Agenda - Planning Commission - 07/10/2014

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Additionally, the site is further impacted by the Mississippi River Trail construction, currently underway and commencing construction on this site later this spring. The proposed plat was revised to accommodate the approved alignment of this trail. The trail was awarded a federal grant, and the construction contract has been awarded and construction is already underway. It is not feasible to expect that the trail alignment and construction can be modified at this point without exposing the project to contractor damage issues or unnecessary contract delays as part of the grant award. The Plat can accommodate the alignment of the trail; however, the final grades and improvements necessary to maintain this alignment will need to be verified on the Final Plat documents. The proposed plat contemplates fill within identified floodplain boundaries. It does not appear that any fill is being proposed within floodways. By introducing fill within a floodplain boundary in order to create building pad sites, a Letter of Map Revision (LOMR), approved by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), shall be required. Final Plat approval will not be granted until FEMA has approved a LOMR. The Applicant has requested that the City consider constructing the required Stage I and Stage II Improvements (public improvements such as streets and utilities) as a City Improvement Project, then assessing the costs back to the benefited properties. The City Council will be considering this request parallel to this subdivision request. An Assessment Agreement as part of the standard Development Agreement shall be required. Alternatives Alternative # 1: Recommend that action on the proposed plat be postponed until the City Council has adopted the Highway 10 Access Planning Study. Per Minnesota Statute 15.99, the City must act upon a written request/Application within 60 days of receipt. The City has until August 3, 2014 to either approve or deny the request. The City does have the ability to extend this timeframe another 60 days to October 2, 2014. The Applicant would need to approve any further extensions beyond that date, or the request would become automatically approved. It would be acceptable for the Planning Commission to recommend to the City Council to eliminate this local road alternative from the Access Planning Study if that was the recommended policy of the Planning Commission and the Commission felt it to be appropriate to approve the Plat with the removal of this specific conflict. Multiple alternatives of said study have been eliminated or amended throughout the course of the Study in other geographic areas of the Study Area. Alternative #2: Recommend approval of the Plat as proposed. This alternative will have several outcomes, most notably the elimination of one local road alternative of the Highway 10 Access Planning Study. As stated previously, this would require that the City Council ask Mn/DOT to formally remove that alternative of the Access Planning Study from consideration. This request could run parallel to review of the Plat and be a contingency of any approval. Alternative #3: Recommend approval of a portion of the Plat. Consensus of the Planning Commission and Environmental Policy Board (EPB) was that low density residential along the south side of Riverdale Drive was most appropriate, as those parcels abut the Mississippi River. The Commission previously expressed concern about transition with the proposed lots on the north side of Rivlyn Avenue that would be in close proximity to the existing Employment District or preclude Rivlyn Avenue from being able to be connected to any future local road connection. Alternative #4: Recommend denial of the Plat. The Planning Commission did note concern about adequate transition area between land use types (employment and low density residential). It would appear that the Applicant could move forward with a portion of the Plat, with the remainder to be considered upon completion of the Access Planning Study, complete with findings, future land use scenarios, and feedback specific to these future land use scenarios. Funding Source: