Agenda - Planning Commission - 12/06/1994

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CASE REQUEST FOR SITE PLAN APPROVAL; CASE OF INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 11 By: Zoning Administrator Sylvia Frolik #1 Background: School District No. 11 is requesting site plan approval to construct a 65,000 square foot addition to the Ramsey Elementary School located at 15100 Nowthen Blvd. N.W. The School District has acquired the two adjacent parcels to the south to accommodate the expansion. The expansion will also include some rework of the outdoor playground and ballfields. The following items are enclosed for your information: a) Site location map b) Site Survey c) Site Plan d) Floor Plan e) City Staff Review Letter dated 11/29/94 Observations: The 3 parcels involved in the development are zoned R-1 Rural Residential and B-2 Business, for which schools are not a permitted use. The existing school is considered lawful non-conforming and expansion of it requires a conditional use permit or rezoning to R-3 Urban Residential, for which schools are a permitted use. A rezoning process is being scheduled for the January meeting of the Planning Commission. The proposed expansion meets lot coverage, setback, and architectural requirements for the R-3 Residential District. City sewer and water will be extended to the site to serve the expanded facility. The expansion will include the addition of a 100 space parking lot and extension of the bus drop off area. The existing parking lot has 103 spaces. Ramsey's code does not specify the number of parking spaces that are required for schools. In contacting some of the surrounding communities, it has been determined that a general standard for elementary schools is one parking space per employee and 2 spaces per class. With the expansion, Ramsey Elementary is proposed to have approximately 110 employees and 40 classes, for a total number of off-street parking spaces recommended at 180. The site will have 203 paved off-street parking spaces. The site plan indicates that all drives, off-street parking and maneuvering areas will be paved with bituminous but it does not indicate in detail the location and type of curbing proposed. The outer perimeter of all pavement is required to be finished with B-612 concrete curbing. The northerly entrance from C.S.A.H. #5 to the north parking lot and bus drop off area will remain in its current location. The bus drop off area will be extended to the south and accordingly, so will the bus exit. The expansion of the site necessitates relocating the existing southernmost entrance to the ballfield area to the south, and the existing access to the newly acquired parcels on the south will be eliminated. Staff has also recommended that lighted, school zone signs be installed on C.S.A.H. #5 at both the north and south approaches to the school. At the date of this writing, review comments from the Anoka County Highway Department had not been received.