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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2005/07/05 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Regular CITY OFOUIS OFFICIAL MINUTES ST L PARK CITY COUNCIL MEETING ST. LOUIS PARK, MINNESOTA July 5, 2005 1. Call to Order Mayor Jacobs called the meeting to order at 7.30 pm. Council members present: Mayor Jeff Jacobs, John Basill, Phil Finkelstein, Paul Omodt, Susan Sanger, Sue Santa, and Sally Velick Staff present: Assistant Zoning Administrator(Mr. Morrison), City Clerk (Ms. Reichert), City Manager(Mr. Harmening), City Attorney(Mr. Scott), Community Development Director(Mr Locke), Planning/Zoning Supervisor(Ms. McMonigal), Park Board Superintendent (Mr Beane) and Recording Secretary(Ms. Stegora-Peterson). 2. Presentations- None 3. Approval of Minutes 3a. City Council Minutes of June 20, 2005 Councilmember Finkelstein noted on page seven in the second paragraph, after" to worry about market issues", insert, "although he continued to remain worried about what they called "condo-itis." That was something the entire City Council was concerned about and had been talking about at study sessions. The minutes were approved as corrected. 3b. Study Session Minutes of June 13, 2005 Councilmember Finkelstein indicated on page four, fourth paragraph of item one, it was not that he cautioned against leaving any of the three parcels out of the final proposal, rather he cautioned about coming back more than once. They should be meticulous in terms of what they demanded for the development and maybe take a different look at it. Other members of the Council agreed. The minutes were approved as corrected. Council Meeting Minutes -2- July 5, 2005 4a. Adopt Ordinance No. 2293-05 amending the zoning designation for property located at 7202 and 7252 Excelsior Boulevard from 0-Office to RC-High Density Residential, approve second reading of ordinance, approve summary, and authorize publication. Case No. 04-72-Z 4b. Adopt Ordinance No. 2294-05 amending the Official Zoning Map changing the zoning designation from IG—General Industnal to C2—General Commercial at 7115 W. Lake Street, approve second reading, and authorize publication. Case No. 05-16-Z. 4c. 2005 Street Sealcoat Project: Designate Allied Blacktop Co. the lowest responsible bidder and authonze execution of a contract with the firm in the amount of$218,371.10 for the 2005 Street Sealcoat Project, No. 2005-0001 4d. Adopt Ordinance No. 2295-05 second reading of an Ordinance vacating right-of- way along a portion of 16th Street West, approve summary, and authorize publication 4e. Adopt Resolution No. 05-090 approving plans and specifications and authorizing advertisement for bids for construction and installation of a high-speed fiber optic link to connect the St. Louis Park Public Safety Answenng Point (PSAP) to Hennepin County radio communications tower to support 800 MHz radio communications 4f. Accept Vendor Claim Report It was moved by Councilmember Santa, seconded by Councilmember Omodt, to approve the Agenda and items listed on the Consent Calendar The motion passed 7-0. 5. Boards and Commissions 6. Public Hearings 6a. Public Hearing to consider an intoxicating off-sale liquor license for Miracle Mile Liquor Barrel, Inc. at 5111 Excelsior Blvd Ms. Reichert presented the staff report Comments from residents included a concern about the proximity to a competitor and that a liquor store in this location would not present the neighborhood in the best light as a gateway. A neighborhood leader also requested they be more proactive contacting the neighborhood association with changes at Miracle Mile. Mayor Jacobs stated he received a fax of a petition signed by some members of the Brookside Neighborhood Association, which would be made part of the public record. Mayor Jacobs opened the public hearing. Jim Burton, 4003 Grimes, was surprised St. Louis Park was more liberal in relation to liquor store proximity to churches and schools, that should be considered in the future. There were eight liquor stores within a mile and a half radius and there should be more control Council Meeting Minutes -3- July 5, 2005 Dave Anderle, applicant, stated this was an upscale wine and spirits retailer and were proposing a competitive store with many choices. They will have knowledgeable staff and good customer service, but would also bnng a small town concept There will be enough room for everyone to enjoy the free enterprise system. St Louis Park can handle another store, especially one that kept the sidewalks clean and presented the nght concept for Miracle Mile Councilmember Sanger asked if they would only being selling wine? Mr Anderle replied they would be selling beer and spirits as well. Councilmember Omodt asked if they did a market survey. He had the same concern about the number of liquor establishments in one area. Mr. Anderle responded they used the survey Miracle Mile did and also used the St Louis Park traffic study to determine how many cars were using Excelsior Blvd and Highway 7 as part of their proposal. David Payne, Al's Liquors, stated he closed his liquor store fourteen years ago when MGM, Byerly's and France 44 came in. Chains often declare bankruptcy and small retailers get stuck paying for it. He was not adverse to a good liquor store, but the City paid moving expenses for Mr. Jennings to move and there was a spirit store in Excelsior and Grand Mr Jennings expanded his wine department and did a good job and was a long-term taxpayer in the City This would end up hurting present taxpayers. Peter Rademacher, 8963 Pierce St. NE Columbia Heights, applicant, stated their chain was seven different owners that bought together and had the buying power as a chain. They also advertised together, but they did things differently at each store. He hoped they would bnng good prices and selection to the city, with a small town feel. Mayor Jacobs closed the public heanng Councilmember Finkelstein agreed it wasn't desirable to have another liquor store in a concentrated area, but the ordinance didn't restrict it. He suggested this be a study session item and would like to know what other cities were doing. Even less desirable than a liquor store were empty storefronts at Miracle Mile, which caused him concern. He wanted to preserve a neighborhood shopping center and protect the neighborhood. It was moved by Councilmember Finkelstein, seconded by Councilmember Sanger to approve the intoxicating off-sale liquor license for Miracle Mile Liquor Barrel, Inc located at 5111 Excelsior Blvd. Council Meeting Minutes -4- July 5, 2005 Mayor Jacobs also didn't want residents to believe the only reason this was approved was that the ordinance did not allow them to deny This was not a bad proposal and he wants them to succeed. He also shared concerns about vacant spaces at Miracle Mile and didn't want that to be the message either. Councilmember Basill agreed with studying what neighboring communities did. He also wanted to consider how close to churches and schools these establishments were located He had a request from some constituents that they have a tasteful sign and a request they probably could not honor, which was to consider a different name. Councilmember Santa commented that it may not be the residents of St. Louis Park that go to the liquor stores, it may be people using Hwy 100 She also had concerns about purposeful development along Excelsior. They were concerned for all of Excelsior, not just Excelsior and Grand. Keeping Miracle Mile vital was very important. The motion passed 7-0. 7. Requests, Petitions, and Communications from the Public—None 8. Resolutions, Ordinances, Motions 8a. First reading of an ordinance allowing off-leash dogs in designated off-leash area. Mr. Beane presented the staff report. He noted the dog park was 90% completed and should be open by the end of July. Councilmember Sanger asked how the community would be notified when the new site was available. Mr. Beane indicated the neighborhood would be notified, they would also update their website. Residents were aware this was happening. Councilmember Sanger asked how they would notify users of the site? Mr. Beane responded that most dog owners had been active in the process and followed the web site. It was moved by Councilmember Saner, seconded by Councilmember Omodt, to approve first reading of the amended ordinance allowing off-leash dogs in a designated off-leash area with a permit and to setting second reading for July 18, 2005 The motion passed 7-0. 8b. Request by Darrell W. Brown for a Conditional Use Permit to allow more than 800 square feet of accessory building ground floor area. Case Nos. 05- 10-CUP 5511 Vermont St. Resolution No. 05-089 Mr. Momson presented the staff report. Mr. Brown stated that he was thankful Mr. Morrison came up with this idea for many reasons and was happy with this approach. Councilmember Sanger indicated on the third page of the staff report, it indicates minimum side yard was 13', but the proposed side yard was only five feet. Why wasn't a vanance needed? Mr. Morrison responded the report was incorrect, Mr. Brown met the setbacks. Council Meeting Minutes -5- July 5, 2005 Councilmember Sanger asked if this was granted, was there a way to put an easement or restnction on the property prohibiting future use of this building to operate a business? Ms. McGonigal replied in the resolution there was a condition (#4) that the accessory building shall not be used in any way as part of a home occupation. Councilmember Sanger asked if there was something that could be put on the title? Mr. Scott responded that the conditional use permit resolution gets recorded against the title and a potential buyer would see that. They should also be aware of zoning ordinances. Councilmember Basill stated this was a unique lot. The applicant had made substantial changes in the proposal to comply with a CUP. The existing garage was long and narrow and in disrepair. It would be difficult to put a two-car garage there. It would have to go behind the property. This was a much more reasonable and he would be in favor. Councilmember Omodt indicated he would support this, as he did last time. People with two story houses were penalized because of the ground floor area. This added to the value of the neighborhood, took cars off the street, neighbors were supportive, they would not see the structure from the street, and it would not impede views or green space. He was in favor of the CUP. Councilmember Finkelstein asked where the garages would be in relation to the neighbor to the East? Mr. Morrison replied that the back yards faced each other. It was further away than the first proposal from the property line, about 50 feet away. Councilmember Finkelstein indicated the report noted this would allow twelve cars and asked for further clarification. Mr Momson responded that would allow four cars outside of the building as well. Councilmember Sanger believed this was a better proposal and couldn't argue against the CUP. Her concern was the ability to enforce the ordinance against home occupations in residential areas. They needed to be concerned about future residents because it was difficult to regulate home occupations. What can they as a city do to enforce their requirement against home occupation use when they discover it happening? Councilmember Finkelstein asked if their language was strong enough? Mr. Scott replied that it was a perennial problem, regardless of the ordinance language, to enforce illegal home occupations. Every city had those issues. He believed the language was fine The way to control them was to regulate the size of structures so there was not an incentive and available space to do those kinds of things. That was what they were doing here. Council Meeting Minutes -6- July 5, 2005 8c. Zoning Ordinance Amendment to remove Cluster Housing from the R-1, R-2 and R-3 zoning districts as a conditional use, while allowing existing cluster housing developments to continue as a conforming use. Case Nos. 05-23-ZA Ms. McGonigal presented the staff report. Councilmember Sanger stated that the Planning Commission didn't discuss the motivation for this proposal The proposal to eliminate cluster housing in R1, R2 and R3 was based on the recommendations of the Housing Summit process, which put a priority on retention and development of single-family, owner-occupied, detached homes. Therefore, one of the reasons for eliminating cluster housing was to minimize zoning incentives someone might have to tear down existing single-family, owner-occupied, attached housing and replace it with something else It was moved by Councilmember Sanger, seconded by Councilmember Santa, to approve first reading of Zoning Ordinance amendment, and set second reading for July I8`7, The motion passed 7-0. 9. Communications Mayor Jacobs thanked all staff involved with the 4th of July fireworks display. Mr. Harmening reported that the State shut down impact would depend on the length of time Public safety was the pnmary concern and they were fine. The State Fire Marshall's office and the BCA were essential service. They have a working relationship with the State Department of Employment and Economic Development on the retention of a large industry in St. Louis Park, including Novartis. They needed to make a proposal to Novartis by the first part of August. It was important the State be a partner, so that would be an impact. It they were out for a longer period of time, there would be more impact. They also worked with MnDot on planning, etc. Councilmember Sanger asked this would impact the City's receipt of property tax money? Mr. Harmening replied the property tax payment was received from the County. Councilmember Finkelstein asked about bus service? Mr. Harmening replied bus service was considered an essential service. 10. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 8:25 p.m Pe.02—t-..40 - C...... 4( )/6(y. ity Clerk Mayor