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I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I . LAND USE The City of Ramsey has experienced significant growth over the last two decades. Rapid growth was experienced in the 1970's throughout the community. The 1980's saw steady moderate growth at a rate lower than in the 1970's. The first three years of the 1990's have seen the City grow at a faster rate then in any previous period of the City's history. This growth has allowed the City to encourage the filling up of residential property in the current Metropolitan Urban Service Area (MUSA). It is expected that this growth, at a somewhat slower rate, will continue for the next few years if additional, moderately priced housing stock is made available. Figure 1 illustrates the proposed major MUSA expansion. The expansion would encompass 50 percent urban reserve area. This would allow the City to effectively plan and control future development by regulating the total development and the rate of development in any given year. This ability would work in conjunction with the existing 4/40 density zoning that was enacted in 1990. As shown on Figure 2, Zoning Map, the greatest land area is zoned R-1 R, Rural Residential. The current 2000 MUSA lines are shown on Figure 2. The MUSA lands are situated in two watersheds." The eastern portion is in the Rum River Watershed District and the western portion is in the Mississippi River Watershed District. Table 1 indicates that 357 acres (21 %) of the gross acreage within the current 2000 MUSA are undevelopable. Nine hundred ninety-seven acres are currently developed with industrial, commercial, or residential development. Undeveloped acreage within the current 2000 MUSA totals 339 acres. Table 2 indicates that 584 acres (19%) of the gross acreage within the proposed 2000 MUSA are undevelopable. One thousand seven hundred eighty-three acres are currently developed and 781 acres are undeveloped. The City has identified an urban area boundary, shown on Figure 2, which encompasses approximately 4000 acres of the City's total gross land area of 18,450 acres (22%). Lands within this urban area boundary that are not within the current MUSA line are designated by Ordinance #89-33 as urban reserve. City planning envisions future phased extension of the MUSA boundary into the urban reserve lands delineated by the urban area boundary. Development controls have been placed on urban reserve lands by ordinance to minimize intense development which will enhance ultimate orderly MUSA expansion. These controls include a 10-acre minimum lot size and a 4 lot per 40 acre maximum development density. As this expansion will encompass all of this area, these controls will continue as the actual services may not be available to all of this area for quite some time. The City does require property owners to petition for the extension of services and a majority signing in favor is required to extend services to new areas. Figure 2 also shows the line designated by the Metropolitan Waste Control Commission as the "District No. 3 Boundary". This boundary has been utilized in regional and local planning and has been incorporated in studies and reports leading to design and construction of regional and local sewer facilities. It is not practical to extend sewer service beyond Trott Brook. The City of Ramsey has designated, via Ordinance #89-33, the area that is south of Trott Brook, but outside of the urban area boundary as a rural transition area. Trott Brook approximately conforms to the MWCC District No.3 Boundary. The development controls on this area are not as restrictive as on lands within the urban reserve area, nor as restrictive as on lands beyond the District No. 3 Boundary which outlying lands are in the City's rural service area. The rural transition zone allows building permits on lots that were lots of record prior to January 1, 1990, and allows subdivision of existing large parcels into 2-1/2 acres or larger lots only to the extent that a pro rata density of 4/40 acres is maintained within the parcel. 1