Minutes - Council Work Session - 05/11/2022 - Joint WS

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Planning Commission Chair Bauer stated that if that area is not designated as MUSA, the infrastructure would not be sized appropriately, and the appropriate planning would not occur. He explained that utility planning looks not just at what is needed now, but what will be needed in the future as well in order to appropriately size the lines and provide appropriate capacity. Senior Planner Anderson stated that in the scenario raised by Commissioner Walker, it was an existing lot of record and perhaps the Code could be amended to eliminate the need to go through the variance process for that type of request. He did not believe it would be wise to allow for a subdivision to go along that same path. Councilmember Musgrove stated that if all the land designated MUSA were to develop, would the Metropolitan Council then require the City to designate additional property. Councilmember Woestehoff stated that they are currently on the 2040 Comprehensive Plan and the next version would be 2050. He stated that if additional acreage were required to be designated, the City could do that with a parcel such as the game fair property that is close to MUSA but is not connected. He identified additional large parcels along Highway 47 that could possibly be designated as MUSA. He stated that if higher density is focused towards The COR, that would result in less density being required in the northern portion of the city. He stated that input from landowners will help to guide those discussions. Planning Manager Larson commented that the Metropolitan Council does not dictate development occurring, only the possibility of development occurring therefore any land could be designated whether or not it developed. Interim City Administrator/Community Dev. Director Hagen stated that a developer will bring forward a request to develop a large property and they will have done their due diligence in the cost to connect to infrastructure if that is desired. He noted that would give the City the highest level of discretion in whether it would want to allow the change of use. Acting Mayor Riley commented that it comes back to being market driven. Councilmember Musgrove asked the process for redrawing MUSA boundaries, using the example of a property wanting to come out of the MUSA and if another area can be identified to replace that. Senior Planner Anderson noted that would occur in the planning for the next version of the Comprehensive Plan. Interim City Administrator/Community Dev. Director Hagen stated that an individual property owner can make a request as well. He stated that if a large acre property wanted to get out of the MUSA, the line would likely be adjusted in that area because the infrastructure has already been sized to support connection in that area. He explained that it would not make sense to remove a portion from the MUSA in the north and add it in the south. 5. ADJOURNMENT City Council Joint Work Session/May 11, 2022 Page 15 of 16