HomeMy WebLinkAbout4-24-19 Planning Commission MinutesDraft Minutes
Approved Minutes
Approved Date: May 8, 2019
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Minutes
City Of Edina, Minnesota
Planning Commission
Edina City Hall Council Chambers
April 24, 2019
I. Call To Order
Chair Olsen called the meeting to order at 7:02 PM.
II. Roll Call
Answering the roll call were: Commissioners Miranda, Lee, Thorsen, Strauss, Melton, Nemerov,
Hamilton, Bennett, Berube, and Chair Olsen. Staff Present: Cary Teague, Community Development
Director, Emily Bodeker, Assistant Planner, Kaylin Eidsness, Senior Communications Coordinator, MJ
Lamon, Community Engagement Coordinator, Liz Olson, Administrative Support Specialist.
Absent from the roll call: Commissioner Mangalick.
III. Approval Of Meeting Agenda
Commissioner Thorsen moved to approve the April 24, 2019, agenda. Commissioner
Berube seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
IV. Approval Of Meeting Minutes
Commissioner Thorsen moved to approve the April 10, 2019, meeting minutes.
Commissioner Miranda seconded the motion. Commissioner Lee offered up the
amendment to add wording to the 2019 bylaws on page 5 to read, “E. 10. Provide annual
educational opportunities for all members including an annual training session on the role of
a planning commissioner and an annual training session with the City Attorney.” Motion
carried as amended.
V. Community Comment
None.
VI. Public Hearings
A. Site Plan with Variance, 6304 York Ave. S.
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Director Teague explained that the variance request has been removed from the agenda and has been
moved to a different date that has not been set at this time.
B. Variance Request B-19-5, 6509 Indian Hills Rd.
Director Teague explained that the variance request has been removed from the agenda and has been
moved to the Planning Commission meeting on May 8, 2019.
Commissioner Thorsen moved continuation of the Site Plan with Variance for 6304 York
Ave. S. to an indefinite date. Commissioner Thorsen moved continuation of the variance
request at 6509 Indian Hills Road to May 8, 2019. Commissioner Berube seconded the
motions. The motions passed unanimously.
C. Comprehensive Plan Public Hearing
Commissioner Thorsen and Chair Olsen introduced themselves and presented a PowerPoint on the
Comprehensive Plan. Chair Olsen started the presentation with an overview that included the
Metropolitan Council Regional Planning, Edina Comprehensive Plan Update Process (Big Ideas Workshop,
Small Area Plans, and Updated Comprehensive Plan), Population Forecasts, Land Use Guide Changes,
Public Meetings/Public Input (Better Together), Comment Report, and the Comprehensive Plan Schedule.
Chair Olsen explained that there have been 177 public meetings between February 2017 and April 2019.
Chair Olsen explained that the Comprehensive Plan is designed as framework for guiding future
development, redevelopment, and community enhancement. Chair Olsen also explained that it will be
used to shape Edina’s collective future growth, protect what Edina values, and create an even more
attractive and sustainable Edina.
Chair Olsen explained that one of the first steps they took was the Big Ideas Workshop that was held
over 2 days. The Small Area Plans were after that to identify potential areas of change, growth, and
investment. Chair Olsen explained that the third step was the update to the Comprehensive Plan,
including the requirements of land use, housing, water resources, transportation, parks and trails,
implementation, economic competitiveness, and resilience. Chair Olsen explained that in addition to Met
Council requirements, Edina has identified six additional priorities that include Arts and Culture, Heritage
Preservation, Energy and Environment, Health, Human Rights, and Community Services and Facilities.
Commissioner Thorsen introduced himself and explained that the Metropolitan Council is the regional
planning body for the 7 county metro area and explained that they are empowered by the state legislature.
Thorsen explained the land use guide changes and discussed the following facts:
Units per acre were all approved as part of each Small Area Plan.
7 percent of Edina has been guided for increased density. These areas are entirely within the
Greater Southdale Area.
93 percent of Edina will remain guided for no change in density or will experience a decrease.
Suggested ranges do not mean that it is the density for a site. Number of units allowed on sites is
a decision of the City Council in a Rezoning application.
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Commissioner Thorsen discussed forecasts and the following information:
Population Forecasts are long range projections of expected growth largely based on regional
macroeconomic, demographic and market assumptions.
Met Council Forecasts are not goals or targets, they are intended to be realistic estimates used to
guide investments in infrastructure and public services (there are no incentives or penalties).
Forecasts are provided by the Metropolitan Council and provide a shared foundation for planning
by the Met Council land local governments.
Metropolitan Council periodically adjusts forecasts based on new data, to ensure they are as
accurate as possible. This has occurred recently with Edina and several other cities.
Commissioner Thorsen explained that the reasons to accommodate growth include funding public
services, keeping residents here, supporting workplace innovation, enabling multimodal transportation
options, and advancing regional sustainability. Commissioner Thorsen explained that according to the Met
Council forecast for Edina, approximately 7 percent of Edina’s total land area is forecast for population
increase, 44 traffic analysis zones (TAZs), 8 TAZs (18 percent) are forecasted to increase population
between now and 2040, and 36 TAZs (82 percent) are forecasted to remain the same or decrease in
population.
MJ Lamon, Community Engagement Coordinator, introduced herself and explained that she supported the
project team during the 30 day review period. Lamon gave an overview of the Comprehensive Plan
process, specifically concerning the public input and Better Together.
Chair Olsen explained that the Planning Commission reviewed, analyzed, and categorized comments from
residents. Chair Olsen thanked everyone who helped and ended the presentation.
Public Hearing
Julia Risser, 6112 Ashcroft Ave., thanked the Planning Commission for their work. Risser stated that she
was disappointed to see that the Wooddale and Valley View maps were misrepresented in the Small Area
Plans in the existing land use map, the future land use map, and the zoning site. Risser asked that the maps
be updated in time before City Council meets.
Bruce Douglas, 3915 W. 42nd Street, thanked the Planning Commission and suggested that it would be
helpful if the Planning Commission could simply tell people what changes are being proposed for the city,
why they are proposing the changes, and how they think it is going to affect the people that live in Edina.
Andy Brown, 5512 Park Place, stated that he was disappointed in the transportation section. Brown stated
that with the increased density, a discussion about transportation needs to be had about how
transportation will help residents deal with the density. Brown stated that the level of density is
unacceptable, especially with the lack of services. Brown also expressed concern about the Southwest light
rail and the effect it is going to have on the transportation patterns.
David Frenkel, 4510 Lakeview Drive, stated concern about the Fire Department issues in the
Comprehensive Plan. Frenkel commented that the major issue he sees is the ISO rating the City of Edina
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Fire Department gets, and that it is missing in the Comprehensive Plan. Frenkel commented that he was
concerned that Minneapolis is not on auto response and mutual aid for the City of Edina, but they are for
Richfield. Frenkel also stated concern that the City of Minneapolis doesn’t train with the City of Edina Fire
Department.
Jennifer Henomoth, 6200 Brookview Drive, stated that she thought the two significant flaws in the
Comprehensive Plan are that the Met Council designates the City of Edina as an “urban district” and the
Comprehensive Plan proposed is designating the City of Edina as an “urban center district.” Henomoth
stated that her second concern was regarding traffic and the traffic studies that WSB conducts are flawed.
Henomoth stated that WSB’s project studies don’t take into consideration the area outside of the scope
of the study, and the studies don’t take into consideration the actual allowable maximum density that is
being proposed in the plan.
Hope Melton, 4825 Valley View Road, stated that she believes the 2018 Comprehensive Plan promotes
environmentally sustainable and equitable growth and a socioeconomically balanced and diverse
community. Melton urged the Planning Commission to approve the Comprehensive Plan.
Carol Bromer, 6521 Creek Drive, thanked the Planning Commission and Staff for their work on the
Comprehensive Plan. Bromer commented that she is grateful for the anticipated population growth and
density. Bromer stated that she was grateful for the positive and environmental consequences and
mitigating negative impacts on our environment, providing a variety of transportation modes in the
Greater Southdale District Plan, protecting and maintaining undeveloped areas and parks throughout the
city, providing an increased tax base through new developments, and recognizing and addressing the need
for affordable housing in Edina.
Barry Rosenthal, 6205 Scotia Drive, wanted to state his support for the Comprehensive Plan. Rosenthal
stated that he believes the process was fair and he thinks it is a good plan, even though it is not perfect.
Steve Brown, 5528 Halifax Lane, stated his support for the Comprehensive Plan and commended the
Planning Commission, City Staff, and consultants for their effort and vision, their openness and
transparency, and their commitment to affordable housing.
Kris Bremer, 6001 Ewing Avenue S., stated gratitude to those who worked on the Comprehensive Plan
and commented that she would like to see more public transit available. Bremer stated that she would like
to see more attention to the problem of preserving affordable single family homes.
Commissioner Thorsen moved to close the public hearing. Commissioner Hamilton
seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
Discussion/Comments/Questions
Bill Smith, Project Manager for the Comprehensive Plan, apologized for in the incorrect maps.
Smith explained that the process in place is to take the document that is posted on Better
Together and have it remain in place. Smith stated that the comments will be held to present to
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City Council with the comment separate from the document. Smith stated that the plan is not to
make revisions to the document until the City Council has had an opportunity to review. Smith
stated that the maps will be looked at right away and the change should be posted on Better
Together immediately. Director Teague commented on the incorrect zoning maps (including the
other Small Area Plan maps) and stated that Staff will get those corrected right away.
Bill Smith spoke to the questions and concerns about the Transportation chapter and explained
that 2 studies were done by WSB Consultants and looked specifically at the Southdale area to
identify intersections in other capacity deficiencies that would occur, now and in the future. Smith
explained that their analysis showed that those capacity deficiencies could be mitigated with the
addition of turn lanes and other reasonable types of mitigation improvements. Smith commented
that increasing density will make transportation all the more viable for the City of Edina. Smith
stated that he believes the plan makes allowances for how transit can be improved in the area.
Smith commented that the Southwest light rail was mentioned, but the traffic impacts that would
occur were not looked at specifically at
Dan Cornejo, Consultant, explained that he worked with the Fire and Police Department on the
chapter. Cornejo explained that during the Comprehensive Plan process, the Fire Department
contracted a consultant for over a year and looked at the response times and the capacity of the
current stations. Cornejo commented that he didn’t believe they looked at the interaction
between Edina’s Fire Department and other neighboring cities, including training together.
Cornejo stated that he will make sure the City of Edina will get involved with those discussions
going forward. Cornejo commented that Fire Station Number 2 may be considered inadequate
and needs to be expanded and relocated to the north. Cornejo also stated that the other
recommendation within the next 10 years to redo Fire Station Number 3.
Chair Olsen commented that the preservation of affordable single family homes is one of the focus
points of the housing plan and will be started in the next month or two. Commissioners
commented that the proposal is expected at City Council in early May and then work would get
started. Commissioners stated that the idea is that the housing chapter is not complete in some
ways in terms of the level of guidance that they are hoping to give. Commissioners commented
that the hope is that once the taskforce is formed, they can probably complete the study by the
end of the year. Commissioners commented that if there is to be information gleaned, certainly it
can still be incorporated into the housing chapter or be added as an amendment to the
Comprehensive Plan later.
Commissioners commented on the mention of “urban” and “urban center” and stated that they
don’t know if there is a literal one to one correlation between Edina’s density figures and Met
Council’s definition of “urban center.” Commissioners also commented that Edina has been
designated as “urban,” which is not quite as dense as an “urban center,” like Minneapolis.
Commissioners commented that the point was made that if Met Council is using 20 dwelling units
per acre as the standard for an “urban center,” then the question is how is Edina’s “urban” is
proposing significantly higher densities than the definition of “urban center?” Commissioners
referenced the urban section from the local planning handbook from Met Council and commented
that the definition includes a minimum of 10 or 20 units per acre for an entire area, not just one
site.
Commissioners discussed concerns that were raised earlier regarding how traffic studies do not
account for the area outside the scope of the study and maximum allowable vehicles allowed on
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the road. Director Teague replied that a Traffic Engineer would need to speak to how traffic
studies are done, but that the WSB studies did take into account Edina’s top end densities within
the Southdale area so they were factored in. Bill Smith addressed the Planning Commission and
explained a traffic impact study includes a proposed development and analyzing the development
to determine the traffic it generates will affect the adjacent streets. Smith stated that the
Comprehensive Plan does recommend is that it has the discretion to say that we, as a city, would
like the studies to look at the adjacent streets to the development but also to go further to see
what the neighborhood impacts would be. Smith stated that the city has taken steps to ensure
that adjacent neighborhoods would be addressed regarding the neighborhood impacts.
Commissioners responded to the comment regarding what changes are being proposed for the
city, why they are proposing the changes, and how they think it is going to affect the people that
live in Edina. Commissioners explained that if the Comprehensive plan draft gets approved, there
will be an addition of an executive summary or cover letter that will come from the Mayor and
City Council and it will be a high level overview that will address the questions that were asked.
Commissioners summarized what they thought were the key elements in the Comprehensive Plan.
Motion
Commissioner Thorsen moved approval of the Comprehensive Plan amendment with the
recommendation to the City Council. Commissioner Berube seconded the motion.
Commissioner Lee offered up a recommendation a further study of the population and household
forecasts as part of the upcoming housing study. Commissioner Thorsen did not accept the
recommendation.
Aye: Miranda, Thorsen, Strauss, Nemerov, Hamilton, Bennett, Berube, Chair Olsen
Nay: Lee
The motion carried 8-1.
D. Site Plan Review- 7725 Washington Ave S. (Self Storage Facility)
Director Teague explained that the Planning Commission was asked to review a site plan proposal to
remodel and expand the existing building at 7725 Washington Avenue and that a Site Plan review is
required because the square footage of the proposed expansion exceeds the existing square footage by
10%. Teague explained that the site is currently zoned PID, Planned Industrial District. Mini-storage is a
permitted use. Teague also stated that this project is code compliant; therefore, the applicant is entitled
the proposed project. Staff recommends approval of the variance, as requested subject to the findings and
conditions listed in the staff report.
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Appearing for the Applicant
Gray Hayes, Ebert Construction, introduced himself and explained that the building will be light and bright.
Hayes commented that the building will be a nice addition to the City of Edina and the company has developed
other facilities, like this one, around the Twin Cities.
Discussion/Comments/Questions
Commissioners asked if outdoor storage was allowed at the facility and Teague replied that it is
not allowed.
Commissioners asked Teague about the amount of paving on the site and asked if the Planning
Commission can request to reduce the paving to the amount needed instead of the amount that
they happen to have. Teague replied that the Planning Commission can ask the applicant, but it
cannot be required that they reduce the paving. Hayes explained that part of the impervious
coverage is for fire access and they have to maintain fire access on both sides of the building to
turn around. Hayes explained that after approval for the site plan, they are required to go back to
the 9 Mile Creek and create an infiltration plan for the site so it will reduce some of the hard
cover for that.
Commissioners asked what the external appearance is of the building and Teague replied that it is
a brick building now and they will be painting it white and explained that the addition would have
the material to match the white brick building.
Commissioners asked about the customer base being within a few miles of the location and asked
if ecargo bikes would have access to load and unload easily. Hayes explained that the ordinance
requires all of the loading and unloading to be done interior to the building so they would come in
using the loading and unloading bay that would be large enough to accommodate easily 4 vehicles.
Public Hearing
None.
Commissioner Strauss moved to close the public hearing. Commissioner Miranda seconded
the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
Motion
Commissioner Thorsen moved approval of the site plan as outlined in the staff memo subject to
the conditions and findings therein. Commissioner Strauss seconded the motion. The motion
carried unanimously.
E. Conditional Use Permit- Restoration Hardware, 6801 France Ave S.
Planner Bodeker explained that Restoration Hardware, the applicant is proposing rooftop dining at the
building under construction at 6801 France Avenue. Bodeker explained that a site plan for Restoration
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Hardware was approved by the Planning Commission and City Council in 2017 and the project was
reviewed administratively after approval by the Planning Commission and City Council, due to the
project changing from 3-4 stories down to three stories in height. Bodeker explained that the top floor
of the three story RH under construction includes kitchen space, a pantry/wine bar, café, and outdoor
terrace space with outdoor dining. Staff recommends approval of the conditional use permit for
rooftop dining, as requested subject to the findings and conditions listed in the staff report.
Appearing for the Applicant
Blair Harrington, Madigan, Dahl & Harlan, P.A., introduced herself and explained that she believes the application
meets all of the requirements for approval and opened the floor to any questions.
Discussion/Comments/Questions
Commissioners asked if the restaurant is the same size as what was originally approved and
Bodeker replied in the affirmative.
Commissioners asked if the entire space was all retail and Harrington replied in the affirmative and
commented that there are a few other locations nationwide that have the same type of model,
such as Chicago and West Palm Beach. Harrington confirmed that the covered part if year round
and the terrace section is weather permitting. Commissioners asked if the space on the rooftop
would be available to rent out for parties, and Harrington replied that she was unsure, but that it
might be a possibility.
Commissioners asked if the Restoration Hardware in West Palm Beach had its own identity or
bar name for way finding and Harrington replied that she was unsure, but Chicago’s location has
its own brand for the café.
Commissioners responded to the odor concerns and Bodeker stated that the Health Department
responded to that and explained that the Fire Department requires that the hood and duct work
installed in restaurants be cleaned according to certain standards and criteria that the Fire
Department has, but they do not test for levels of odor. Commissioners commented that it could
be an issue and should be looked into. Commissioners also commented that it would be nice to
look at other communities do to mitigate the odor or what protections are in place. Teague
replied that the ordinance reviews could be something that could be added to their work plan.
Teague commented that the only complaint they’re received regarding odor was McCormick &
Schmick’s that was rising to the condos above. Teague explained that the restaurant did something
to their exhaust system to fix the issue.
Public Hearing
Nora Davis, 6921 Southdale Road, commented that she liked the building being 3 stories and stated that it
is an attractive building. Davis also commented that she didn’t see plans for cooking order control and
stated that it is an important issue that affects her neighborhood because the odors from existing
restaurants seep into her neighborhood.
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Commissioner Thorsen moved to close the public hearing. Commissioner Strauss seconded
the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
Motion
Commissioner Thorsen moved approval of the conditional use permit as outlined in the staff
memo subject to the conditions and findings therein. Commissioner Bennett seconded the
motion. The motion carried unanimously.
F. Variance Request- B-19-7, 5812 Hansen Road
Planner Bodeker explained that the applicant is requesting a 4.25-foot front yard setback variance to
build a foyer addition to the front of the existing home at 5812 Hansen Road. Bodeker explained that
the property is approximately 13,845 square feet in area and is located on the west side of Hansen
Road, north of Benton Avenue and the existing single family home will remain. Staff recommends
approval of the variance, as requested subject to the findings and conditions listed in the staff report.
Discussion/Comments/Questions
Commissioners asked if regulations account for the size of the lot or the width of the lot. Bodeker
replied that they do not for front yard setbacks because it is based on the existing setbacks to the
houses on either side of the subject property or the average of the block.
Commissioners thanked the applicant for a very complete set of plans and it is nice to see a
workaround to an existing home that doesn’t involve a teardown.
Public Hearing
None.
Commissioner Thorsen moved to close the public hearing. Commissioner Miranda seconded
the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
Motion
Commissioner Thorsen moved approval of the variance as outlined in the staff memo subject to
the conditions and findings therein. Commissioner Bennett seconded the motion. The motion
carried unanimously.
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VII. Reports/Recommendations
None.
VIII. Correspondence and Petitions
None.
IX. Chair and Member Comments
None.
X. Staff Comments
None.
XI. Adjournment
Commissioner Thorsen moved to adjourn the April 24, 2019, Meeting of the Edina Planning
Commission at 9:40 PM. Commissioner Strauss seconded the motion. The motion carried
unanimously.