HomeMy WebLinkAboutPlanning Commission Minutes 01-15-2014Approved Minutes
City of Plymouth
Planning Commission Meeting
January 15, 2014
MEMBERS PRESENT: Chair Davis, Commissioners Marc Anderson, Gordon Petrash, Dick
Kobussen, Nathan Robinson, and Bryan Oakley
MEMBERS ABSENT: Commissioner Scott Nelson
STAFF PRESENT: Planning Manager Barbara Thomson, Senior Planner Shawn Drill, Senior
Engineering Technician Dan Campbell and Office Support Representative Janet Nelson
1. CALL TO ORDER - 7:00 P.M.
2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
3. PUBLIC FORUM
4. APPROVAL OF AGENDA
MOTION by Commissioner Petrash, seconded by Commissioner Oakley, to approve the
January 15, 2014 Planning Commission Agenda. Vote. 6 Ayes. MOTION approved.
5. CONSENT AGENDA
A. APPROVAL OF THE NOVEMBER 20, 2013 PLANNING COMMISSION
MEETING MINUTES
MOTION by Commissioner Petrash, seconded by Commissioner Robinson, to approve the
November 20, 2013 Planning Commission Meeting Minutes. Vote. 6 Ayes. MOTION
approved.
6. PUBLIC HEARINGS
A. LANDFORM PROFESSIONAL SERVICES (2103112)
Chair Davis introduced the request by Landform Professional Services for rezoning, preliminary
plat and conditional use permit for Hidden Meadows at Curtis Lake for property located at the
southwest corner of
47th Avenue and Underwood Lane.
Senior Planner Drill gave an overview of the staff report. He stated a letter was received from
Randy and Lanet Johnson and that letter is part of the public record.
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Commissioner Petrash asked about the drainage issue that the Johnsons have and questioned if it
is acceptable or if it is something they just don't like, reiterating that it has been an existing
problem and should not be the developer's issue to fix.
Senior Engineering Technician Campbell responded that looking at the proposed plan, there
would be less drainage to the area than there is today. He also noted that easy solutions to the
current problem would be to either bring in fill to get the water to drain to the street or to add a
drain tile to connect to the catch basin in the street. He said this would be the responsibility of
the developer because the drainage issue is also on their property.
Commissioner Anderson wanted to see a better drawing with the topography, referring to a hill
and wondered what grading plans there are.
Senior Planner Drill showed a picture of the hill, saying the drainage would flow around through
the back yards and into the rain garden. There would be grading for walkout basements.
Commissioner Anderson asked about area reduction that was pointed out in the Johnson letter.
Senior Planner Drill explained that the net lot size went down slightly, but he suspected the
difference was related to the wetland buffer that is no longer being counted as upland area.
Commissioner Anderson wondered if there would be an easement because the driveways cross
over adjacent lots.
Senior Planner Drill that was discussed in the resolution and could be decided through
homeowners association or with an easement.
Commissioner Anderson questioned moving the retaining wall can't be in that area.
Senior Planner Drill explained that the easement width has to be minimum of 6 feet, and the wall
can't be in the easement so that would move the wall further away from the common lot line.
Commissioner Kobussen asked if a fence on top of the retaining wall would be required per
regulations. Senior Planner Drill replied that it would be addressed in the final plat review.
Commissioner Kobussen asked why it was necessary to cut into the street in two places.
Senior Planner Drill showed the plan from 10 years ago, with five single lots with utility service
stubbed in. The proposed development has seven units, so they need to cut into the street in
order to bring utilities to the two added units.
Commissioner Petrash raised the concern from the Johnson's letter regarding the retaining wall
possibly putting stress on trees.
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Senior Planner Drill agreed that it is a concern, to have the developer do all they can to not harm
the trees. He stated the forester has looked at it, and we asked the city attorney to look into the
matter. Senior Planner Drill said the City Attorney stated this is a private matter between the two
property owners. He noted the forester's recommendation was to stay out of the drip line and
provide one foot of setback for every inch of tree diameter. Looking at the proposed plan, Senior
Planner Drill stated the trees should not be in jeopardy.
Commissioner Petrash questioned whether tree loss was a possible point of contention and if so,
whether we should address it now.
Senior Planner Drill responded that trees should be okay if you don't damage more than 25
percent of the critical root zone. He said if a tree would die, the matter would be between the
two property owners. He said the city would not be involved, for instance, the city could not
require increased setbacks because the developer has the right to develop at the minimum
setback. Senior Planner Drill noted that the setback for the home on Lot 7 is between 13 and 14
feet, which is greater than the required eight -foot minimum.
Chair Davis introduced the applicant, Kendra Lindahl, Landform Professional Services,
representing SVK Development. Ms. Lindahl thanked the commission for the opportunity to be
there. She stated that they are being very careful about their grading plan so they are not grading
into the existing hill on the back side or south side as well as minimizing impact to the east. Ms.
Lindahl said they understand Mr. Johnson's comments and they are concerns of theirs too, which
is why they are beyond minimum setback requirements. Referencing the required six-foot
easement, she noted the retaining wall is at eight feet and will not impact the root zone of the tree
nor will it have to be moved.
Ms. Lindahl said that they agree there is an existing drainage problem on Mr. Johnson's
property. She said if their development has any impact on his property, it will improve his issue.
She stated they don't believe that this existing condition is theirs to correct, although the plan
they have in place should benefit his issue as well, as the grading plan will direct all drainage
away from his property.
Ms. Lindahl commented on the area reduction issue, saying that the net density definition has
changed and that is the distinction between the old development plan and this one.
Ms. Lindahl said they understand the neighborhood comments about the height of the retaining
wall. She said these concerns were brought up at the neighborhood meeting they held on
January 6. Ms. Lindahl stated that their engineering team continues to look at the wall, even
though it is consistent with the ordinance as drafted.
Ms. Lindahl agreed that trees add value to their property and to the existing homeowner's. She
said with their grading plan they have been very careful to stay away from Mr. Johnson's
property and the properties on the south as well. She noted they provided landscaping in excess
of ordinance requirements to keep the buffer, particularly for the homeowners on the south but
also those on the north.
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Commissioner Anderson mentioned that Dan Campbell thought there should be a drain tile or fill
on the corner of Mr. Johnson's property and asked who should be responsible for taking care of
that.
Ms. Lindahl responded that because it is a longstanding issue they don't feel it is their problem to
fix. She said she would have to talk with her client but believes they are completely willing to
talk about it with the Johnsons to resolve the issue.
Chair Davis opened the public hearing.
Chair Davis introduced John McCullough, 4650 Underwood Lane.
Mr. McCullough said he lives directly behind units 6 and 7. He said he did not like the increase
in units from five in the last plan to seven now as unit 7 looks like it is stuck in the plan. He said
the trees are of major value to him and he has seen that trees are negatively impacted by digging,
etc. and prone to die after being impacted. He stated he was concerned that the boulder wall is
now eight feet in height versus two feet originally. Mr. McCullough said he is concerned that
the wall will be a safety issue as the neighborhood kids cut through the property to go to Target
and they might hang out back there. He said he is concerned about the swale and the rain garden
because he has a neighbor who supposedly has a swale, but he has two sump pumps running all
the time. He said he would not like to see that happen here. He said he is worried about
additional erosion of the hill in the southern part of the site as there are not many trees to hold the
soil. While he agreed this can be addressed, he said he would still like to see the units moved
down and away from the trees on Mr. Johnson's property. Mr. McCullough also raised a
concern about the future Three Rivers trail moving close to the homes if there is not sufficient
room by I-494 after the freeway is expanded. He asked how much drainage will be going into
Curtis Lake and how this will impact the shore owners.
Chair Davis introduced Becky Marschner, 4670 Underwood Lane, who indicated that the Curtis
Lake fence ends before her property. She said when the cul-de-sac was developed, a lot of trees
were removed and some were replaced but they were quite small and do not help the neighbors
regarding blocking lights, etc. She said her hope is that SVK will consider enough landscaping
and that their homes blend in with the neighborhood.
Chair Davis introduced Sandra Sullivan, 4660 Underwood Lane. She reiterated concerns about
the erosion. She said the ground has dropped at least a foot by the fence and she has had to take
steps of her own to stop erosion. She said her concern is if there is more grading it will continue
to weaken the ground around the fence. She requested consideration for the size of the trees to
be more mature. Ms. Sullivan stated her overall concern is regarding the benefit of multi -family
over single family homes and whether or not the land can support those buildings with utilities,
drainage, landscaping, etc. and will they preserve the look and feel of the neighborhood.
Chair Davis closed the public hearing.
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Planning Manager Thomson clarified that the retaining wall is 5 feet at the highest point.
Senior Engineering Technician Campbell stated that the development is required to handle
drainage and no more drainage can leave the site under the current condition. He stated the rain
garden would be providing for best management practices, to deal with suspended solids and
phosphorus reductions. He said these would have to be met as laid out in their drainage report
and approved by engineering before the plans are approved.
Regarding erosion, Senior Engineering Technician Campbell explained that vegetation would
have to be established and financial guarantees required and held until the vegetation is
established and maintained to insure that we won't have erosion problems.
Commissioner Petrash asked if this is part of the resolution or is it part of the building code.
Planning Manager Thomson answered it is in our engineering guidelines.
Ms. Lindahl indicated that they have looked at whether the homes can be moved further west.
She said the wetland buffer and setback requirements limit their ability to push it further west
and they wanted to leave some usable yard area for unit 1.
Planning Manager Thomson said Three Rivers Park District owns the property along I-494
where the trail would go and they could not build a trail outside of the area they own.
Reid Schultz, Landform Professional Services, said he does not have numbers regarding how
much water will leave the rain garden and go into Curtis Lake and said there are certain
infiltration requirements that must be met, and the additional amount of water won't fluctuate the
level of Curtis Lake.
Planning Manager Thomson stated the landscaping required as part of this development is two
trees per lot.
Senior Planner Drill showed a drawing of the landscaping plan. He said the minimum size
requirement is 2 '/2 caliper inches, but some shown on the drawing are 3 % inches, with the
bigger ones in the back yards. He said 21 big trees are proposed, which is above the
requirement.
Senior Engineering Technician Campbell said there would be a maintenance agreement required
for the rain garden. He said the agreement would require that the rain garden be maintained for
five years and a financial guarantee held to make sure the rain garden would be functioning
properly.
Senior Planner Drill stated that ten years ago, the city approved a plat for five single family lots
on this site, but the plat was never recorded and the approval expired. He said, according to the
LA -2 guiding, the site could have between five and nine units, with seven being right in the
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middle. He said the proposed plat complies with the city's standards and there is sufficient
sewer and water capacity to serve it.
Commissioner Anderson asked Senior Engineering Technician Campbell if he was in agreement
that there would not be a dramatic increase of water going into Curtis Lake.
Senior Engineering Technician Campbell said that with the addition of the rain garden, that takes
backyard drainage and filtration, there would most likely not be any more drainage going into the
lake, but he would look into drainage calculations, etc. at final plat to confirm.
Commissioner Anderson said he believes there is no problem with the project as it conforms to
the guiding and there is additional multi -family housing in the area. He said he would like to see
that they are not grading in the south. Regarding the trees, he stated there is a sufficient setback
to protect them. He said he does not think it is appropriate for the developer to be responsible for
a drainage problem that was created in the past. Commissioner Anderson said the landscaping is
weak, and the developer should look at beefing it up.
Commissioner Oakley said he agreed with Commissioner Anderson's comments, but wished
they could make unit #7 go away for no other reason than it looks like it was just stuck there. He
said it does seem like they are complying and he will support the project as submitted.
Commissioner Kobussen agreed that going down to six units puts it at the minimum. He said the
seventh puts density where it should be. He said the retaining wall is a necessity as it will protect
trees from erosion, and we don't want water going into the seventh unit. He said he wants to
make sure there is something planted on the back of the hill so it doesn't keep washing away.
MOTION by Commissioner Anderson, seconded by Commissioner Petrash, to approve the
request by Landform Professional Services for rezoning, preliminary plat and conditional use
permit for Hidden Meadows at Curtis Lake for property located at the southwest corner of 47th
Avenue and Underwood Lane. Roll call vote. 6 Ayes MOTION approved
7. NEW BUSINESS
8. ADJOURNMENT
MOTION by Chair Davis, with no objection, to adjourn the meeting at 8:08 P.M.