Laserfiche WebLink
CASE #: t~ <br /> REVIEW CODE REQUIREMENTS FOR METAL ACCESSORY BUILDINGS <br /> By: Zoning Administrator Sylvia Frolik <br />Background: <br /> <br />At a recent City Council meeting, the subject of metal accessory buildings (pole barns) and the <br />eligibility requirements to having them was briefly mentioned for future discussion. Per <br />Council's direction, Staff is prepared to provide some background information on the subject of <br />pole barns. <br /> <br />Observations: <br /> <br />City Code currently restricts pole barns to parcels measuring 2.5 acres and larger in size. If the <br />legal description of the property does not include road right-of-way, then Staff does not include <br />road right of way in the calculation of the lot size. This presents a problem in the 'so-called' 2.5 <br />acre plats. These neighborhoods were advertised and marketed by realtors and developers as <br />containing 2.5 acre lots. However, this is misleading because in actuality, the density is 1 unit <br />per 2.5 acres but not all of the lots were 2.5 acres in size. The reason for this is that there is <br />language in City Code that allows the developer to include road right-of-way when meeting the <br />minimmn lot size requirement for platting purposes. However, once the property is platted and <br />recorded, it is not logical to include road right-of-way in the lot size calculation because the legal <br />description and the lot boundaries do not extend to the center of the road. <br /> <br />City Council and the Planning Commission had some extensive discussions regarding this issue <br />in 1993, especially with respect to the fact that residents of the 'so-called' 2.5 acre subdivisions <br />were not being treated equitably -- some qualified for pole barns and some didn't. City Staff <br />surveyed lot size requirements for pole barns in other communities and found the following: <br /> <br />Andover <br />Elk River <br />Champlin <br /> <br />Ham Lake <br /> <br />3 acres <br />5 acres <br />Residential/Agriculture districts only; pole building cannot <br />exceed size of home on parcels less than 10 acres in size. <br />5 acres <br /> <br />Upon reviewing these statistics, the Planning Commission determined that Ramsey is the most <br />lenient and recommended against lowering the acreage threshold. Some of the councilmembers <br />were still interested in pursing some relief for residents of so-called '2.5 acre plats' and <br />considered lowering the acreage threshold for pole barns in addition to some other spin-off <br />amendments to Chapter 9. However, adoption of the ordinance required a 4/5 vote and the <br />ordinance failed with a 3 to 2 vote. <br /> <br />Recommendation: <br /> <br />Will be based on your discussion. <br /> <br />Review Checklist: <br />City Administrator <br />CC: 07/24/97 <br /> <br /> <br />