Agenda - Council Work Session - 04/04/2006

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The Mississippi River Overlay District provides the regulatory means to combine the Critical Areas Act and Rules, Executive Order 79-19, the Minnesota Wild and Scenic Rivers Act and Rules for the Mississippi Wild and Scenic River into a single management district for lands designated under Executive Order 79-19 within the City of Ramsey. Subd. 2. Findings. The City of Ramsey finds that the Mississippi River Corridor within the Metropolitan Area and the City is a unique and valuable local, state, regional and national resource. The river is an essential element in the local, regional, state and national transportation, sewer and water and recreational system and serves important biological and ecological functions. The prevention and mitigation of irreversible damage to this resource and the preservation and enhancement of its natural, aesthetic, cultural and historic values is in furtherance of the health, safety and general welfare of the City. Subd. 3. Purpose and Intent. It is the purpose and intent of the Mississippi River Overlay District to protect and preserve a unique and valuable state and regional resource for the benefit of the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens for the state, region, and nation; prevent and mitigate irreversible damage to this unique state, local regional and national resource, to preserve and enhance its values to the public, protect and preserve the system as an essential element in the City!s transportation, sewer and water and recreational systems, protect and preserve the biological and ecological functions of the Corridor in accordance with the following policies: a. The Mississippi River Corridor shall be managed as a multi-purpose public resource by continuing use of the river channel for transportation, conserving the scenic environmental, recreational, mineral, economic, cultural and historic resources and functions of the river corridor, and providing for the continuation of development of a variety of urban uses where appropriate within the river corridor. b. The Mississippi River Corridor shall be managed in a manner consistent with its natural characteristics and its existing development, the Executive Order 79-19 district guidelines, and in accordance with regional plans for the development of the Metropolitan Area. c. The Mississippi River Corridor shall be managed in accordance with the Critical Areas Act of 1973, the Minnesota Environmental Policy Act of 1973, and the Governor's Continuing Critical Area Designation Order, Executive Order #79-19, and other applicable state and federal laws. d. The Mississippi River Corridor shall be managed in accordance with the Minnesota Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (M.S. 103F.301 - 103F.345), and the Rules for the Mississippi Wild and Scenic River. The Mississippi River Corridor shall be managed in accordance with the Ramsey Comprehensive Plan and the Mississippi River Critical Area Corridor/MNRRA Plan included therein. 9.21.02 Definitions Subd. 1. Intent. Unless specifically defined below, words or phrases used in this section shall be interpreted so as to give them the same meaning ~s they have in common usage and so as