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02-08-93 PC Agenda AGE N D A GOLDEN VALLEY PLANNING COMMISSION Regular Meeting Gol den Valley City Hall 7800. Golden Valley Road Council Chamber February 8, 1993 7:00 PM I. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - January 11, 1993 II. INFORMAL PUBLIC HEARING - Amendment toZoni"g .code, De1etingSec. 11.41 "Railroad Zoning District" in its Entirety III. INFo.RMAL PUBLIC HEARING - Amendments to Sec. 11.11 of City Code to Adopt a new.Official Zoning Map IV. REPORTS ON. MEETINGS OF THE HOUSING AND REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY, CITY COUNCIL AND BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS v. OTHER BUSINESS V I . ADJ OURNMENT .r MINUTES OF THE GOLDEN VALLEY PLANNING COMMISSION e January 11, 1993 A regular meeting of the Planning Commission was held at the Golden Valley City Hall, Council Chamber, 7800 Golden Valley Road, Golden Valley, Minnesota. The meeting was called to order by Chair McAleese at 7:03 PM. Those present were Commissioners Groger, Johnson, Kapsner, McAleese, Pentel and Prazak; absent was Lewis. Also present were Mark Grimes, Director of Planning and Development; Beth Knoblauch, City Planner and Mary Dold, Secretary. I. Approval of Minutes - November 23, 1992 MOVED by Johnson, seconded by Pentel and motion carried unanimously to approve the November 23, 1992 minutes as submitted. II. Informal Public Hearing - Preliminary Plat - Consolidation Applicant: General Mills, Inc. Request: NW Corner of General Mills Blvd. and Betty Crocker Drive Consider a Preliminary Plat to Consolidate Two Lots Into One Address: e Chair McAleese asked staff to give a brief summary of the request. Mark Grimes, Di rector of Pl anni ng and Development, revi ewed hi s memo wi th the Pl anni ng Commission. General Mills is requesting a lot consolidation so they can build a training center (which will need Conditional Use Permit) at the NW corner of General Mills Blvd. and Betty Crocker Drive. Without the lot consolidation the building may overlap a lot line depending where it would be placed. There would be no ill effects on the nature area to the north and west of these lots and General Mills would probably enhance the nature area for their employees and those residents who live near and use the trails. e Mr. Grimes commented that there is a concern regarding the wetl and area and General Mills will need to meet with Basset Creek Water Management Commission and the DNR. He also stated that this request fits in with the zoning code. Jerry Taylor, representati ve from General Mi 11 s, tal ked about the amount of acreage involved and the preservation and enhancement of the nature area which they want to work on. He commented that the building plans are only in the prel imi nary stage and woul d keep the Di rector of Pl anni ng updated on any new developments. Commissioner Pentel asked about the parking situation. Mr. Taylor stated that he doesn't know what the parking figuration will be since they do not have a building design. Mr. Grimes commented that the building would take up one acre out of the 24 acre lot with maybe one acre of parking, which is about 5% of the acreage available. Chair McAleese opened the informal public hearing. Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission January 11, 1993 Page Two Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Grega, 9145 W. Hwy. 55, #206, were present. Mrs. Grega said that most of her questions her answered before the meeting by Mr. Taylor but she was concerned about Ensign Avenue being used as an access to the General Mills property from the north and the wooded area bei ng destroyed. Beth Knobl auch, City Planner, commented that Ensign Avenue may need to be used only when emer- gency vehicles need to enter the property. Mr. Irv Keldsen, 9147 W. Hwy. 55, #202, was concerned about where the building would be placed and any disruption of the wooded area. Mr. Grimes commented that the building would probably be located on higher ground and the wooded area would be maintained. . Chair McAleese closed the informal public hearing. The Planning Commission unanimously agreed that they see no problem with this lot consolidation. MOVED by Johnson, seconded by Prazak and motion carried unanimously to recommend to the City Council approval for a lot consolidation at the NW corner of General Mills Blvd. and Betty Crocker Drive form two lots to one. and Redevelo ment Authority, City Commissioner Kapsner commented on the City Council meeting of January 5th e regarding the Amendment to the Flood Plain and the Preliminary Plan for Midtown Homeowners Assoc. IV. Other Business Mark Grimes tol d the Commi ssi on that staff is conti nui ng to work on the Wi nnetka wi deni ng project and that there shoul d be some kind of development occurring on the Area C site in the next year. V. Adjournment Chair McAleese adjourned the meeting at 7:50 PM. Jean Lewis, Secretary e e e e M E M 0 RAN DUM DATE: February 2, 1993 TO: Golden Valley Planning Commission FROM: Elizabeth A. Knoblauch, City Planner SUBJECT: INFORMAL PUBLIC HEARING -- AMENDMENT TO ZONING CODE, DELETING SEC. 11.41 "RAILROAD ZONING DISTRICT" IN ITS ENTIRETY The railroad district was added to the zoning code in 1950. Most of the rail- road property in the City has never been placed under this zoning designation. Only in the North Wirth area (north of Hwy. 55 from the City limits to Hwy. 100 - portion of zoning map attached) can railroad-zoned land be found. About a third of the railroad area indicated on the current zoning map was added to the railroad district -- apparently erroneously -- at the time the map was adopted in 1982. The zoning map also lumps the railroad district in with the radio and television zoni ng di stri ct. Only one pattern is used to represent property in both districts. On the map, this pattern is identified as \IRadio and Railroad\l. The legal ramifications of this situation are not entirely clear, but staff would prefer not to explore them in any detail. The uses allowed in the railroad zoning district are as follows: rai 1 road yards railroad tracks and right-of-way in such yards railroad shops roundhouses any other use which shall be for railroad purposes only. Except for the mi scell aneous \Iothern category at the end of the 1 i st, none of these uses exist in Golden Valley any more. The primary nothern use is railroad tracks (not in yards). Appurtenant to the tracks are such thi ngs as track switching mechanisms, automobile warning systems, and small equipment sheds or boxes. Staff research shows that common zoning practice often treats such basic transportation infrastructure in the same way as public streets, highways, etc. Another fairly common practice is to make the basic trackage a permitted use in one or more zoning districts that already exist for other purposes. Since: 1) the majority of the railroad lines that run through Golden Valley have never been classified in the railroad zoning district; 2) this lack of railroad zoning has never appeared to cause any difficulty for the railroad com- panies or for the City when dealing with railroad property; and 3) the City really shouldn't be indicating two zoning districts with a single map pattern, staff recommends deleting the railroad district from the zoning chapter of the City Code. Railroad trackage in the North Wirth area will then be treated in the same way as trackage in the rest of the City for zoning purposes. EAK:mkd Attachment: Portion of Golden Valley Zoning Map e e e e e e M E M 0 RAN DUM DATE: February 2, 1993 TO: Golden Valley Planning Commission FROM: Elizabeth A. Knoblauch, City Planner SUBJECT: INFORMAL PUBLIC HEARING -- AMENDMENTS TO SEC. 11.11 OF CITY CODE TO ADOPT A NEW OFFICIAL ZONING MAP After several months of research and discussion, staff has developed an updated Official Zoning Map for the City of Golden Valley. Several types of changes have been made in an effort to create a map that is more accurate and more readable than the existing zoning map. The bulk of the changes involve P.U.D.s or government-owned property. Summary explanations of each category of changes are included in an attachment to this memo. A copy of the proposed zoning map, with changed areas highlighted and color coded, will be available at the time of the informal hearing. A non-highlighted copy of the proposed map is enclosed in the agenda packet with this memo. In addition to adopting a new map, there will be one or two minor text changes to Sec. 11.11 of the zoning chapter, which is the section that authorizes the offici a 1 zoni ng map. Subd. 1 of Sec. 11.11 says that the offi ci a 1 zoni ng map must bear the date of adoption of the section. This raises some question as to whether the recodifier was referring to the original date of adoption, which is what the eXisting map shows and staff was not directed by the recodifier to change, or whether that ori gi nal date shoul d have been amended to the date of recodi fi cati on. Staff woul d prefer not to use ei ther of those dates, but instead amend the text to say that the official zoning map must bear the date of adoption of the map itself. An alternative would be to amend the text to require both dates on the map. A question has also been raised as to whether Sec. 11.11 must specifically authorize the adoption of a completely new zoning map. The present language in Subd. 2 only refers to making changes to the map on the basis of individual rezonings. These matters are still being debated as of the writing of this memo. It is expected that the exact text amendment relating to the required date(s) and -- if necessary -- authorization for adopting a new map will be available at the informal hearing. The current text of Sec. 11.11 is attached to this memo. EAK :mkd Attachments: Summary of types of changes included on new zoning map Copy of proposed zoning map Copy of Sec. 11.11 of City Code (Attachment) ~ SUMMARY OF PROPOSED ZONING MAP CHANGES ~ ~ 1. All P.U.D. boundaries will be indicated by a bold outline. General locations of P.U.D.s are indicated on the existing zoning map by printing "P.U.D. XX" in the area of concern, but there is no accurate demarcation of where any P.U.O. begins or ends. When checking the zoning on a specific property, even staff cannot always be certain whether it is in a P.U.D. or not. This type of change will improve accuracy and readability. 2. Wi thi n each P. U.O., the underlyi ng zoni ng wi 11 be al tered as necessary so there is only one zoning designation per P.U.D., and so the underlying zoning bears some reasonabl e rel ationship to the actual type of development per- mitted within the P.U.O. Although the P.U.D. designation supersedes the underlying zoning designation, both designations are shown on the zoning map. When the City first started allowing P.U.D.'s, the standard zoning practice of requiring a reasonable relationship between P.U.D. and zoning district was followed; early P.U.O. applications were (with a few exceptions) accom- panied by rezoning applications if it was determined that the proposed P.U.O. development would involve too drastic a departure from the eXisting zoning. This practice was dropped for unknown reasons after P.U.D. 22, and some sub- sequent P.U.D.s were approved with multiple or conflicting underlying desig- nati ons. Thi s does not hurt the accuracy of the zoni ng map, because the P.U.D. takes precedence over the zoning. On the other hand, it is very con- fusing to map readers who are not familiar with City practice. There are 13 P.U.D.'s affected by this type of map change. Because existing P.U.D.'s can only be cancelled by City Council action, and that action can include a rezoni ng, the changes are not expected to have any long-term impl i cati ons other than making the map more readable. 3. All permanent, institutional property will be given the appropriate institu- tional zoning designation. Approximately forty properties are affected by this type of map change. all but a handful are city-owned. They range in size from small drainage pond lots to major city parks. Nearly all are currently designated as either residential or open development zoning. This type of change will make the zoning map more accurate. Staff members regu- larly field inquiries from people who have been driving around the City, armed with a copy of the zoning map, looking for developable residential lots; the lot hunters are often disappointed to learn that a parcel they've targeted is not for sale. 4. Miscellaneous zoning changes will be made to correct discrepancies. Three forms of discrepancy have been identified by staff: areas where the zoning as shown on the existing zoning map does not correspond with the record of zoni ng ordi nances; areas where the zoni ng desi gnati on is generally correct but does not correspond with current property 1 i nes; and areas where the zoning designation is in conformance with the record of zoning ordinances but confl i cts wi th exi sti ng development. Changes such as these are 1 imi ted to small geographic areas. There are 15-20 of them. In cases where a proposed change appeared likely to increase the degree of nonconformity of the site in any way, staff left the existing zoning designation in place. Accuracy is the main concern with these changes. e e e Page Two 5. The new 1-394 corridor and frontage road system will be incorporated into the map. These changes primarily affect readability. The taking of property for highway purposes has caused quite a discrepancy between what people see "in the fie1d" and what they see on the existing zoning map. It can be easy for people to lose their bearings when they try to relate the map to the real world. Unfortunately, MnDOT has been somewhat uncooprative about identifying areas where excess 1 and is expected to be returned for development. some parcels currently identified as right-of-way are known by staff to be strong candi dates for turn-back. When deali ng with these parcel s (primari 1y ones where buildings exist now) staff used a best-guess estimate as to final right-of-way configuration. 6. Recent amendments to the existing map will be incorporated into the new map. One such amendment involves the removal of the railroad zoning designation. In addi ti on, there is a handful of amendments goi ng back to 1990 that have been hard drawn onto all display copies of the existing map but are not included on the reprintab1e my1ars at this time. Accuracy is the point here. The map legend, certification language, and amendment list will be updated. In the case of the legend, the phrase "not fina1" is deleted and the "Radio and Rai1road" designation is changed to "Radio and Te1evision". The certifi- cation is adjusted based on the recodification of the zoning chapter and given a current date and current signatures. The single amendment list on the exi sti ng map is broken down to allow separate 1 i sti ng of P. U. D. amend- ments, which are processed somewhat differently. 7. e e e / 11.10 SEC. 11.10. ZORING DISTRICTS. Subd. 1. For the purpose of this Chap~, the City is nto the following Zoning Districts: ~ Open Development / Residential wO-Family R-2 Residentia ' ltiple Dwelling Office In tutional rminal Warehous' d. 2. The districts d their boundaries are hereby · No building, premises, r land use shall be erected, establi ed, or used for any purpose ~ t does not comply with all appli ble regulations of the distric in which such building, ses, or land use, is located., SEC. 11.11. OFFICIAL ZORING MAP. Subd. 1. The Official Zoning Map together with all explanatory matter thereon is adopted hereby by reference and declared to be a part of the Zoning Chapter. The Official Zoning Map shall show the division of the City into zoning districts and shall be identified by the signature of the Mayor, attested to by the City Clerk and bear the seal of the City under the words: "This is to certify that this is the Official Zoning Map referred to in Section 11.11 of the Zoning Chapter of the City Code of the City of Golden Valley", together with the date of adoption of this Section. Subd. 2. If changes are made in district boundaries or other matter portrayed on the Official Zoning Map, such changes shall be inscribed on the Official Zoning Map promptly after the amendment has been approved (or the permit has been issued) by the Council together with an entry on the Official Zoning Map reflecting the number and date of enactment of the amending ~rdinance or resolution which effected the change. Subd. 3. Any unauthorized change of the Official Zoning Map of whatever kind by a person or persons is unlawful. GOLDEN VALLEY CC 211 (6-~0-88) "'. e e S 11.11 Subd. 4. Whenever any street, alley or other public way is vacated by official action .of the Council, the zoning districts adjoining each side of such street, alley or public way shall be auto- matically extended to the center of such vacation and all area included in the vacation shall then and heretofore be subject to all appropriate regulations of the extended districts, provided,however. that if in the judgment of the City Attorney the vacated street, alley or public way does not become property of the adjoining lan- downers, then such automatic extension does not take place. Source: Ordinance No. 609 Effective Date: 11-11-83 SEC. 11.12. PRINCIPAL STRUCTURE ON ONE LOT. In all of the zoning districts, every principal structure erected after the effec- tive date of this section (October 3, 1991) shall be located on a separate lot and in no case shall there be more than one principal structure on a lot. Source: Ordinance No. 73, 2nd Series Effective Date: 10-3-91 (Sections 11.13 through 11.19, inclusive, reserved for future expansion. ) GOLDEN VALLEY CC 212 (11-1-91)