Agenda - Planning Commission - 08/07/2014

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Notification: Staff attempted to notify all Property Owners within 700 feet of the Subject Property via Standard US Mail of the Public Hearing. A Public Hearing Notification was also published in the Anoka County UnionHerald. Observations/Alternatives: The Applicant is requesting to develop a currently undeveloped portion of the Subject Property as seven (7) single family lots, with the extension of Rivlyn Drive. Generally speaking, the request complies with the minimum standards of the R-1 Residential (MUSA) District. The proposed plat meets minimum bulk standards of the zoning and subdivision code. Future building permits must comply with the remainder of the requirements of the R-1 Residential (MUSA) District. The site is currently impacted by the Highway 10 Access Planning Study currently initiated by the Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT). One of two alternatives for the area that would create a local road connection required to remove existing private access to Highway 10 conflicts with the proposed plat. The second of the two alternatives would allow the proposed plat to move forward from the perspective of the Study. On April 8, 2014, the Planning Commission directed the Applicant to postpone further review of the Plat until completion of the Highway 10 Access Planning Study. At that time, it was anticipated that the Study would be completed in June of 2014. The Applicant applied for Preliminary Plat review on June 3, 2014. The final Open House of the Highway 10 Access Planning Study was held on June 25, 2014. In order to compile comments from this Open House and consider final modifications to the study alternatives, Mn/DOT anticipates the final report to be complete by sometime between July and August of 2014 in order to bring a quality product to the local government units that are part of the Study. 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 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. The City Council has begun a process to formally request that Mn/DOT remove the backage road concept and continues discussions with the City of Anoka. This request could run parallel to review of the Plat and be a contingency of any approval. Please see the narrative at the beginning of this case on specifics of this contingency. Alternative #2: 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 issue the one (1) available 60 day extension to October 2, 2014. The Applicant would need to approve any further extensions beyond that date, or the request would become