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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Minutes 06-05-2001 SpecialAdopted Minutes Special Council Meeting June 5, 2001 A Special Meeting of the Plymouth City Council was called to order by Mayor Tierney at 5:00 p.m. in the Library at St. Philip the Deacon Lutheran Church, 17205 County Road 6, on June 5, 2001. COUNCIL PRESENT: Mayor Tierney; Councilmembers Johnson, Slavik, Hewitt, Stein, and Harstad. ABSENT: Councilmembers Black. STAFF PRESENT: City Manager Johnson, Community Development Director Hurlburt, Police Chief Gerdes, and City Clerk Paulson. Discussion on Exoandin2 the Church Parking Lot Steve Bohl, 825 Brown Road South, discussed with the Council a Site Plan that would incorporate a parking deck on their existing parking lot. The existing parking lot would then be extended to the south to the rear yards of two homes that the church currently owns. The existing parking capacity of this area is 267 parking spaces, and with the construction of a one - level deck and extending the parking lot to the south, they would have a capacity of 557 parking spaces, with a net gain of 290 parking spaces. He stated they view this plan as a 20 -year plan, and they desire to start construction within the next three years. He explained the construction of the parking deck would cost approximately $2.1 million; therefore, there would be fundraising within their congregation to obtain the funds. He stated they have tried to accommodate many of the concerns that were expressed by the neighbors and by the Council at the April 10 Council meeting. Councilmember Harstad stressed that the proposed parking aciliiy is a parking deck not a parking ramp. Mayor Tierney stated that she met with church officials and walked the property. She suggested that the church consider compact striping versus regular striping in the parking lot to gain more parking spaces. She asked if the church has discussed with Oakwood School officials about safe crossings as the church utilizes their parking lot for overflow parking. She stated the church needs to review its long-range growth as they have a 1,000 seat sanctuary with limited amount of parking on the property. Mr. Bohl stated their proposed parking plan accommodates the current building/sanctuary. In the future, it may be necessary to add four additional staff rooms, a gathering space, and approximately 15 classrooms. He stated they do not intend to expand the sanctuary. A resident asked if it was possible to combine the 7:30 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. Sunday services in order to provide more transition time between the 8:30 a.m. service and the next service. Adopted City Council Minutes Special Meeting of June S, 2001 Page 2 of 4 Senior Pastor David Hoffman spoke of the many difficulties with the scheduling relating to Sunday School activities and conducting the Sunday services after 11:00 a.m. He stated through the years, they have experimented with many different service schedules, but the current schedule seems to work the best. He stated their typical weekend attendance is approximately 2,300 people. Councilmember Johnson asked with this plan, would there be a different egress or ingress into the parking lot. Community Development Director Hurlburt replied no. Councilmember Johnson asked if this would be an issue for emergency vehicle access to the building. Community Development Director Hurlburt replied that staff hasn't received adequate information on this plan in order to prepare a code review. Councilmember Stein asked how high the deck would in grade to the two homes that the church owns. Mr. Bohl replied the existing parking level would stay the same, and the deck would be approximately 12 feet above that. He added that the two homes would be utilized for storage and administrative use. Community Development Director Hurlburt stated that if the homes would be used for any other purpose rather than residential, the use would need to be included in the Conditional Use Permit. The church would need to define the use of these homes as well as the hours and impact to the parking and street. Mr. Bohl stated that currently their two pastors reside there. However, the church also owns another home close to these two homes in which one of the pastors may reside. Pastor Hoffman stated they would gain 40 parking spaces adjacent to the homes they own. Councilmember Johnson asked if gaining those 40 parking spaces would be necessary since they would be gaining 290 parking spaces with the parking deck. Pastor Hoffman replied that they would never have enough parking on site; however, the 40 parking spaces would give them time until they could begin the construction of the parking deck. Councilmember Stein asked if the additional parking spaces would be adequate. He asked what would occur with the two properties after the 40 parking spaces are constructed, and the parking deck isn't constructed. Mr. Bohl replied that if that is a concern of the Council, he suggested it be a condition of the Conditional Use Permit. Councilmember Stein suggested that there be an interim permit for the 40 spaces, and after the parking deck is constructed, the parking spaces would be removed in order to assure that the properties stay residential. Councilmember Johnson suggested selling the two homes and utilizing the income for the parking deck. Her concern is that the two properties would essentially have no backyards. She also mentioned that perhaps some of the 40 parking spaces could be removed in order to provide more backyard to those properties. Adopted City Council Minutes Special Meeting of June 5, 2001 Page 3 of 4 Mr. Bohl stated even if they removed the first row of 20 parking spaces, the impact to the neighbors would be very minimal. He stated the church feels they have property rights, and they feel strongly about challenging the defeat of their original plan at the April 10 Council meeting. The original plan incorporated a lot of landscaping, and by maintaining the two homes, they are not violating residential issues. Councilmember Johnson stated her issue is the use and access to the two homes. She reiterated the possibility of selling these two homes so they would maintain the residential characteristics. Mr. Bohl stated that could be an option. However, he needs to understand the responsibility of the City making a decision on the responsibility of the church to the neighborhood as well as neighborhood responsibilities. He stated regarding access to the homes, they would make sure they wouldn't deviate from the normal or average traffic access to the homes. There could be perimeters as restrictive as a residential use. There is no intention of utilizing the properties beyond that. Councilmember Slavik asked if the church would continue to utilize the shuttle from Oakwood Elementary School. Mr. Bohl replied yes, until the parking deck is constructed. Police Chief Gerdes stated the church has a private contract with the City for uniformed officers to direct the traffic across County Road 6. One resident stated the parking deck would be acceptable to them. Another resident stated that the extra 40 spaces to the rear of the two homes appears to open up the area quite a bit. He would prefer that the spaces be reduced to 20-30 parking spaces for the short-term. CorTuiiuru y Development Director Hurlburt cautioned everyone on assuming anything this evening as the church has not submitted a formal plan to the City. There is not adequate information on the conceptual drawing at this point. Councilmember Harstad asked if the Council were to approve the parking deck concept, how long is the approval valid for. Community Development Director Hurlburt replied it is valid for one year unless an extension would be granted by the Council. She suggested a phase in approach with this type of development. Councilmember Hewitt stated she is concerned about the 40 parking spaces unless she is assured that the parking deck is going to be constructed. Councilmember Johnson noted that the original plan for the addition of 84 parking spaces wouldn't have been sufficient, and more than likely, the church would've requested a parking deck in the long-term future. Adopted City Council Minutes Special Meeting of June 5, 2001 Page 4 of 4 Mayor Tierney stated parking at the Oakwood Elementary School is a viable option, and she would like this pursued more. A resident asked if a walkway could be constructed over County Road 6 from the Oakwood Elementary School. Community Development Director Hurlburt stated this option would be very costly, and there wouldn't be adequate distance for the setback of the walkway. Mr. Bohl stated they would continue to pursue the plan that was discussed this evening, and at this point, he is unsure if they would pursue a lot consolidation for the two residential properties Councilmember Johnson stated she is concerned about public institutional uses in a residential neighborhood if the church was no longer there. Councilmember Stein asked what assurances does the City have that the church won't acquire additional residential properties in order to expand their parking lot if the parking deck concept wasn't constructed. Mr. Bob] stated that could be a condition that the two homes stay. Mayor Tierney suggested that the church representatives define their plans and present them to staff for review. An adjacent neighbor requested that the Council review the current parking lot and the location of the trees that would need to be removed for the construction of a parking deck. Their home would no longer be screened from the church. Community Development Director Hurlburt stated there is no regulation on the removal of those trees. There being no further discussion, the Council, along with Mr. Bohl, walked the church property and the property containing the two homes. The meeting was adjourned at 7:00 p.m. C'-fw, Sandra R. Paulson, City Clerk