Minutes - Planning Commission - 05/19/1994 - Special Meeting

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Motion carried. Voting Yes: Holland,Deemer, and Terry. Commissioner Thorud. Acting Chairperson Hendriksen, Commissioners LaDue, Voting No: None. Absent: Chairperson Bawden and COMMISSION BUSINESS Case #1: Review Status of Update to Land Use/Transportation Elements of the Comprehensive Plan for the City of Ramsey Steven Schwanke, a representative of RLK Associates, furnished the Commission with a land use comparison chart, comparing the acreages gained or reduced from the existing zonings to the proposed zonings for the no bridge/bridge options. He also submitted a memorandum outlining the amount of commercial and industrial development in the City of Ramsey. (These documents are attached as part of the meeting minutes.) In order to approach the commercial issue, Mr. Schwanke recommended that the City of Ramsey needs to determine what type of "commercial" city it wants to be, whether that be a bedroom community or a city that provides a variety of commercial alternatives to its citizens and/or the public at large. He added that once this has been decided upon, the City of Ramsey must evaluate the type and amount of public infrastructure and services that will be required to support the planned commercial development. Jeff Smyser, a representative of RLK Associates, outlined the recommended changes of the Planning Commission to the Trunk Highway g47fFhurston Avenue alignment, the Andover bridge options, and the Elk River Connection (Figures 1, 2 and 3 of Memorandum dated May 16, 1994 included in the agenda). Commissioner Deemer stated he envisioned the Andover bridge option at the Boy Scout Camp crossing the river at the northernmost part of the camp, thus connecting better on the other side of the river and also avoiding expensive homes already in existence near the depicted crossing. Bill Smith, a representative of Biko Associates, agreed and stated that Andover would like the bridge to connect with County Road g20. Commissioner Deemer also referenced the May 16, 1994 memorandum and directed the planning consultants to amend the last sentence of the last paragraph under Figure 1: TH47/Thurston Avenue to read "Another possibility is a pedestrian bridge over TH 47--to provide the residential area on the west with access to the commercial area and major city park in River's Bend on the east side." Commissioner Deemer also noted that he talked with four of Elk River's planning commissioners at a recent seminar, and they agreed that something should be done about a Ramsey/Elk River connection. He added that he did extend an invitation to attend this meeting, but none of them are present. Mr. Smyser went on to discuss Figures 4 through 7, wherein a basic skeleton for road alignment of County Road gl 16 was established with different bridge options presented. He noted that Sunwood Drive was added and attention was focused on area south .of Highway gl0. He explained that in Figure 4, The No-Bridge Scenario, there were more intense uses along Highway gl0 with access roads added to relieve congestion on the highway. He noted that the access road running along the south side of Highway gl0 was a slight alignment change from the existing plan. Mr. Smyser advised that with Figure 5, The Eastern Bridge Option, the consultants were unsure of the bridge alignment. He explained that the land uses were very similar to the no bridge scenario, and that a study area was left open until the intensity of the area becomes more clear. Planning Commission/May 19, 1994 Page 2 of 6