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03-08-04 PC Minutes Regular Meeting of the Golden Valley Planning Commission March 8, 2004 A regular meeting of the Planning Commission was held at the Golden Valley City Hall Council Chambers, 7800 Golden Valley Road, Golden Valley, Minnesota, on Monday March 8, 2004. Vice Chair Keysser called the meeting to order at 7 pm. Those present were Commissioners Eck, Groger, Keysser, McAleese and Rasmussen. Also present were Director of Planning and Development, Mark Grimes and Administrative Assistant, Lisa Wittman. Chair Pentel was absent. e I. Approval of Minutes February 9, 2004 Planning Commission Meeting MOVED by Eck, seconded by McAleese and motion carried unanimously to approve the February 9, 2004 minutes as submitted. II. Informal Public Hearing - Preliminary Plat (Minor Subdivision) SU14-11 Applicant: Ronald & Victoria Rath Address: 6909 Medicine Lake Road e Purpose: To divide the one existing lot into two lots in order to construct a single-family home on the newly created lot. Grimes referred to the preliminary plat drawing and showed the location of the site at Medicine Lake Road and Sandburg Lane. He said a request similar to this one was made in the past but that the lot never ended up being subdivided. However, there was a variance granted at that time for the existing home along the north property line. Grimes discussed the subdivision code requirements and stated that this proposal meets or exceeds all of the requirements and can, therefore, go forward for approval. He referred to the existing garage on the site and said that it would be relocated on the new lot 2 into a conforming location before final plat approval. Grimes stated that the City Engineer has concerns about providing water utilities to the new lot, but that the owners would have to do it in a manner that is acceptable to the Engineering Department. Grimes said that an advantage with the existing garage being moved is that one driveway would be moved off of Medicine Lake Road. He added that the County has requested that a 12-foot easement be on the property for a future bike trail which will overlap the 10-foot easement already required by the City. He said that staff is recommending approval of this request with a $1,000 park dedication fee because a new lot is being created. Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission March 8, 2004 Page 2 Grimes said that one other issue with this property is that he has heard from neighbors in the area that the existing home on the lot is being used as a two-family home. He said he wanted to make it very clear that the homeowners are not using their home as a two-family home. He said if that is the case, it would have to stop in order for this subdivision request to be approved because it against the Zoning Code to use a single- family dwelling as a duplex. Rasmussen asked if the address of the existing home would change because they wouldn't have access to Medicine Lake. Grimes said didn't believe so and that the Inspections Department does the addressing of properties. e Rasmussen asked why the County is asking for an easement over the property and not for a deed. Grimes explained that the property would still belong to the owners and that setbacks were still measured from the property line, not the easement line. Keysser asked if the new garage would meet all of the setback requirements. Grimes said yes it would. He explained that the north side of the property would be considered the front and the south side of the property would be considered the back. Eck asked if parking is allowed on Sandburg Lane. Grimes said he believes that parking is allowed on Sandburg Lane but that it is a very infrequently used street since it was made into a cul-de-sac. Victoria Rath, 10550 Hwy 55, applicant, stated that they are hoping to build a house on the newly created lot and that it is hard to find affordable lots in the metro area. She said she works at Allianz and that they would be downsizing from a seven bedroom home to this proposed three bedroom home. She showed the Planning Commission e some preliminary elevations of the house they are planning to build. Keysser asked about the size of the proposed house. Victoria Rath said it would be approximately 2,800 square feet and showed some interior floor plans. Ronald Rath, 10550 Hwy 55, applicant, stated that if the City says no duplexes than there won't be any but that they were thinking of having an area in the basement for his mother-in-law. Grimes explained that he was referring to the existing home. Ronald Rath said they have no plans to have renters. He referred to page three of Grimes' memo and asked what the timeline is for moving the existing garage. Grimes explained that lots can not have just a garage on it alone, they have to be an accessory to the house. He said he would guess the timeline would be early May. McAleese added that they wouldn't get a building permit until the existing garage is moved. Keysser asked if the garage was going to be moved or demolished. Ronald Rath said he heard from the current property owner that it was going to be moved. Rasmussen asked what the definition is of a second kitchen and asked if they could have a wet bar in the basement. Grimes said they could have a wet bar in the basement and that the Inspections Department will review the building plans and if it looks like it is going to be an apartment they will call it to his attention. e Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission March 8, 2004 Page 3 Keysser opened the public hearing. Doug Soderling, 6840 Sandburg Lane asked if any curb cuts made would be restored. Grimes said that the County and Public Works staff would make that decision. Soderling referred to the existing driveway being removed and asked what the requirements would be for building the new driveway. Grimes said that the Code requires driveways to be paved. Soderling referred to the west side setback for the existing home and asked why it isn't 15 feet. Grimes explained that this lot is less than 100 feet wide so the setback requirement is 15% of the lot width, not 15 feet. Soderling asked if there is a timeframe for completing the project. Grimes explained that once a building permit is issued construction takes as long as it takes. He said they will be required to get a grading and erosion control permit to make sure there is minimal run-off during the construction process. Grimes said he would talk to the City Engineer about the curb cuts and the existing driveway and asked Soderling to call him to discuss it further. Seeing and hearing no one. Keysser closed the public hearing. Keysser asked Grimes if he is suggesting that condition number four in his memo regarding the removal of the existing garage be deleted. Grimes said he thinks that condition could be deleted because the building permit process will require it to be moved. McAleese suggested they leave condition number four in because technically, the building doesn't have to go forward on the new lot, plans could fall through, but there is still the issue of e creating a new lot and the garage has to be moved in order to subdivide the lot. Keysser asked the applicants if they have already purchased the property. Victoria Rath said that have given the owner earnest money. Eck said it seems straightforward to him. McAleese said that he has two concerns. One is the odd shape of the buildable area on the lot. He said it is nice that the applicants are willing to live with the odd shape. The other concern is the water connection issue that the City Engineer wrote about in his staff report. He said that needs to be addressed and that the City should not create a new lot that doesn't have a water connection. Keysser asked the applicants if the water connection issues are included in their cost estimates. Ronald Rath said he is a master plumber so the water connection shouldn't be a problem. MOVED by Eck, seconded by McAleese and motion carried unanimously to approve the requested subdivision with the following conditions: 1. The final plat of the Rath White Addition will be consistent with the preliminary plat submitted with the subdivision application. The preliminary plat is dated Oct. 29, 1992 and prepared by Lot Surveys Company, Inc. Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission March 8, 2004 Page 4 2. The comments in the memo from City Engineer Jeff Oliver, PE, to Mark Grimes, Director of Planning and Development and dated February 24, 2004, shall become a part of this approval. This includes the granting of easements to the City and Hennepin County. 3. A park dedication fee shall be paid in the amount of $1 ,000 prior to approval of the final plat by the City Council. 4. The garage on proposed Lot 1 shall be removed prior to the approval of the final plat. III. Informal Public Hearing - Preliminary Plat (Minor Subdivision) SU09.06 Applicant: David Alan e Address: 808 Westwood Drive South Purpose: To divide the one existing lot into two lots in order to construct single- family homes on the two newly created Jots. Grimes referred to the preliminary plat and stated that this property was recently purchased by the applicant and that the existing home built in 1950 has been demolished. He said the total area of the lot is almost an acre in size and that the proposal meets the requirements of the Subdivision Code. Grimes referred to the City Engineer's memo and said that he didn't have any issues with the property being subdivided. He added that there are fences on the property that should be removed and that the City will require a park dedication fee. - Groger referred to the preliminary plat and said that the dimension for the widths of the lots is exactly 80 feet. He asked if the City is confident with that measurement and that it wouldn't turn out to be narrower than required. Grimes stated that the preliminary plat was signed by a licensed surveyor. He measured the lots shown on the preliminary plat and confirmed that they both exceed 80 feet in width. McAleese suggested having someone from the City go to the site and measure the width of the Jots to make sure they are correct. David Alan, applicant, showed prospective drawings of the homes and explained how they would fit and look on the lots. Keysser asked the applicant if he foresees any variance requests related to these proposed homes. Alan said no, the homes that they have preliminarily designed will fit inside the setback areas. Keysser opened the public hearing. Lee Brant, 4400 Sunset Ridge, stated that her property is located behind the subject property and that the back of her home would face the backs of these lots. She referred to the subdivision request discussed before this proposal and said she is a little nervous about the speed with which approvals came for dividing a lot without knowing the impact to the - e Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission March 8, 2004 Page 5 neighborhood. She referred to a lot located to the east of the proposed site that sat vacant for three or four years and said that they ended up removing every tree on the lot and brought in tons of dirt to level it out so by the time construction was finished there was a very large home with no trees around it and very little space on either side. She said it was heart rending to see that happen. She stated that what is being discussed is not just Golden Valley, it's Tyrol Hills and that for many, many years has had a reputation as an exceptional area known for its lovely homes, rolling hills, many ponds, thick stands of trees and large lots with homes far apart from neighbors. She added that it is a very special area and it has remained that way because the residents have worked hard to respect the beauty and special qualities of the area. She said over the past few years as land near the City has become more scarce an alarming trend has begun in which developers or buyers propose to build on any available plot of ground and City commissions approve this. The houses that are built are often too large in proportion to the lot and they are shoved close to the neighboring homes and dozens of large trees are frequently destroyed in the process. Her concern is that permission will continually be given to increase building as the City of Golden Valley deems it important to seek an even greater tax base. She said the Planning Commission should stop and take a long look into the future and realize that a wooded area with spacious lots will continue to maintain their value, and greatly increase in value as it is compared with other suburbs which have given up every leaf and every tree in order to be crammed with homes that are all paying taxes. If home after home is allowed to be built, eventually the area will be just like any place else with no unique quality to set it apart. She added that the City of Golden Valley should be pleased to have an area like Tyrol Hills within its boundaries and should limit the expansion of sites that cause loss of valuable wooded land. Preserving the space and trees and special areas like Tyrol Hills would add to the luster of Golden Valley rather than tarnish it. Muriel Erickson, 4414 Sunset Ridge, she wanted to echo what Lee Brant said. She said the character of their area is special and seeing these very large homes squeezed in on lots that are not adequate to preserve the character of the area distresses her. She said she doesn't want to see the area look like the inner city mansions that have deteriorated over time because there isn't space around these large buildings. Larry Brant, 4400 Sunset Ridge, stated that he could recall driving around 25 years ago with a builder through St. Louis Park and the builder said he could remember when the little houses there were slapped up one after another and said it was a shame and he felt bad about it years later that the people that allowed it to happen were so short sighted and he fears this could be happening now. He said this is a unique area and that Golden Valley is a unique area so close to the City. He said the Planning Commission should be looking at it as an extremely desirable place that not many metro areas can offer. He added the before property is split up in pieces the City should look at what the original planners thought the size of a lot should be in the 1940's. Hearing and seeing no one, Keysser closed the public hearing. Eck said he understands the neighbors concerns about large buildings on small lots but since the proposal is meeting the legal requirements for a subdivision he's not sure the City has any legal basis to deny the request. Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission March 8, 2004 Page 6 Grimes explained that the City has a tree preservation ordinance and that grading, drainage and erosion control permits would have to be obtained before construction starts. He said that when these homes were built in the 1940's, one of the reasons that the lots needed to be larger is because they weren't on the sewer system and they had septic systems that required more space. He added that the new lots being proposed are not small lots and are 20,000 square feet in size which is double the City's requirement. McAleese said he agreed that the character of the neighborhood is changing but said their hands are somewhat tied because this proposal meets all of the subdivision requirements. He explained that the Subdivision Ordinance is a compromise and that the requirements come from a state level and that the City can't have many different little areas with separate subdivision ordinances. He added that ironically, the subdivision ordinance the City has now came from a push many years ago to make sure that lots didn't keep getting bigger and bigger to ensure there would be affordable homes. - Groger asked if at one time the lot width requirement was greater than 80 feet. Grimes he thought the width requirement might have been 100 feet at one time. Groger said that for some period of time this lot could not have been subdivided. He said that the subdivision ordinance was also changed to encourage higher density and more affordable housing and to ensure that suburban communities did not become exclusive and try to keep out lower cost development. He said ironically, this is proposal is definitely not a lower cost development. He said he thinks that the City has to be fair to all parties and can not distinguish one lot in the City from another. e Grimes asked the applicant what changes he sees in the amount of trees being removed from the site. Alan said that he has worked with a lot of cities throughout the metro area and that Golden Valley has an aggressive tree mitigation program and that a lot of the trees they take out will have to be mitigated back in with substantial trees. He said he also feels that there is value to substantial trees and that he likes to keep them and design the architecture of the homes around them. He explained the various types of trees they would be adding and the substantial trees being left on the property. He said they do everything they can to save all the trees they can and said that when all is said and done the lots will be improved by having more tree cover and vegetation. Keysser asked about the proposed price range of these homes. Alan said they would be priced between $1 million and $1.5 million. MOVED by McAleese, seconded by Eck and motion carried unanimously to recommend approval of the subdivision requested subject to the following conditions: 1. The final plat of 808 Westwood Drive South will be consistent with the Certificate of Survey prepared by Survey Specialists. 2. The comments in the memo from City Engineer Jeff Oliver, PE, to Mark Grimes dated February 27,2004 shall become a part of this approval. The memo includes the requirement to dedicate certain easements. Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission March 8, 2004 Page 7 3. The fences that are not correctly located on the Dave Alan property shall be removed prior to final plat approval. 4. A park dedication fee shall be paid in the amount of $1,000 prior to the approval of the final plat. IV. Informal Public Hearing - Planned Unit Development - Calvary Lutheran Church PUD No. 46, Amendment #5 Applicant: Calvary Lutheran Church Address: 7520 Golden Valley Road - Purpose: To allow for the construction of a 4,300 square foot music wing addition. Grimes reminded the Commissioners that Amendment #4 for Calvary was approved in October of last year for the main development of their new campus. He said at that time Calvary did have future plans for this proposed music wing but that the future came sooner than they thought. He referred to the plans and said that the music wing would be a one-story addition with no basement located at the south end of the church attached to the sanctuary. He said that there may be one parking space lost due to the construction of the music wing. e Rasmussen asked if there is a lot coverage requirement in this zoning district. Grimes said since this is a planned unit development there is not a specific lot coverage requirement. He said that the original plans did provide for ponding for the entire site, however the City is asking them to put in an environmental manhole to help with some of the drainage. Eck referred to Grimes' staff report and said that there wasn't a recommendation given. Grimes said that he is recommending approval of the proposed music wing addition. Richard Stuerman, BWBR Architects showed drawings of the site and the proposed music wing. He explained that the site was designed to accommodate all of the expansion that Calvary is proposing such as ponding and parking requirements. He stated that this addition would be replacing Calvary's existing music area located in the basement. Carl Cambronne, 7310 Duluth Street, stated that he greets people and is a parking lot attendant at Calvary on Sunday mornings. He referred to the City Engineer's staff report and said there has not been a problem regarding signage on the site or with people going in or out of the driveways along Golden Valley Road the wrong direction. He added that most of the parking for the site is located on the north side of the building. Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission March 8, 2004 Page 8 Eck noted that the City Engineer is recommending that this proposal should not go forward to the City Council until the sign issue is resolved. He asked if the sign issues have been resolved. Cambronne said they are obviously going to put in whatever signs are required. He suggested maybe putting in and out arrows on the pavement in the driveways if someone thinks there problem. He said he doesn't think there is a problem. Grimes explained that at this point in time the issue with the signs is a Public Works and Engineering issue so before the proposal goes to the City Council, staff will have to sit down and talk about the signs and resolve the issue one way or another. Cambronne said he agreed. e Eck referred to the site plans and asked for the definition of a muscle room. Cambronne said it is a room where daycare children work on their different muscle groups. Rasmussen asked for the definition of a columbarium. Cambronne explained that a columbarium is a place to permanently store ashes or cremains. He added that a columbarium is not a part of this proposal, but that it may be in future plans. Keysser opened the public hearing. Hearing and seeing no one, Keysser closed the public hearing. Rasmussen said that most of things the Planning Commission had concerns about were addressed during the previous PUD amendment granted last year. e Eck said that from the exterior, the addition would hardly be noticeable. McAleese said he agreed and that it is a very straight forward request. He referred to numbers two and three on page three in the recommended action portion of Grimes' memo and said that instead of it reading "shall become a part of the memo" at the end of the sentence, it should read "shall become a part of this approval". MOVED by Groger, seconded by Eck and motion carried unanimously to recommend approval of the preliminary design plan for PUD No. 46, Amendment #5 which allows for the construction of a 4,300 square foot music wing addition. -- Short Recess -- V. Reports on Meetings of the Housing and Redevelopment Authority, City Council, Board of Zoning Appeals and other Meetings Rasmussen discussed the March 3, 2004 City Council meeting she attended. She said that the Preliminary Plan for the Golden Ridge PUD request and the BP Golden Valley Conditional Use Permit were approved. She reported that the text changes to the Single- Family Residential section of the Zoning Code were approved except for Subdivision 14 regarding recreational vehicles which the Council tabled until spring. e - Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission March 8, 2004 Page 9 VI. Other Business No other business was discussed. VII. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 8:20 pm.