Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016/03/16 - ADMIN - Minutes - Planning Commission - Regular OFFICIAL MINUTES PLANNING COMMISSION ST. LOUIS PARK, MINNESOTA MARCH 16, 2016 – 6:00 P.M. COUNCIL CHAMBERS MEMBERS PRESENT: Torrey Kanne, Claudia Johnston-Madison, Lisa Peilen, Richard Person, Carl Robertson, MEMBERS ABSENT: Lynne Carper, Joe Tatalovich Ethan Rickert (youth member) STAFF PRESENT: Sean Walther, Debra Heiser, Greg Hunt 1. Call to Order – Roll Call 2. Approval of Minutes of February 17, 2016 and March 2, 2016 Commissioner Person moved approval of the minutes of February 17, 2016. Commissioner Peilen seconded the motion, and the motion passed on a vote of 3- 2 (Kanne and Robertson abstained). Commissioner Robertson moved approval of the minutes of March 2, 2016. Commissioner Person seconded the motion, and the motion passed on a vote of 4-1 (Peilen abstained). 3. Public Hearings A. Excelsior & Monterey (Bridgewater Dominium Addition) Preliminary Plat with Variances and Preliminary Planned Unit Development Location: 4400, 4424 Excelsior Blvd.; 3743 Monterey Dr. Applicant: St. Louis Park Leased Housing Associates I, LLC Case Nos.: 15-32-S, 15-33-PUD, 15-46-VAR Sean Walter, Planning and Zoning Administrator, presented the staff report. He reviewed the request for preliminary plat with variances. The preliminary plat combines three existing parcels to be created into two new parcels and dedicates right-of-way to surrounding streets where road easements currently exist. He explained that the variances regard drainage and utility easement width reduction. Mr. Walther presented the Planned Unit Development analysis including zoning, building/site design, shadow study, parking, access, landscaping, and Designed Outdoor Recreation Area (DORA). Official Minutes Planning Commission March 16, 2016 Page 2 Mr. Walther discussed the traffic study in detail. The study incorporates traffic studies of the Bridgewater site, the former Bally’s site and a level of background growth. The Park Commons Dr./Monterey leg of the intersection on Park Commons Dr. (going eastbound) does experience a delay currently and the delay will get worse with the development. Mr. Walther said the City Council directed staff to explore alternatives that might improve operations at that particular intersection whether or not the development goes forward. He discussed the option recommended by City Council to add a dedicated right turn lane on Park Commons Dr. With this one improvement it will be improved from a Level of Service D to a Level of Service C with development, which is rated Acceptable. Mr. Walther reviewed the public process associated with the proposed development. Commissioner Peilen asked if the entrance on Excelsior Blvd. was for commercial use only. Mr. Walther responded the Excelsior Blvd. entrance is for commercial use only. Commissioner Peilen asked if the developer ever considered Excelsior Blvd. the primary entrance and exit. Mr. Walther responded he was not aware of any previous designs that considered that option. Commissioner Person asked if the recommended option of Alternative 2 was adopted by resolution. Mr. Walther said it was direction to staff at a study session that the improvement should be included in the city’s Capital Improvement Plan. The CIP will be generated in the coming months. Commissioner Kanne asked if the traffic study went down Excelsior Blvd. towards Hwy. 100 at peak hours and looked at congestion there. Mr. Walther responded that the study results extended to Quentin and Excelsior. He said that congestion at Excelsior/Hwy. 100 has previously been identified in the Comprehensive Plan. He noted there are limited solutions the city has for that. The city has explored using more frequently yellow flashing lights throughout intersections. That could be explored more with Hennepin County as Excelsior is a county road. The city does not have direct control on when and how those improvements are made. Official Minutes Planning Commission March 16, 2016 Page 3 Chair Johnston-Madison said approaching the entrance for Level 1 parking for bank and retail to turn in you have to be going west on Excelsior. She asked if the traffic study took into account how much traffic would result off of Monterey from the opposite direction. Mr. Walther said the driveway locations and motions were known and the situation she described was part of the model. The Chair spoke about 50 units/acre and higher densities allowed with PUD. The zoning table indicates there are 80.8 units/acre. Mr. Walther explained that for purposes of the report and presentation he used the higher number for Lot 1 alone. No residential units are proposed on Lot 2. The overall residential density of both lots combined would be 69.9 units/acre. Chair Johnston-Madison asked about height perception from the north with underground parking levels resulting in the building looking like eight stories. The Chair asked if any of the eight traffic alternatives, other than Alternate 2, were still in play. Mr. Walther responded that all alternatives were shared with City Council. The staff did not recommend the other alternatives. One of them was the idea of doing a traffic signal at Park Commons Dr. One of the criteria staff used for recommendation was that whatever intervention was made to improve that one leg of Park Commons Dr. would not negatively impact other intersections. Excelsior Blvd. is a major road and needs to take priority over a secondary road. The Chair asked Mr. Walther to address Alternative 8. Mr. Walther said all alternatives were considered and all but three were dismissed. Alternative 8, closing Park Commons Dr., would add a new street going through park land. It would be very expensive, with a number of limitations to pursuing that option. Commissioner Person asked about the north access designated as move in/move out only and easement. Mr. Walther said there is a 20 foot access easement across the nursing home property that connects to the service court in that building. Earlier concepts explored the idea of splitting traffic so all of the P2 parking would exit and enter that site from the driveway. By dispersing the traffic in that manner it makes all intersections better. There were concerns from the nursing home about how wide of a space is available there for emergency vehicles. Residents also raised Official Minutes Planning Commission March 16, 2016 Page 4 objections to additional traffic on 36 ½ St. The developer is not proposing to have additional access to that location. Chair Johnston-Madison referred to page 19 of the traffic study regarding access B and C proposed to be 140 ft. apart along Monterey Dr. She referred to MnDOT spacing guidelines of 330 ft. for urban collector roadways. She asked if the City Council discussed those figures. Mr. Walther said City Council was presented that information but it was not discussed in any detail. Debra Heiser, Engineering Director, said the figures were noted in the traffic study and presented to the City Council. She stated that the reality on urban arterials and collectors is if 330 ft. were applied to every driveway access in the city many driveways would have to be closed. When looking at the speed of the street and the vehicles using these driveways staff feels that 140 ft. is adequate for the site lines, adequate for safety and adequate for these driveways on Monterey. She said staff would not support it otherwise. Ron Mehl, Dominium Development, applicant, spoke about the company and the development proposal. He said they have worked hard to address concerns and worked hard to create two separate entrances for commercial space and residential parking. He answered commissioner questions regarding resident and guest parking. Chair Johnston-Madison opened the public hearing. A letter from William Weber, 3824 Huntington, was read into the record by Dennis Morin, 4509 W. 36 ½ St., #303. In his letter Mr. Weber urged the commission to reject the applications for preliminary plat and preliminary PUD for the proposed development. Eleanore Martin, 4820 Park Commons Dr., #233, said with the large apartment building going up at the former Bally’s site she didn’t understand why another large complex was needed at Excelsior and Monterey. She said she understood the city fathers believe in encouraging small businesses so it makes no sense to force out established businesses, such as TechLine, to make room for a complex that nobody wants. She said Excelsior Blvd. will look like a cross between a wind tunnel and a traffic jam. Jan Anderson, 4517 W. 36 ½ St., said besides traffic and noise she is concerned about trees being removed which are homes to wildlife. She said she is concerned about the small businesses that have been asked to leave. She said they won’t come back. She said two businesses have gone to Edina. She commented that the commercial spaces will be boring things that people won’t spend much Official Minutes Planning Commission March 16, 2016 Page 5 time enjoying. Ms. Anderson said in the past the walk from Monterey to Slumberland has been fun. There are trees and the businesses are fun. That will all be gone. She said she is concerned that her own rent will increase due to the development. Denise Davis, 4820 Park Commons Dr. condominium, Wolfe Park neighborhood association vice chair, said neighbors are concerned about traffic, increased crime, congestion and dropping property values. Transients will be moving in. She said she has lived in St. Louis Park for 32 years. Neighbors tell her that they are unwilling to give up their cars. People in her building are a little bit older. Some have impediments and can’t walk to a light rail station. She spoke about pedestrians often crossing Excelsior illegally. The neighborhood is growing very rapidly. She said she’d like to see a moratorium on any future development until the ramifications are known about traffic, congestion and parking at 4900 Excelsior. Patti Carlson, 3801 Inglewood Ave. S., 40 year resident, said she feels betrayed by the city for this development. In spite of the traffic study, it is very difficult to cross Excelsior Blvd. because of people turning left into Trader Joe’s and sometimes turning right into the small businesses. Trader Joe’s is a mess. Now there will be another situation with two uncontrolled opposing streets. It feels a lot like Wooddale to her. She said she can understand having a dedicated left and right turn lane. But she said there are problems with being in right turn lane and the left turn driver edges forward resulting in difficulty telling if the other drive can go forward. She requested no yellow arrows for crossing Excelsior. She said it is dangerous enough as it is and the pedestrian crossing signal is the only protection pedestrians have crossing Excelsior. She said she feels her neighborhood is blocked off from getting to Highway 100 or the library. She said the traffic study wasn’t done on a Saturday afternoon near Trader Joe’s. She spoke about lack of light in the winter and ground floor units. She said she didn’t find the shadow studies acceptable. She said she didn’t appreciate the traffic study ratings of acceptable. She said she would like the consideration of the human effects of this development. Terry Warner, 3020 Florida Ave. S., said the proposed development is being built in the wrong place. He spoke about the vacant areas between Hwy. 100 and Hwy. 169 on Minnetonka Blvd. that would have less traffic problems and good bus service for development. He suggested the use of roundabouts on Monterey. Meghan Phimister, 3451 Zarthan Ave., 30 year resident, asked if the commercial parking level and residential parking levels were accessible to each other. Ron Mehl, applicant, said residential parking, except for guest parking, is connected inside the ramp that drops down under the commercial space. Residents can enter the building from the ramp by fob access only. Official Minutes Planning Commission March 16, 2016 Page 6 Ms. Phimister discussed the petition with 330 resident signatures which residents gave to the City Council about one year ago. She said that night the city went ahead with its vision for Excelsior and Monterey. Tonight the city is hearing the neighborhood vision for the corner. She hoped the city could listen and take a step back look back to look at this area and the surrounding area. She spoke about the new ice rink and a new community center which will create more traffic. She said every time she comes to the city she’s discussing little individual projects and is concerned the city doesn’t look at the entire view. People are concerned about infrastructure, mobility, walkability and over- saturation of apartments. She said she lives close to the PLACE proposal right on 7 and Wooddale and struggles with commuting through that area to get to Trader Joe’s and then has to deal with the traffic there. She said she hopes the Commission comes to talk about PLACE and doesn’t support moving forward with that project because that is being pushed in as well. Alberto Bertomeu, 4419 Excelsior Blvd., said it is an emotional issue and it takes time for listening and venting. He said he isn’t for or against the project. He said he owns buildings surrounding the property. Honey and Rye is a small business succeeding in an area of larger projects. Ciel has signed a lease for his property across the street. Techline moved to Edina when it merged with another company. He said he is trying to keep some small businesses intact. He said he owns the Jiffy Carwash. He spoke about the good design and scale of the Bridgewater Bank building. He said he knows traffic is a problem. He spoke about difficulties for pedestrian crossing of Excelsior and Boulevard and general lack of respect shown to pedestrians by drivers. Phil Freshman, 3912 Natchez, 25 year resident, spoke about very little consideration for people living in the area. There is the ice rink, 4900 Excelsior, and now Bridgewater development. There are impacts collectively to this area. He said the fixes on Park Commons Dr. are a band-aid. He said he doesn’t hear anything about ameliorations in the neighborhoods. He spoke of Natchez which is used by vehicles going 40 mph to avoid Excelsior Blvd. On his block there are about 15 kids under age 12. The proposal is misguided and it is about raising property tax income to invest for the ice rink and other projects. He said it is tremendously harmful in general. He said had he known about the petition he would have signed it. He hopes the petition can be recirculated. The city is imposing the developments on the neighborhood and saying the neighborhood should deal with it. Jon Schaefer, 3914 Lynn, resident since 1965, asked what evidence the commission doesn’t already have in the last two years that will allow for a no vote for the development. 330 petitions? Has it been looked at and listened to? How tall is too tall for a development? How much congestion is too much congestion for the neighborhood? How does a luxury apartment building help St. Louis Park Official Minutes Planning Commission March 16, 2016 Page 7 residents who want to stay but are unable to stay because they can’t afford the apartments? How does it help small businesses stay in St. Louis Park? Nino Pedrely, 3755 Glenhurst Ave., 10 year resident, discussed Tax Increment Financing (TIF). He asked why projects in a fairly established neighborhood can’t be done on a market rate basis since we’re at the top of the apartment development cycle. Mr. Walther stated there isn’t a TIF application at this stage. There are no details for any agreement at this time. Greg Hunt, Economic Development Coordinator, spoke about a typical TIF project where the base taxes would continue to accrue to the respective taxing jurisdiction. It is the added value from the development that potentially could be used to reimburse the developer for certain extraordinary costs incurred in the development. He said the city has a policy in which projects are required to pay for the fiscal disparities from the project itself. Dennis Morin, 4509 W. 36 ½ St, #303, 39 year resident, asked the developer if Access B and C have changed or if they are the same as originally proposed. Mr. Mehl, applicant, responded that Access B and C have not changed. Mr. Morin asked if 83% of the apartments are 1 or 2 bedroom units. He asked how many of the units are affordable. Chair Johnston-Madison said 20% of the units are affordable. Mr. Morin distributed a document titled 4400 Exc. Blvd. Traffic Study, May 1, 2015. Access B and C are proposed 140 feet apart along Monterey Dr. He referenced MnDOT spacing guidelines of 330 feet. Debra Heiser, Engineering Director, spoke about the guideline. Staff looked at vehicles on Monterey and determined that 140 ft. spacing is adequate. There are a number of driveways like this in the city. Staff does not find this will be unsafe. It can move ahead as it is. Ms. Heiser said it is important, as the developer indicated, to separate the residential and commercial accesses. Mr. Morin said Monterey is a major collector of 11,000 cars/day in an urban area which is a lot different from driveways in a residential neighborhood. He discussed B and C access with six left turns and six right turns all in 140 feet on Monterey. He said it is an atypical area with one Excelsior & Grand, one Trader Joe’s and one Bridgewater. He said it is an unsafe and tightly compressed driveway access plan and they ask the Commission to deny approval of the PUD Official Minutes Planning Commission March 16, 2016 Page 8 and ask the staff and developer to create a safer and more improved site access plan so the project can move forward. Ron Mehl, applicant, said they will look at the accesses again but believe that the access to the north is a sufficient distance and will provide good visibility to the residents coming out of it. He said they will do more studies on that to share with the City Council. The existing businesses have not expressed an interest in staying and they will have the opportunity to lease in that space if they choose. He said he understands there will be a rent difference. He doesn’t know what that amount is right now. Extensive criminal and credit background checks are done on their residents. Dominium does not have a crime problem in any of their developments. He said they will try work on illegal pedestrian crossing and will address that with planters and landscaping and trying as best they can to direct pedestrian traffic to intersections from this development. The new development will help in particular with affordability so that people are not priced out of this community. There are 35 units for persons making up to 50% of median income in Hennepin County. 48% of the units are one bedroom, 48% are two bedroom and 4% are 3 bedroom. The Chair added into the record correspondence from Russell Redman, 3833 Kipling Ave. S. Mr. Redman wrote in opposition to the development. Chair Johnston-Madison closed the public hearing as no one else was present wishing to speak. Commissioner Robertson said it is the kind of application the Commission struggles with. We hear the neighborhood concerns and opposition. In reference to moratorium, he said the city is coming to the time of doing its Comprehensive Plan again and a lot has happened in the last 10 years. It would be good to restudy the whole area and see where it wants to go. In the meantime, it is owner’s right to sell property and develop it. He discussed pedestrian concerns. He said in his business as an architect he works with engineers all the time and there is a certain amount of trust in the models that are used. He said the project is well-designed, well sited, and the stepping down design is good along Monterey. He uses shadow studies all of the time. He said he will give a move ahead vote. Commissioner Peilen said she has also struggled as she hears the concerns. She spoke about development in her own neighborhood. She knows Dominium’s work and it has a good reputation and runs good buildings without problems. The design is good and the project is well thought through. She said with numerous reservations she is willing to give it a move ahead vote. Commissioner Person spoke about the problems with left turns out of Access A and B. He said in the future the city would have to consider prohibiting those left Official Minutes Planning Commission March 16, 2016 Page 9 turns. Developing the north access into a full residential access would mitigate a lot of that problem. He said he hears the neighborhood issues but the Commission needs to determine if the proposal conforms with the PUD ordinance. Commissioner Kanne said it is a livability issue. She said no one she has spoken to in St. Louis Park likes the project. She stated she doesn’t like small businesses leaving and she doesn’t like cookie cutter buildings going up. She said she has serious reservations and will probably vote in opposition to the project. The Chair said it is a quality project with a good developer. She said her position hasn’t changed since the Comprehensive Plan request. She said if the development had come out of a development guidelines process created like the one for Excelsior & Grand and for the Ellipse site, she would have a different perspective on this development. Development guidelines have been worked on for the south side of Excelsior Blvd. and some good things are in place. She said there are no development guidelines for the north side of Excelsior from Ellipse to Monterey. It was asked for by residents almost a year ago. She said she has concerns about traffic. Chair Johnston-Madison said we need to look at, at least in this community, not just capacity on a road but the quality of life for people in that area. If we want Excelsior Blvd., Excelsior and Monterey, 36 ½ St. and Belt Line Blvd. to be a walkable community we are going the wrong way. She said she would not be voting in favor. Commissioner Robertson made a motion recommending approval of the Preliminary Plat with Subdivision Variances and Preliminary Planned Unit Development (PUD) with meeting notes and comments provided to Council. Commissioner Person seconded the motion, and the motion passed on a vote of 3- 2 (Johnston-Madison and Kanne opposed). 4. Other Business A. Consideration of Resolution – Wayzata Boulevard TIF District Conformance with Comprehensive Plan Greg Hunt, Economic Development Coordinator, presented the staff report. Commissioner Person asked how often the city takes action to create a TIF District without a development proposal. Mr. Hunt said this is an unusual circumstance but in this case the city will lose its ability to create a TIF District due to statutorily only having 3 years after a demolition to create a TIF District. Official Minutes Planning Commission March 16, 2016 Page 10 Commissioner Peilen asked about the necessity to attract a developer and the extraordinary costs of developing the site. Mr. Hunt said that is part of the equation in developing the site. He added that it is a very attractive and highly visible site. Commissioner Robertson made a motion recommending approval of the resolution finding that the proposed Tax Increment Financing Plans for the establishment of Wayzata Boulevard Tax Increment Financing District conform to the general plans for the development and redevelopment of the City. Commissioner Peilen seconded the motion, and the motion passed on a vote of 5- 0. 5. Communications The April 6 Planning Commission meeting has been canceled. The Commission will meet on April 20. 6. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 8:20 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Nancy Sells Recording Secretary