09-12-94 PC Agenda
AGE N D A
GOLDEN VALLEY PLANNING COMMISSION
Regular Meeting
Golden Valley City Hall
7800 Golden Valley Road
Council Conference Room
September 12. 1994
7:00 PM
I. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - July 25, 1994
II. INFORMAL PUBLIC HEARING - AMENDMENT NO.1 TO DAHLBERG COMMERCE CENTER,
P . U . D. NO. 61
Applicant: Grow Biz International
Address: 4200 Dahlberg Drive, Golden Valley, Minnesota
Request: Amend Dahlberg Commerce Center, P.U.D. No. 61 to allow for
more office space and create additional parking due to the
growth of the business.
Ill. REPORTS ON MEETINGS OF THE HOUSING AND REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY, CITY
COUNCIL AND BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS
IV. OTHER BUSINESS
V. ADJOURNMENT
Ob
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MINUTES OF THE GOLDEN VALLEY
PLANNING COMMISSION
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July 25, 1994
A regular meeting of the Planning Commission was held at the Golden Valley City
Hall, Council Chambers, 7800 Golden Valley Road, Golden Valley, Minnesota. The
meeting was called to order by Chair McAleese at 7:00 PM.
Those present were Commissioners Groger, Johnson (arrived 7:13), Kapsner, Lewis,
McAleese, Pentel and Prazak. Also present were Mark Grimes, Director of
Planning and Development, and Mary Dold, Secretary.
I. Approval of Minutes - July 11, 1994
MOVED by Pentel, seconded by Lewis and motion carried unanimously to approve
the July 11, 1994 minutes as submitted.
II. Informal Public Hearing - Conditional Use Permit
Applicant: United Professional Companies, Inc.
Address: 345 Pennsylvania Avenue South, Golden Valley, Minnesota
Request:
To use the property as corporate offices and allow for an
institutional "closed door" pharmacy and space for the
storage of medical records and medical products
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Mark Grimes, Director of Planning and Development reviewed his report with the
Planning Commission commenting that he had talked with the City Attorney regard-
ing the proposed use of this property. Mr. Grimes talked about the access onto
the property and that there was adequate parking on the site.
Mr. Grimes continued talking about the delivery of products to the building and
out-going deliveries, the times and how many trips. He also discussed the
security system and said that Mr. Kolmer, Executive Director of Operations, had
said that there has been no problems at the 7445 Glenwood Avenue building and
the State Board of Pharmacy requires the pharmacy area have a separate security
set-up from the main building area. Mr. Grimes also talked with Chief of Public
Safety, Dean Mooney, about the security for the building and Chief Mooney did
not see any problems.
Mr. Grimes reviewed his findings on the ten factors found in Section 11.80,
Subd. 2(G).
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Mr. Jeffrey Kolmer, Executive Director of Operations for United Professional
Companies, Inc. talked about their current site and how the company has grown.
He also talked about the proposed site and how it would fit their needs.
Commissioner Pentel asked Mr. Kolmer if the company would restrict employees
from parking on the street. Mr. Kolmer commented that this should not be a
problem.
Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission
July 25, 1994
Page Two
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Commissioner Kapsner asked Mr. Kolmer about the routes of the delivery trucks
and encouraged Mr. Kolmer to have the delivery trucks use Laurel Avenue. Mr.
Kolmer talked about the possible ways to arrive at the site.
Chair McAleese opened the informal public hearing.
Gregg Corwin, 210 Nevada Ave. So., expressed his concerns of drugs being stored
on the site, additional traffic, exterior change to the building and expansion
to the building.
Barbara Crolley, 310 Pennsylvania Ave. So., expressed her concerns regarding the
parking situation for the school, street parking and the possible addition to
the building. She also asked if Pennsylvania Avenue South could be restricted
from certain truck use if traffic became heavy. Chair McAleese commented that
this would be an issue for the City Council to address.
Mr. Kolmer commented that there would be drugs on-site but the State requires
separate security set-up from the main building area. He reviewed the process
for maintaining control of the distribution and disposal of drugs.
Mark Grimes addressed the issue of the school parking situation saying that
there is an informal arrangement with the school on a month-to-month basis to
use the lower parking lot and that the school does not have enough parking
spaces on their property. If street parking becomes a problem, staff can recom-
mend to have "no parking" signs placed on the appropriate streets in that area. .
Mark Abraham, 480 Quebec Avenue So., is concerned with property values and noise
and asked about the zoning of the property.
Dabia Katz, 7521 Ridgeway Road, expressed concerns with traffic and property
values decreasing.
Mark Grimes talked about the original zoning which was "0pen Development" prior
to the 60's and is now zoned Business and Professional Office.
Chair McAleese asked if this kind of proposed traffic is generated in other B&PO
districts. Mr. Grimes commented that there are a lot of deliveries in B&PO's
and any user will create traffic.
Mr. Kolmer talked about the traffic and flow, when employees arrive and depart,
and what kind of organizations would be picking up and delivering products.
Chair McAleese asked Mark Grimes about the property values in the area. Mr.
Grimes commented that staff did not foresee any measurable drop in property
values.
Pearl Berdass, 170 Oregon Ave. So., expressed her concern of the 24-hour a day
use of the building. She also questioned whether deliveries or an entrance
could be made from Laurel Avenue.
Jon Liss, 235 Nevada Avenue So., expressed his concerns about employees coming .
and going for lunch -- added traffic, the blind intersection on Pennsylvania,
deterioration of the neighborhood, security of the building and deliveries.
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Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission
July 25, 1994
Page Three
Rhoda Jaffe, 420 Pennsylvania Ave. So., is concerned with the traffic speed on
Pennsylvania, cars running all-night during the winter (as has been the case
when Mark Hurd was in business). She asked who would be watching out for the
neighborhood if noticeable changes take place.
Chair McAleese commented that the best IIwatchll group are the neighbors them-
selves. He also said that the Conditional Use Permit can have conditions for
control.
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Mr. Kolmer addressed the questions regarding the work shifts and times of
de 1 i ve ry .
Commissioner Groger asked about lighting in the parking areas and if there are
plans to improve the present lighting. Mr. Kolmer commented that the only
outside lighting is on the upper lot and there may need to be some improvement
in the lighting of parking areas. Mark Grimes stated that any lighting plan
would be reviewed by the Inspections Department and lighting can be directed
away from residential areas. Commissioner Groger would like to see a condition
concerning the lighting for the parking areas in the permit.
Chair McAleese closed the informal public hearing.
Commissioner Johnson asked if the City had received complaints when Mark Hurd
operated the building. Mark Grimes commented that he had not heard of any
complaints.
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Commissioner Kapsner commented that he feels that the few people working the
late shift should not cause a problem to the neighborhood and that a Conditional
Use Permit is a good mechanism that would work as an advantage to the neigh-
borhood. Mr. Kapsner felt this would be a good use for the site.
Commissioner Pentel commented that the building fits well with the use but is
concerned with the parking areas. Ms. Pentel commented that a Conditional Use
Permit gives the City more control of over what happens on a piece of property.
Chair McAleese and Commissioner Prazak, Lewis, Johnson and Groger concurred that
this request would be a good fit for the building.
MOVED by Groger, seconded by Kapsner and motion carried unanimously to recommend
to the City Council approval of the request by United Professional Companies,
Inc. to allow the property at 345 Pennsylvania Avenue South be used as corporate
offices, an institutional IIclosed doorll pharmacy and space for the storage of
medical records and medical products subject to the following conditions:
1. The upper parking area be restricted to visitor parking and loading and
unloading for the pharmacy. Signs indicating this should be posted.
2. Any lighting plan for the parking area shall be reviewed by the Director
of Inspections to insure that the direction, intensity, and hours of
lighting are compatible with the neighborhood.
3. All employees will park on-site -- no street parking will be allowed.
Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission
July 25, 1994
Page Four
4. All other applicable City and State requirements shall be met.
5. Failure to comply with one or more of the above conditions shall be
grounds for revocation of the Conditional Use Permit.
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III. Informal Public Hearing - Amendment to the Light Industrial Zoning
District -- Section 11.35 '
Mark Grimes, Director of Planning and Development gave a brief summary of his
report commenting that the initial request to have temporary retail sales in the
Light Industrial District was initiated by the Prudential Group. Mr. Grimes
said that Prudential owns the building at 5740 Wayzata Blvd., which has been
vacant for sometime. Prudential has an interested party who would like to buy
the building and do temporary retail sales as outlined in the proposed amended
Section of the City Code pertaining to the Light Industrial District. Mr.
Grimes also commented that this change to the City Code for "Temporary Retail
Sales" would entail the entire Light Industrial District.
Chair McAleese asked how many temporary retail sales permits have been issued
and if a sale didn't go well, would another permit be issued? Mr. Grimes stated
that not many permits have been issued (one in 1994 and three in 1993) and there
haven't been any permits issued where a second request was in question.
Chair McAleese stated that the request for "Temporary Retail Sales" in the Light .
Industrial District seems to be very straight forward.
MOVED by Lewis, seconded by Johnson and motion carried unanimously to recommend
to the City Council approval to amend certain provisions of the Zoning Chapter
pertaining to "Temporary Retail Sales" in the Light Industrial District.
IV. Reports on Meetings of the Housing and Redevelopment Authority, City
Council and Board of Zoning Appeals
Mark Grimes briefed the Commission on the following meetings: the BZA and HRA
meetings of July 12th and the City Council meeting of July 19th.
V. Other Business
No other business was presented.
VI. Adjournment
Chair McAleese adjourned the meeting at 9 PM.
Jean Lewis, Secretary
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M E M 0 RAN DUM
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DATE:
TO:
FROM:
SUBJECT:
September 9, 1994
Golden Valley Planning Commission
Mark W. Grimes, Director of Planning and Development
Preliminary Design Plan - Dahlberg Commerce Center, P.U.D. No. 61,
Amendment No.1, 4200 Dahlberg Drive, Grow Biz International,
Applicant
In September 1992, the City Council approved the Planned Unit Development
(P.U.D.) for the Dahlberg Commerce Center. The P.U.D. permitted the construc-
tion of a 47,556 sq.ft. one-story building to be used for office/manufacturing/
warehouse space. The site is about 4.5 acres in size. According to the P.U.D.
Permit, up to 1/2 the space may be used for office space and the remainder for
manufacturing and warehouse space.
Since the building was completed in 1993, Grow Biz has been one of the tenants.
Now, Grow Biz is in a position to buy the building and use it as their corporate
headquarters. To use it for their headquarters and training center, they would
like to have the ability to have the building used for 90% office/l0% warehouse.
In order to do that, additional parking is needed on the site. Currently, there
are 144 spaces that meet the parking requirements for a 50% office/50% warehouse
mix. (One space for every 250 sq. ft. of office and one space for every 500
sq.ft. of warehouse or industrial.) In order to make the entire building eli-
gible for all office, 49 spaces need to be added.
When the property was sold for the Commerce Center, property north of the
railroad tracks was made a part of the sale. However, it has remained
undeveloped. The size ~f the area north of the railroad tracks is 32,300 sq.ft.
(.79 acres). As shown on the site plan, there is a crossing for the railroad
tracks. In order to proceed, the additional 49 spaces are needed to allow the
use of the entire building for office space. Grow Biz is proposing that this
area be shown for the development of 49 spaces.
The proposed parking lot indicates a five (5) foot setback from the north, west
and south property lines. Generally, the minimum required setback for a parking
area is 10 feet. In this circumstance, it would be difficult to fully utilize
this area if the 10 foot setback is required. Also, this area is very isolated;
it is "sandwiched" between the railroad tracks. Staff finds the five (5) foot
setback acceptable because of its unique location.
Grow Biz has requested that the 49 spaces be left undeveloped until it is deter-
mined there is a true need, as indicated on the letter to me dated August 26,
1994. Marlys Enger, Director of Administrative & Facility Services, states that
30% of the office portion of the building will be used as a training center.
The people using the training center are brought to the facility from area
hotels by van or taxi. (The people being trained are those who have purchased
a franchise from Grow Biz and come to the Twin Cities for training.)
City staff believes that using the "proof of parking" method is a reasonable
request if it appears unlikely the parking is actually needed but must be shown
to meet parking code requirements. The P.U.D. Permit would be amended indi-
cating that the parking would have to go in when determined it is needed and at
the sole discretion of the City.
Grow Biz International Memo
September 8, 1994
Page Two
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Recommended Action
Staff recommends approval of the Preliminary Design Plan amending P.U.D. No. 61
to allow the building to be used for 100% office space and the addition of 49
parking spaces on the site. It is also recommended that the additional parking
be built only when it is needed. This determination would be made by City offi-
cials as indicated in a revised P.U.D. Permit.
MWG:mkd
Attachments: Location Map
Letter from Marlyn Enger dated August 26, 1994
Site Plan (Parking Expansion)
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INTERNATIONAL
Mr. Mark Grimes, AICP
Director, Planning and Development
City of Golden Valley
7800 Golden Valley Road, Golden Valley, MN 55427
REFERENCE: PUD Application to Expand Parking to Accommodate Office Expansion
Dear Mr. Grimes:
As we discussed at our meeting in July, Grow Biz International is experiencing extensive
growth in developing and supporting its franchise concepts, Play It Again Sports, Once
Upon A Child, Computer Renaissance, Music Go Round and recently acquired Disc Go
Round.
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To meet this growth, it is our intention to increase the office and training use at the
building located at 4200 Dahlberg Drive, to 90% of building use with the remaining 10%
to be used as storage. Therefore, we are requesting an Amendment to the PUD to
accommodate this expansion as related to the parking requirements. There would be no
expansion to the footprint of the building now totalling 47,328sf
Presently, approximately 30% of the office use is training facilities. Trainees are
transported to the facility from area hotels by van or taxi. This explaines the unused
parking spaces (37) on the west side of the building. In our previous meeting you
indicated it may not be necessary to complete the parking lot construction immediately
due to this special building use however, we are prepared to do so as directed by the City
or as soon as increased space is needed by our employees and/or visitors.
Attached is the Application to Amend the PUD, the (12) full size drawings and one
reduced copy for your review of the parking expansion including a check for the $150.00
fee. Please contact me as soon as you know the date of the meeting when this issue will
be presented to the Planning Department. I am available to discuss the specifics of the
expansion.
Sincerely,
J;J2!lJdtIJ ~J) t1!dP'U'
Marlys M. EngJl. (I
Director, Administrative & Facility Services
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4200 Dahlberg Drive, Minneapolis, MN 55422-4837 · (612) 520-8500
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PARKING DATA
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