Minutes - Council - 05/14/2002 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

06-241 and a related extension to September 30, 2003, to complete the concrete screening wall as described in said conditional use permit. Motion carried. Voting Yes: Mayor Gamec, Councilmembers Zimmerman, Kurak, Anderson, and Hendriksen. Voting No: None. Case#Il: Introduce Ordinance to Establish Regulations for the Operation of Helicopters within the City Limits Community Development Director Frolik stated this case was put together in response to recent incidents relating to helicopter takeoffs and landings in a residential neighborhood. Staff has consulted with the MnDOT Office of Aeronautics to gain some insight into this type of activity and how it can be regulated. MnDOT issues three types of heliport licenses: 1) personal use, restricted to use by one person; 2) private use, which is for use by multiple persons at the invitation of the owner (example would be the heliport at a hospital); and 3) public use, which is unrestricted and open to the public. Current legislation says that the MnDOT Office of Aeronautics can no longer require licensing of personal use airfields unless they are within five miles of an airport. If they are outside the five mile radius, the applicant can request that the personal use airfield be licensed by the MnDOT Office of Aeronautics. One of MnDOT's requirements for licensing personal or private use airfields is that the applicant conform to the Federal Aviation Regulations requiring the owner to file a notice of intent to establish a landing area with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). In response to the notice, the FAA does an airspace evaluation and responds by either objecting or not objecting to that use of the airspace. However, FAA is not a licensing agency and even if they determine that the use of the airspace and landing area is unsafe, they cannot prohibit someone from utilizing that landing area. However, MnDOT, the licensing agency, can refuse a license application and typically does if there is a negative determination from the FAA. In addition, MnDOT's decision to issue a license is based on the safety concerns and they do not take noise into consideration. If the City wants noise to be a consideration, then the City would have to require its own permit and identify noise as a factor to be considered. The City doesn't have the expertise on staff and would have to seek outside assistance to properly review the application. City Code would also have to define and establish acceptable noise levels. Based on the information staff received, staff recommended attempting to regulate helicopter activity only at this time. Staff recommended that the Council introduce the proposed ordinance to require that heliports within the City limits be licensed by the MnDOT Office of Aeronautics. If the City Council was inclined to go a step further and require a special permit from the City for heliports so that noise levels can be a part of the consideration, another ordinance was drafted for Council consideration. Mayor Gamec inquired if the City can prohibit helicopters or not. Community Development Director Frolik replied that it would not be advisable to restrict all helicopters, but they can place restrictions on the use. She stated that the City could require a special permit, but would have to seek outside expertise to consider the application. City Council/May 14, 2002 Page 27 of 36