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09-25-06 PC Minutes . . . Regular Meeting of the Golden Valley Planning Commission September 25, 2006 A regular meeting of the Planning Commis~on was held at the Golden Valley City Hall, Council Chambers, 7800 Golden Valley Road, Golden ValleY"Minnesota, on Monday, September 25, 2006. Chair Keysser called the meeting to order at 7 pm. Those present were Planning Commissioners Cera, Eck, Keysser, McCarty, Schmidgall and Waldhauser. Also present was Director of Planning and Development Mark Grimes and Administrative Assistant Lisa Wittman. Commissioner Kluchka was absent 1. Approval of Minutes September 11, 2006 Planning Commission Meeting Eck referred to the first paragraph on page 2 and stated that the last sentence was incomplete. He referred to the second paragraph on page 2 and stated that he would like the last sentence to read that there will be no "future" Zoning Code variances allowed on any homes being built as a part of this Subdivision. MOVED by McCarty, seconded by Cera and motion carried unanimously to approve the September 11, 2006 minutes with the above noted corrections. 2. Informal Public Hearing - Conditional Use Permit #113 - 2500 Mendelssohn Ave. N. Applicant: Lena Enterprises, LLC (Stephen Saunders) Address: 2500 Mendelssohn Ave. N. Purpose: The Conditional Use Permit would allow the applicant to install a drive-through window in the existing building located in the Commercial Zoning district Grimes stated that the applicant, Lena Enterprises is requesting a Conditional Use Permit in order to allow them to install a drive-through window for a proposed restaurant addition. He referred to a location map and noted that the property is located at Highway 169 and Medicine Lake Road in the northwest corner of the City. Grimes referred to a site plan and stated that the existing building is approximately 3,900 square feet in size and currently has two uses: a small grocery store and a small liquor store. The applicant would like to add a third use within the existing footprint: a restaurant with the drive-through window. Grimes referred to a survey of the property and stated that currently there are approximately 28 parking spaces located on the site. Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission September 25,2006 Page 2 . The Zoning Code requirement for the proposed restaurant use is one parking space for every 40 square feet of gross floor area or 23 spaces. Grimes stated that the applicant will be going to the Board of Zoning Appeals to ask for a parking variance since there are only 8 sit down spaces in the proposed restaurant. He added that the required 23 spaces is probably too many and that he feels there is adequate parking on the existing site for the proposed restaurant use along with the other uses in the building. Grimes stated that the applicant will be required to screen any dumpsters from view and it must be constructed of material compatible with the building as determined by the Building Official. Also, if the proposed intercom system becomes a problem they will be asked to turn the volume down. Keysser asked Grimes if staff is recommending approval of the parking variances at the Board of Zoning Appeals meeting. Grimes stated that staff does not make recommendations to the Board of Zoning Appeals. Keysser asked if the proposed drive-through window would be located on the east side of the building therefore, causing headlights from cars to face north. Grimes said yes. He referred to the site plan and showed the direction cars would go through the site and where the menu board and speaker would be located. . Waldhauser asked if there was any concern about the proposed driving patterns. Grimes stated that staff feels that this will have a fairly low intensity of traffic and there is enough room on the site for cars to stack in the drive-through lane if necessary. Schmidgall noted that the plans show only 4 sit down spaces inside the restaurant. Grimes stated that the applicant has said there will be 8 sit down spaces. McCarty asked if there are any ordinances regarding menu boards such as where they can be placed, etc. Grimes stated that menu boards are exempt from the sign ordinance. Keysser asked if there are any trees along the southern border that would help shield headlights from the residential area to the south. Eck said that there is currently no landscaping along the southern border. Grimes stated that the Planning Commission could add a condition of approval regarding landscaping along the southern border to help block the light from the signs and headlights. Stephen Saunders, Lena Enterprises, 3948 11th Avenue South, Minneapolis, Applicant, stated his plan is to keep the liquor store and grocery store and to add the proposed restaurant with a drive-through window. He stated that there are people interested in the site and that they are just waiting for approval of the Conditional Use Permit. Keysser explained that some of the Planning Commissioner's concerns are lighting and noise. Saunders said he is willing to work with the City regarding these concerns. Keysser added that his main concern is protecting the housing area to the south. . Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission September 25,2006 Page 3 . Waldhauser asked if traffic to the site comes from Medicine Lake Road or from the south entrance. Saunders said that most of the traffic comes from Medicine Lake Road through the gas station parking lot. Keysser asked about the signage on the site. Saunders stated that the Sign Ordinance will not allow him any additional signage. Grimes stated that there is a sign that can be seen by people driving north on Highway 169. Eck asked the applicant if the grocery market located right next door to him is similar. Saunders stated that there are four small markets on that corner. Keysser asked how much foot traffic the store receives. Saunders said that most of his traffic is vehicular but about 10% comes from foot traffic. Waldhauser asked the applicant if he is planning to change the lighting on the site. Saunders said they are going to be using photocell lighting. Garen Nitzschke, VSI Construction, contractor for the proposed project, stated that the lighting won't change, but the type of bulbs will change and there will be some lighting added under the canopy in front. Waldhauser asked if the lighting would shine toward the residential area. Nitzschke said no. . Keysser asked Grimes if the proposed new lighting ordinance would be approved by the time this project is constructed. Grimes said the new lighting ordinance might be approved by the time construction begins. He said he would give the applicant a copy of the proposed lighting ordinance. Nitzschke added that the menu bo'ard and speaker will be angled to face toward the highway and not toward the residential area to the south. McCarty asked if there would be any lighting located above the drive-through window. Nitzschke said yes, there will be a canopy over the window and it might be back lit. Keysser asked Nitzschke about the landscaping concerns. Nitzschke said he thinks landscaping along the southern edge of the site is a good idea. He said that the placement of the dumpster could offer some sound dampening as well. He added that the south edge of the subject property is located a good distance away from the apartments to the south. Grimes stated that he also wants the neighborhood to the south to realize that trash can be picked up as early as 7 am at this site. Keysser opened the public hearing. Seeing and hearing no one wishing to comment, Keysser closed the public hearing. Keysser said he would like to add a condition regarding the landscaping concerns. Eck agreed and said it is clear that the headlights from this drive-through addition will interfere with the apartments to the south. Waldhauser added that she didn't think the whole length of the south edge of the property would need to be densely landscaped but definitely where the cars make their turns needs to be denser. . Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission September 25, 2006 Page 4 . Grimes suggested the following language for the condition regarding landscaping: the applicant shall submit a landscape plan prior to final City Council approval. McCarty asked if they should allow the applicant the option of installing a fence or landscaping. Grimes stated that they may also want to require a dumpster plan and a plan for some landscaping around the dumpster before the proposal goes to the City Council. Schmidgall said he thinks this is a great proposal and that a landscape plan would be helpful. He said it would also be helpful if there were a better plan showing the traffic flow. He added that it would be nice if this proposal were consistent with the intent of the proposed new lighting ordinance as well. Cera said he would also like to see a bicycle rack added to the site. Keysser agreed that a bicycle rack should also be added as a condition of approval. MOVED by Eck, seconded byWaldhauser and motion carried unanimously to approve the request for a Conditional Use Permit for a drive-through window for the property located at 2500 Mendelssohn Avenue North with the following conditions: 1. 2. . 3. 4. A new site plan reflecting the actual proposal shall be submitted before final CUP approval. All signage shall meet the requirements of the City sign code for the Commercial zoning district. If there is an outside dumpster, it must be screened from view and be constructed of material compatible with the building as determined by the Building Official. Installation of a drive-thru intercom system that is constructed to minimize noise to protect residents to the south. If there is a complaint regarding noise from the operation of business due to the drive-thru intercom system, the applicant will work to mitigate the problem. 5. The memo from Deputy Fire Marshal Ed Anderson and dated August 25,2006, is attached and his recommendations shall become a part of this approval. 6. A detailed drawing showing the drive lanes shall be submitted before final. CUP approval. 7. A landscaping plan shall be submitted and approved by staff before final CUP approval. 8. A bicycle rack shall be added to the site 9. All other applicable state, local and federal requirements shall be met. --Short Recess-- 3. Reports on Meetings of the Housing and Redevelopment Authority, City Council, Board of Zoning Appeals and other Meetings Waldhauser reported that URS, the planning consultant for the 1-394 Corridor Study, will have a draft report of the study ready for review soon. . . . . Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission September 25, 2006 Page 5 4. Other Business Keysser stated that there will not be a Planning Commission meeting on October 9,2006 due to the lack of agenda items. Keysser stated that City Engineer Jeff Oliver will be attending the October 23,2006 Planning Commission meeting from 5:30 pm to 7 pm to discuss stormwater issues. 5. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 7:45 pm.