Agenda - Planning Commission - 06/06/2000

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Community Development Assistant Wald explained the Council has approved the Conditional Use Permit. The Planning Commission tonight is to look at the site plan for the transfer station. The applicant is proposing to develop a 17,100 square foot transfer station on this site. They comply with the 35% building coverage restriction and all setback requirements. She distributed a letter from Ace Solid Waste, a letter from the City Engineer in regard to traffic generation, a letter from the City of Brooklyn Park stating their valuations have not gone down, and another from the City of Brooklyn Park. She explained the building materials of the proposed transfer station would match the office/shop building. In accordance with City Code, a sufficient number of off-street parking spaces are provided and all traveled surfaces around the transfer station will be paved with bituminous and finished with B-6/12 concrete curbing. City Staff recommends site plan approval of the Transfer Station contingent upon compliance with the City Staff Review Letter dated April 6, 2000. Commissioner Dempsey inquired as (o Mr. Hanson's concern about the wetlands and the ownership and taxability. Mr. Hanson stated there are a number of aspects of the site plan he is concerned with. He ! submitted a letter earlier today outlining to the City soCe of his thoughts on the particulars of the ten findings of fact. Many of the issues he listed have direct impact on some of the information that was presented improperly, as pointed out by Mr. Johnson, at the Council meeting. The last minute information that was presented was not part of the official public record, and the Council should have taken that into account. Also, by not directing this back to the Planning Commission, they were able to achieve an unchallenged assertion of some facts that do not actually upon closer examination fit the actuality of this particular site. As far as the traffic, one of the aspects was that they would access the trucks along McKinley. They indicated that by their traffic statement there would be adequate traffic flow on McKinley, however, a quick glance at the number of trucks being discussed will back up traffic all the way from the corner of McKinley and Sunfish to their property and extend 200 feet further. That is unfair to the other property owners that have to be able to get in and out of their property. Secondly, McKinley narrows down from their property from a wide road extending on one side of Azurite to a narrower road only about 27 feet wide. Given the width of the tracks and the fact that gravel trucks from a site further down the road use that road, this will cause traffic hazards. Given the way the site map has situated this, the trucks will have to swing wide and there is not adequate room for the trucks to swing wide given parking is permitted at this time on both sides of McKinley. Also, the Comprehensive Plan calls for the extension of McKinley for traffic all the way through in 2003, which would be about the time this would be finished. That area of McKinley will be torn up and will have no access at all to this. This is calling for a traffic flow of 87,000 vehicles on this road; truck access onto this type of roadway was not projected. Commissioner Dempsey clarified that Mr. Hanson is basically disputing the finding of facts the City Council came up with. Mr. Hanson stated he is disputing the last minute fact that was added to the thought processes the City used as justification to overturn eight of the ten finding of facts. These facts happened to agree with all the findings of fact that the Coon Rapids City Council had found, and it strikes Planning Commission/May 2, 2000 Page 19 of 23