization at apartments in the City. Vice Chair Fyten opened the meeting up for public input. There was no input. Mr. Carlston said he is developing a 35 million dollar project and is not asking for any money from the City but is just asking for the waivers for this project and would like to see it moved on. Frank stated he like the idea of targeting the millennium generation. Pitzrick asked the project proponent where the guests would park. Mr. Carlston said they have both inside and outside parking for guests. Pitzrick asked if it was normal practice to have guests go into a secured parking area. Mr. Carlston did not think it would be a problem and also pointed out there would be 20 spaces of outside parking. EDEN PRAIRIE PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES June 11, 2012 Page 6 Wuttke asked if parking requirements were met in other apartment units outside of the Town Center Area. Franzen said they were met, with the exception of the Senior Center units. Wuttke said he did not see parking as an issue,but does not know if the location is a good fit. Kirk said he agreed with Wuttke that it is a beautiful project,but does not feel the location is good. Mr. Carlston said this site is an odd location; it is out there by itself. He said they are within a six minute walk from the restaurants at SW Station and a 5 minute walk to SW Station. He stated they are closer to these places than if they were in the Town Center. Mr. Carlston said he would like it voted on tonight. Vice Chair Fyten asked Franzen if the LRT would be developed in the area and when that would take place. Franzen said around 2018. Pitzrick said he is comfortable with the project and feels the Town Center plan was flawed and that this should not be compared to that. He feels this is a new product to the area and would like to see it get going. Wuttke asked if there were any studies done on rental rates. Mr. Carlston said that is the reason they have Steve Scott involved. Vice Chair Fyten asked the Commission for opinions on the project. Frank said he liked the project and pointed out who they are targeting is supportive of the project. Pitzrick said he is also supportive and suggested that maybe one of the outlots could be reserved for parking for the first 5 years. Kirk stated the project is more height and density then he would like to see. Vice Chair Fyten stated he feels the same way as Kirk. The parking or setbacks are not an issue,but rather the location. Schultz said the project is a worthy project. The setbacks and parking are not an issue but feels it may not be in the right location because it maybe too big for the area,but overall he would be in favor of the project. He also stated this project cannot be compared to the Town Center location. Wuttke said this is an orphaned area with a developer who wants to put a lot of money in the area and would be in favor of it. He did say it was unfortunate it is such a big project for such a small area. Pitzrick pointed out even though it is a big project there is a lot of open, undeveloped area that will make up for this. EDEN PRAIRIE PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES June 11, 2012 Page 7 Pitzrick asked if this were continued to the June 25th meeting, could it still go to the next City Council meeting. Franzen asked why the Commission to indicate why this would continue this. Pitzrick said to talk more about the setbacks and outdoor amenities. Kirk said he feels these are not big issues and does not see the need for a continuance. Schultz said in listening to everyone,he believes the concerns are not setbacks or amenities,but the location, and stated the Commission should vote on this tonight. MOTION by Wuttke, seconded by Schultz, to close the public hearing. Motion carried 6-0. MOTION by Wuttke, seconded by Frank, to recommend approval of the guide plan change from Community Commercial to High Density Residential on 3.098 acres; Planned Unit Development Concept Review on 3.098 acres; Planned Unit Development District Review with waivers on 3.098 acres; Zoning District Change from Community Commercial to RM-2.5 on 3.098 acres; Site Plan Review on 3.098 acres, and plans stamped dated June 7, 2012. Motion carried 4-2, with Kirk and Fyten opposing. VII. PLANNERS' REPORT Franzen stated in addition to the continued items there will be one new public hearing on the June 25. VIII. MEMBERS' REPORT IX. CONTINUING BUSINESS X. NEW BUSINESS XI. ADJOURNMENT MOTION by Kirk, seconded by Frank, to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried 6-0. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:32 p.m.