Resolution - #02-02-040 - 02/26/2002

Home

P,.esponse to the EAW Request The Ponds Residential Develoament Proiect Page 2 EAW categories in Mn. Rules Part 441.0.4300. The proposed project does not meet these mandatory. EAW requirements. An EAW' is also required whenever any governmental unit with approval authority over the project (City of Ramsey) determines that available evidence indicates that the project may have the potential for sigmficanr environmental effects. The process of determining whether an EAW should be conducted by a governmental unit typically occurs in response to a citizen petition which is the case for the proposed development. in an effort to determine whether to proceed with an EAW, the City of Ramsey retained ProSource to conduct a Limited EAW to address critical issues pertaining to the proposed project and provide City staff with responses to the citizen petition. Responses to the citizen petition are presented in the following sections. ProSource Findings As per your request, the following is a summary of ProSource's findings and opinions regarding the potential environmental effects outlined in the citizen petition. £ssue i - Effects on wetlands, including a concern that increased lawn runoff fi'om the loroposed development couldj'eopardize the heahh of'the wet/ands by altering their pH and nutrient balance and that increases in the volume and/or rate of ~'unoJf fi'om the proposed project could cause area flooding. Currently, this area is zoned for B-1 Commercial. ffthe Site were to be commercially developed, more trees would be cleared than with the residential plan and there would also be an increase in ston'n water runoff due to a larger area of impermeable sui'faces (i.e., parking lots and large comrnercial~ building . rooftops). According to the Anoka County Soil S,.uwey, produced by the United States Department of Agriculture's Soil Conservation Service, the dominant soil series at the Site consists ofthe Nymore Series (consisting of [om'ny coarse sands and loamy sands). The Nymore series consists of nearly level to steep, excessively drained soils l:brmed in outwash sands. Permeability in this series is rapid, and the available water capacity and organic-matter content are ~ow. The supply of available nitrogen and potassium is low, and phosphorus medium. The water table in areas where this series is found is usually found at more than 6 feet below the ground surface. · "The Ponds" proposed development plan includes a variety of methods to deal with both the rate and quality of storm water runoff. Stormwater mitigation efforts include: · The devdopment plans call £or the construct/on of l:bur storm water infiltration ponds. These ponds are designed to assist in the energy dissipation, infiltration and cleansing of storm water. The infiltratiort ponds allow storm water to collect and slowly infiltrate into the groundwater. Not only does this method allow for the water to manageably enter the system and control flooding, but the. water is also being cleansed at the same time, removing harmful rmtrients and chemicals. ProSource Technologies. Inc. August 3,200l