HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015/06/01 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Regular ffiSt. Louis Park OFFICIAL MINUTES
MINNESOTA CITY COUNCIL MEETING
ST. LOUIS PARK, MINNESOTA
JUNE 1, 2015
1. Call to Order
Mayor Jacobs called the meeting to order at 7:33 p.m.
Councilmembers present: Mayor Jeff Jacobs, Tim Brausen, Steve Hallfin, Gregg Lindberg,
Anne Mavity, Susan Sanger, and Jake Spano
Councilmembers absent: None.
Staff present: City Manager (Mr. Harmening), City Attorney (Mr. Mattick), Director of
Engineering (Ms. Heiser), Senior Planner (Mr. Walther), Economic Development Coordinator
(Mr. Hunt), Associate Planner (Mr. Kelley), Housing Supervisor (Ms. Schnitker), Community
Development Intern(Mr. Boyce), and Recording Secretary (Ms. Hughes).
la. Pledge of Allegiance
lb. Roll Call
2. Presentations
2a. Recognition of Donations
Mayor Jacobs thanked Mr. Paul Reshke for his $1,000 donation for a purple martin house
to be installed at Westwood Hills Nature Center and thanked Ms Chelsey Bahe for her
$30 donation for a nature play sign to be posted at the nature play area at Westwood Hills
Nature Center.
2b. Citizens Independent Bank 65 Year Anniversary Recognition
Mayor Jacobs congratulated Citizens Independent Bank on its 65 year anniversary and
stated that in 2014, Citizens Independent Bank Community Foundation donated $80,000
to several organizations and at the branch level, the bank donated $10,000 to local
schools and youth sports associations and many bank employees donated a number of
hours to several faith-based and business organizations. He stated that Citizens
Independent Bank was awarded the Minnesota Bankers Association's "Community
Champion Award." He introduced Mr. Brad Bakken, President/CEO of Citizens
Independent Bank, and thanked Mr. Bakken and his mother, Ms. Connie Bakken, and all
of their employees and presented a plaque commemorating their 65 year anniversary.
Mr. Bakken stated they are thankful to be a part of this community and thanked all of the
bank employees and the representatives attending this evening from Children First and
the Rotary and introduced Mr. Jim Rhodes, Citizens Independent Bank Board Member.
He thanked the City Council for its recognition of their 65 year anniversary.
3. Approval of Minutes
3a. Closed Executive Session May 18, 2015
City Council Meeting -2- June 1, 2015
The minutes were approved as presented
4. Approval of Agenda and Items on Consent Calendar
NOTE: The Consent Calendar lists those items of business which are considered to be routine
and/or which need no discussion. Consent items are acted upon by one motion. If discussion is
desired by either a Councilmember or a member of the audience, that item may be moved to an
appropriate section of the regular agenda for discussion.
4a. Approve a Temporary On-Sale Intoxicating Liquor License for STEP at 6812 West
Lake Street for June 18, 2015.
4b. Approve the second reading and Adopt Ordinance No. 2467-15 Vacating Easements -
5320 West 23rd Street, and authorize summary publication.
4c. Approve the second reading and Adopt Ordinance No. 2468-15 Amending Chapter 3,
Section 57 of the St. Louis Park City Code Increasing Production Capacity for Brewer
Off-Sale Malt Liquor Licenses and Brewer Taproom Licenses, and Adopt Ordinance
No. 2469-15 Amending Chapter 36 of the St Louis Park City Code Increasing
Production Capacity for Breweries Located in the Industrial Park and Business Park
Zoning Districts, and to approve the summary ordinances for publication.
4d. Approve second reading and Adopt Ordinance No. 2470-15 Relating to
Discontinuance of Water Service, Amending Chapter 32 of the St. Louis Park City
Code, approve summary ordinance, and authorize publication
4e. Approve second reading and Adopt Ordinance No. 2471-15 Amending the St. Louis
Park City Code Relating to Zoning by Creating Section 36-268-PUD 1 as a Planned
Unit Development Zoning District for the Property Located at 3907 and 3915
Highway 7, 3031 Glenhurst Avenue, and 3914 and 3918 31st Street West, and approve
the summary ordinance for publication.
4f. Approve second reading and Adopt Ordinance No. 2472-15 Vacating an Alley Lying
Between CSAH 25 Frontage Road and 31St Street West which connects France
Avenue and Glenhurst Avenue, and approve the summary ordinance for publication
4g. Adopt Resolution No. 15-074 approving acceptance of a Purple Martin House (value
$1000) from Paul Reshke to be installed and monitored at Westwood Hills Nature
Center and approving acceptance of a Nature Play Sign (value $30) from Chelsey
Bahe to be posted at the Nature Play area at Westwood Hills Nature Center.
4h. Adopt Resolution No. 15-075 authorizing calling for a Public Hearing on July 6, 2015
on the issuance of health care facilities revenue refunding bonds and authorizing the
publication of a notice of the hearing for the Jones Harrison Project
4i. Approve Motorola MCC7500 Contract relating to the replacement of the radio
consoles for 911 Dispatch
4j. Adopt Resolution No. 15-076 authorizing final payment in the amount of$44,333.04
for Project 2016-1100 MSA Street Rehabilitation — Pennsylvania Avenue with Valley
Paving, Inc., City Contract No. 47-14.
4k. Adopt Resolution No. 15-077 revoking W. Lake Street between Brookview Drive and
Minnesota 7 Service Road from the City's Municipal State Aid System.
41. Approve for filing Planning Commission Minutes May 6, 2015
City Council Meeting -3- June 1, 2015
It was moved by Councilmember Lindberg, seconded by Councilmember Spano, to
approve the Agenda and items listed on the Consent Calendar, and to waive reading of
all resolutions and ordinances
The motion passed 7-0
5. Boards and Commissions - None
6. Public Hearings - None
7. Requests, Petitions, and Communications from the Public—None
8. Resolutions, Ordinances, Motions and Discussion Items
8a. Comprehensive Plan Amendment— "Bridgewater Development." Resolution
No. 15-078.
Mr. Kelley presented the staff report and request for a Comprehensive Plan Land Use
Map amendment. He presented a map of the site depicting existing land use and
surrounding properties and explained that the current guidance and underlying zoning
district allow up to a six story building and density of 50 residential units per acre and a
Mixed Use designation requires a mix of uses and provides higher design requirements.
He presented an image of the proposed building and stated the first level consists of
10,000 square feet for Bridgewater Bank and 7,000 square feet of commercial space with
parking located in a surface lot and two levels of underground parking. He also presented
several elevation images and stated that the proposed change to Mixed Use meets the
vision and goals outlined in the Comprehensive Plan, including encouraging
developments that contribute to a more walkable environment and promoting high
density residential development near commercial centers. He advised that residents have
raised concerns about development intensification, traffic issues, and the six-story height
of the building, as well as concerns about the loss of small businesses He stated that
SRF Consulting prepared a traffic study that analyzed average daily trips, peak hour
intersection turning movements, and intersection capacity and explained in detail the
results of the traffic study. He advised that SRF Consulting has been engaged to provide
a more detailed analysis of the general circulation around the properties and to perform
an intersection control evaluation for options related to Park Commons Drive and to
model the impacts of each of those options. He reviewed the public process to date as
well as next steps and indicated if the Comprehensive Plan amendment is approved, the
developer would then apply for a preliminary and final plat and preliminary and final
PUD specifically related to the project. He introduced Mr. Ron Mehl from Dominium
Development and Mr Mike Krych from BKV Architecture
Councilmember Mavity requested further information about the PUD process.
Mr. Kelley explained that the PUD process would require a neighborhood meeting as
well as a Planning Commission public hearing followed by City Council approval. He
stated that a PUD district represents a rezoning and the City uses the underlying zoning to
inform what kind of project can be built. He stated the site currently consists of three
parcels with one parcel owned by the EDA that is zoned C-2 Commercial and the other
two parcels are owned by Bridgewater Bank. He explained that the C-2 district would
City Council Meeting -4- June 1, 2015
allow such uses as a hotel, retail, office, medical office, or restaurants, and allows a
mixed use development up to 50 units per acre and a building up to six stories in height.
Councilmember Sanger stated there was no discussion in the traffic study about the
impact of this proposed project on the congestion on Park Commons Drive and the
congestion in Trader Joe's for people trying to get in and out of that parking lot and asked
if those areas were studied.
Ms. Heiser replied that the traffic study reviewed level of service and amount of delay
and SRF Consulting was not asked to look at what happens at the driveway to Trader
Joe's but looked at queuing and how long vehicles are waiting. She stated the worst level
of service is the left turn going from Park Commons onto Monterey and the City will be
performing some additional modeling of that area.
Councilmember Sanger requested that the additional analysis look at the backup that
occurs in the Trader Joe's parking lot for people trying to get out toward Monterey or
making a left turn in or out of that parking lot.
Ms. Meghan Phimister, 3451 Zarthan, presented a written petition for the public record
containing approximately 325 signatures asking that the City Council not take action
tonight until development guidelines are created from Methodist Hospital to the Ellipse.
Mr. Steve Frank, 3940 Joppa Avenue, stated that the concerned citizens group has raised
concerns about cut-through traffic in the neighborhood, building height and aesthetics,
and loss of small businesses, and has requested a review of the entire Excelsior
Boulevard corridor as opposed to projects on a case-by-case basis.
Mr. Dennis Morin, 4509 West 36-1/2 Street, stated the delay on Park Commons Drive is
shown to increase from 32 to 48 seconds, a 50% increase, and on Excelsior Boulevard
and Kipling, the delay goes up 55% from 29 seconds to 45 seconds. He stated that if you
use the alternate scenario for traffic, the delay on Park Commons Drive goes up to 89
seconds, a 178% increase. Mr. Morin asked if this assessment was correct, and Mr
Kelley replied that these figures were correct. Mr. Morin then presented Council with a
"Critique of the Base Access Plan" and stated that 36-1/2 Street has no four-way stop
signs, no sidewalks, and has significant on street parking, which causes sightline issues.
He stated they are concerned about safety and the base plan fails to solve the traffic
congestion at Monterey and Park Commons and residents believe the proposed access
points are not able to manage any increase in a high density development and believe
more study is needed of the whole area He stated Park Commons is the only street that
did not show a projected daily trip count and should be looked at. He asked the City
Council to work with residents to develop redevelopment guidelines and conduct a
comprehensive traffic study
Ms. Patti Carlson, 3801 Inglewood Avenue S., expressed concern about the height and
density. She stated that nothing was mentioned about what happens on Monterey going
toward the Rec Center and stated there is often a significant backup to go into Trader
Joe's that backs up to Excelsior Boulevard and adding more cars seems foolish. She
urged the City Council to be an advocate and protect their neighborhood and not make it
more difficult to live there.
City Council Meeting -5- June 1, 2015
Mr. Mike Edlavitch, 3720 Glenhurst, expressed concern about pedestrians and stated
pedestrians are having a hard time crossing over Park Commons to go to the Rec Center
and Wolfe Park, which is a major focus for kids in this area
Mr. Steve May, 3901 Joppa Avenue, requested that the City Council table action on
amending the Comprehensive Plan Land Use Map until a comprehensive plan is in place
for the north side of Excelsior Boulevard.
Mr. Dan Becker, 3785 Kipling, questioned why the proposed project was six stories and
why the City Council was not looking at other options such as three stories. He did not
believe the traffic study addressed cars without mufflers or people that run through stop
signs and asked the City Council to consider those issues.
Mr. Bill Weber, 3824 Huntington Avenue, urged the City Council to postpone action on
this amendment until the traffic problems on Monterey are resolved. He urged the City
Council to consider the following changes: (1) acquire the bank building and car wash
and do a bigger project and bring residential traffic off of Kipling; (2) combine Access B
and C and line up with Park Commons Drive; (3) restripe Monterey to include a
combined left turn lane and right northbound turn lane into a new combined driveway;
and (4) improve the site distance coming out of Trader Joe's or install pedestrian striping
at Park Commons Drive.
Mr. Russ Redman, 3833 Kipling, stated the traffic study did not address parking and
asked how many parking spaces are provided.
Mr. Kelley stated the development proposal is currently in the concept stage with parking
shown to exceed the City's requirements for residential and commercial uses
Ms. Noelle Racette, 4900 Vallacher Avenue, asked the City Council to consider its role
and whom they serve and why they serve. She was concerned about the amount of
concrete, steel, glass, and brick in all the developments along Excelsior Boulevard and
felt it all looks the same. She was also concerned about eliminating small houses and
replacing them with one-bedroom apartments and whether this is the destination location
that St Louis Park wants to become
Ms. Courtney Nichols, representing Park Health and Rehabilitation Center, 4415 West
36-1/2 Street, expressed concern about the shared parking spaces and stated they have 81
patients in their skilled nursing facility and they use a small space in the front of their
building for visitors and utilize shared space in the back. She stated the proposed project
uses the shared lot to build their structure and questioned what kind of access to parking
they can expect in order to serve their patients. She stated Access D, as a primary
entrance into the residential area, would increase traffic flow and that is the only entrance
and exit into their back space and is where emergency vehicles park and the proposal
does not allow them to serve the emergency medical needs of their patients. She
referenced an easement agreement and stated the current proposal has not been agreed to
in their easement agreement.
Councilmember Mavity thanked everyone for their comments and stated that Council is
not evaluating or approving the project this evening but is being asked to change the land
use map from Commercial to Mixed Use, and pointed out the site currently allows up to
City Council Meeting -6- June 1, 2015
50 units of housing without a PUD and the proposed change requires a PUD which gives
Council more control over development of the site. She did not believe this project was
ready for approval because it has not addressed the issues that have been raised and more
work needs to be done before any development takes place on this site. She agreed that
the traffic issues at Park Commons and Monterey would be unbearable if this project
goes in and there must be further comprehensive strategies in place for how traffic moves
in the area and this project should not go forward until the traffic issues are resolved. She
also felt the issues with 36-1/2 Street needed to be addressed before going forward with
any project. She stated she has been an advocate of small business and for finding ways
in which the City Code can help support small business, including forthcoming
recommendations on form based code, but was concerned about long stretches of
commercial spaces with blank cement walls and little pedestrian experience She stated
this is an active corridor that is going to see more development in the future and it was
important to make sure Council is guiding development in a way that supports the vision
for local small businesses and safety
Councilmember Sanger stated this development proposal is far from being ready for
approval and she preferred that the PUD be put on hold until Council has greater clarity
about how the issues with the current design are being addressed. She felt the traffic
issues would only get worse with the project and the nursing home's concerns about
access and parking need to be addressed. She was concerned about the number of small
residential units and stated this development has almost no green space and she would not
be supporting the amendment to the Comprehensive Plan Land Use Map at this time.
She pointed out that many of the resident comments are similar to comments that Council
has heard about other developments and felt there needed to be a conversation with the
entire community to help shape this development and other developments going forward.
Councilmember Brausen stated that Council is not being asked to approve the
development this evening and acknowledged Council's serious concerns with the
proposed development including the traffic issues. He felt that Council could approve the
amendment and thus, guide the development on this property.
It was moved by Councilmember Brausen, seconded by Councilmember Mavity, to adopt
Resolution No. 15-078 Approving an Amendment to the 2030 Comprehensive Plan for
the City of St Louis Park under Minnesota Statutes 462 351 to 462 364 — 4400 and 4424
Excelsior Boulevard and 3743 Monterey Drive
Councilmember Spano asked about the height limits under the current zoning.
Mr. Kelley stated the current zoning allows building height up to six stories or 75'.
Councilmember Spano stated he has serious concerns about access and traffic in this area.
He does not have concerns about green space, and he pointed out this property is one-half
000000000 block from Wolfe Park, one of the biggest green space areas in the City.
Mr. Ron Mehl, Dominium Development, stated they share some of the same concerns as
residents and they want traffic to work in this area. He stated they are more than willing
to work with the neighborhood and City staff to take actions to make this development
work for the neighborhood. He advised that they are meeting with Park Health and
Rehabilitation Center to discuss the easement.
City Council Meeting -7- June 1, 2015
The motion passed 6-1 (Councilmember Sanger opposed)
8b. Conditional Use Permit for Fill/Excavation Westside Center 5320 West 23rd
Street. Resolution No. 15-079.
Mr. Boyce presented the staff report and explained that COB, LLC, is proposing to build
an expansion for Lyman Lumber for indoor and outdoor storage, as well as construction
of a ring road and storm water management. He stated the applicant proposes to excavate
approximately 8,000 cubic yards of fill and import approximately 1,000 cubic yards of
fill in the floodplain. He presented an aerial map and proposed layout of the site and
explained that portions of the ring road and reconfigured parking will impact
approximately 1,002 cubic yards of floodplain and the applicant is proposing
compensatory floodplain storage of 1,020 cubic yards and improved storm water
management systems for the site with infiltration swales He discussed the hauling route
and stated the project will last 2-4 weeks with 5-10 trucks per day and hours of operation
from 7:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m weekdays He noted that weekend work may occur due to
unexpected weather delays and weekend hours would be limited to 9:00 a.m.-5 00 p m.
He stated that materials to be imported include an unknown amount of Class V material
and Braun Intertec will be on-site to screen excavated materials for possible use
Councilmember Sanger expressed concern about trucks using 23rd Street to the T.H. 100
frontage road because of the ongoing T.H. 100 project and asked if the City could modify
the hauling hours so trucks are not using this road during rush hour.
Mr. Walther stated the Ordinance allows hours of operation from 7 00 a.m -5:00 p.m. and
he did not think the trucks would cause a significant problem over the course of four
weeks, adding if the contractor finds there are issues with traffic delays, they will adjust
their hours.
It was moved by Councilmember Sanger, seconded by Councilmember Mavity, to adopt
Resolution No. 15-079 Granting Conditional Use Permit under Section 36-79(a) and (b)
of the St Louis Park Ordinance Code relating to Zoning to Permit Excavation and Fill of
Approximately 9,000 Cubic Yards from Property Zoned Industrial Park and General
Industrial District located at 5320 West 23rd Street
The motion passed 7-0
8c. Inclusionary Housing Policy
Ms. Schnitker presented the staff report and proposed Housing Policy and explained the
policy requires the inclusion of affordable housing in new market rate residential
developments requesting financial assistance from the City. She stated the policy
contains two options for providing the required number of affordable units within a
project and provides that at least 10% of the units shall be affordable for households at
60% AMI or at least 8% of the units shall be affordable for households at 50% AMI. She
stated the policy also allows the income and affordability requirements to be fulfilled by
the development of units within the proposed market rate development or at another site
if approved by the City. She stated the length of the affordability requirement is a
minimum of 25 years, the bedroom type of affordable units must be reflective of the
market rate units and distributed throughout the development, and the policy is applicable
City Council Meeting -8- June 1, 2015
to buildings with ten or more units. She stated that staff would also be preparing
procedures to guide program implementation including ongoing compliance.
Mr. Steve May, 3901 Joppa Avenue, referred to the earlier discussion regarding the
Bridgewater development and stated that when affordable housing is added to the mix of
residential units, this appears to be driving up the size of a building and urged Council to
consider this concern about density. He also agreed with Councilmember Sanger's
comment about the need for a discussion with the community about what types of
developments residents want to see in the community.
Councilmember Sanger acknowledged the need for more affordable housing in the metro
area and the push to create more affordable housing. She stated that St. Louis Park
already has a high ratio of affordable housing and Met Council has ranked the City in the
top 10% of communities with available affordable housing. She referred to Met
Council's approach to pushing affordable housing to the outer ring suburbs and stated if
St Louis Park keeps adding more affordable housing, the pressure on those suburbs to
have their fair share of affordable housing is reduced. She stated the policy does not
contain a provision requiring a comparison of the cost to the City for requiring affordable
housing versus the cost to the City if the same project was built with no affordable
housing and felt it was important to be transparent about those costs and as a result, she
would not be supporting this policy the way it is written today
Councilmember Lindberg stated this policy represents over a year's worth of work by
Council and Council is saying that if St. Louis Park is providing TIF assistance, there
should be an affordability element that results in options that might not exist otherwise.
He stated this policy provides direction to developers that when the City has a stake in a
particular project, the developer needs to do the right thing and urged Council to take into
account the impact of this policy on the greater good. He recognized that other
communities are not doing things like this but this is what makes St. Louis Park great.
He was supportive of the policy and was appreciative of all the staff work that has gone
into creating this policy
Councilmember Brausen stated one of his priorities was to see the City increase its
supply of affordable housing. He stated the City has a lot of naturally occurring
affordable housing but most of the new developments are high-end luxury apartments
with no affordable units and this policy leverages some of the City's investment and
makes sure community members benefit from it.
It was moved by Councilmember Brausen, seconded by Councilmember Mavity, to
approve the Inclusionary Housing Policy, which would require the inclusion of
affordable housing units in new market rate multi-unit residential developments receiving
financial assistance from the City
Councilmember Hallfin urged Council to be the better council and the better city and
stated that even though other cities are not adding affordable housing, St. Louis Park is
the better city and he is proud of this City Council for acting on this policy
Councilmember Spano stated that Hennepin County needs to take a more active role in
guiding affordable housing throughout the metro. He stated this policy means that a
family of four can afford to live in some of these new developments and that all sorts of
people can enjoy the benefits of this policy.
City Council Meeting -9- June 1, 2015
Councilmember Mavity stated she was proud of Council for taking this leadership role
and making sure people have choices and she was proud to support the housing policy.
The motion passed 6-1 (Councalmember Sanger opposed)
9. Communications
Mayor Jacobs reminded residents about Parktacular on June 19-21 and stated that buttons
are available at the Rec Center and various locations throughout the City and further
information is available at www.parktacular.org
Mr. Harmening announced the opening of the aquatic park on,Friday, June 5th, at 11:00
a.m. He reminded residents about the "Park the Street 2", event near TexaTonka on
Sunday, June 7th, from 12:00 noon-4:00 p.m. He reminded residents about the Fire
Department open house on Tuesday, June 9th, from 5.00-8.00 p.m at Fire Station#1. He
also reminded residents about the household hazardous waste drop-off collection at the
middle school on June 11-13 from 9.00 a.m.-4:00 p m.
Councilmember Spano reminded residents about Cleanup Day on Saturday, June 6th,
from 8:00 a.m.-1.00 p.m
10. Adjournment
Mayor Jacobs adjournes the meeting at 9:35 p.m.
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Melis-. Kennedy, City Clerk Jeff Jacob ,