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March 11, 2021 Tim Gladhill, Community Development Director City of Ramsey 7550 Sunwood Drive NW Ramsey, MN 55303 RE: City of Ramsey -Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) - Riverstone South Metropolitan Council Review No. 22532-1 Metropolitan Council District No. 9 Dear Mr. Gladhill: The Metropolitan Council received the EAW for the Riverstone South project in the City of Ramsey on February 2, 2021. The proposed project is located south of Highway 169 and east of Bowers Drive NW. The proposed development consists of 78.63 acres with 243 units comprising of 165 detached single- family homes and 78 detached townhomes, and parkland with tree preservation. Site development will include installation of municipal sewer and water, mass grading, and stormwater management practices. The staff review finds that the EAW is complete and accurate with respect to regional concerns and does not raise major issues of consistency with Council policies. An EIS is not necessary for regional purposes. We offer the following comments for your consideration. Item 9 — Land Use (Jerome Benner II, 651-602-1494) The proposed development site is guided as Low Density Residential (LDR) in the City's 2040 Future Land Use Plan. As such, the allowed density range for this land use is 3 to 4 units per acre, which is consistent with the guiding land use for the proposed 165 detached single-family dwellings. The EAW states that a portion of the site will be reguided to Medium Density Residential (MDR), which allows for a density range of 4 to 6 units per acre, in order to accommodate the 78 townhomes proposed for this site at 7 units per acre. In addition to the land reguiding correctly identified in the Permits and Approvals section of the EAW (Item 8), the comprehensive plan amendment must also address consistency between the proposed density (7 units/acre) and permitted density ranges currently defined by land use categories. The proposed density is not currently permitted by any defined land use category. Furthermore, the comprehensive plan amendment must state the exact number of acres that would be reguided as a part of the amendment. Item 9 — Land Use (Todd Graham, 651-602-1322) The EAW site is a small part of TAZ #62 which is located along a 2-mile long strip of land between the Mississippi River and Highway 10. The City's 2040 Comprehensive Plan expects this zone to gain 524 households and 3,000 population during the 2020-2040 planning period. Should the Riverstone South development go forward, Council staff recommend reexamining the TAZ allocation, considering a larger number of 390 Robert Street North I Saint Paul, MN 55101-1805 P. 651.602.1000 17Y. 651.291.0904 metr000unoi I .org METROPOLITAN COUNCIL