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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05 05 2014 PC meeting minutes PRIOR LAKE PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Monday, May 5, 2014 1. Call to Order: Commissioner Hite called the Monday, May 5, 2014 Prior Lake Planning Commission meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Those present were Commissioners Perri Hite, Adam Blahnik, Eric Spieler and Wade Larson, City Planner Jeff Matzke, and Development Service Assistant Sandra Woods. 2. Approval of Agenda: MOTION BY SPIELER TO APPROVE THE AGENDA FOR THE MONDAY, MAY 5, 2014 PRIOR LAKE PLANNING COMMISSION. SECONDED BY LARSON WITH DEFERRAL OF ITEM 6, THE PLEDGE OF ALLIGIANCE, TO BE TABLED UNTIL FULL ATTENDANCE. MOTION BY HITE, SECONDED BY BLAHNIK TO TABLE ITEM 6, PLEDGE OF ALLIGIANCE TO THE NEXT PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING. MOTION BY HITE, SECONDED BY LARSON TO APPROVE THE AMENDED AGENDA. . VOTE: Ayes by Hite, Blahnik, Spieler, and Larson The Motion carried. 3. Approval of Monday, April 7, 2014 Meeting Minutes: MOTION BY HITE,SECONDED BY SPIELER TO APPROVE THE PRIOR LAKE PLANNING COMMISSION MONDAY, APRIL 7, 2014 MEETING MINUTES. . VOTE: Ayes by Hite, Blahnik, Spieler, and Larson The Motion carried. 4. Public Hearings: A.DEV-2014-0010 Prior Lake Hardware 1620 Duluth Avenue SE Prior Lake Hardware is requesting a Conditional Use Permit to add storage bins in their parking lot for retail sales of landscaping materials. The property is located southeast of Highway 13, northwest of Village Lake Drive Southeast, between Maplewood Street Southeast and Duluth Avenue Southeast. PID 25-177-005-0. Planner Matzke introduced the proposed conditional use permit and explained the current circumstances, issues, site details, conclusion and alternatives. He stated staff is recommending approval of the conditional use permit subject to the discussed conditions. He provided exhibits, including a resolution, location map as well as a site aerial photo and site survey exhibit. Commission Comments/Questions: Larson asked what kind of materials are being displayed and are these materials in packages or open? Would they be digging out with a shovel or other machinery? Planner Matzke replied that the applicant should be asked, but he believes the material is open. Spieler asked if we have any other businesses in Prior Lake that have the same outdoor supply area? 1 Planner Matzke replied the Tractor Supply Store does have an outdoor display area and did receive a similar conditional use permit years ago. He stated that there are some other outdoor storage conditional permits in the recent years. Spieler asked have we had any issues with the tractor supply store in the past regards to theft or crime? Planner Matzke replied not to his knowledge. MOTION BY SPIELER, SECONDED BY BLAHNIK TO OPEN THE PUBLIC HEARINGAT 6:11 P.M. . VOTE: Ayes by Hite, Blahnik, Spieler, and Larson The Motion carried. Applicant : th Al Imholte - 2280 185 Street East, Jordan, MN Hite asked the applicant if he could describe what the bins will look like? Applicant Imholte replied the bins will be open on top and will be like a jersey barrier set up against the wall. He stated there is a retaining wall already there and some of the bins may be covered by a tarp. Hite asked will the materials be spilling out into the parking lot and will they be using a backhoe to scoop the materials? Applicant Imholte replied a bobcat would be used to load the materials. Hite asked how many different bins would be placed in the area? Applicant Imholte replied four is what they are currently thinking. Hite asked are there two or three parking spaces that would be located immediately adjacent to these bins? Applicant Imholte replied there are parking spaces now located where the bins are going to be located. He stated there is nothing really adjacent to them; they actually are taking up current parking spaces. Hite stated she thought there was three parking spaces angled from the proposed outdoor sales area and asked, if material is spilling out from the jersey barriers do they want to allow traffic to drive and park there? Applicant Imholte replied no one really parks there; typically, customers use the other spaces closer to the building. Hite stated when thinking of Tractor Supply Company, they have trailers and equipment that are in their outdoor sales area and stated her concerns of materials being stored closely to traffic. She asked is this the best location for these bins or is there is a place where they can be placed further back on the property? Applicant Imholte replied the only other place that would have room on the property would be along Park Avenue and this was a considered space; however, they believe the parking situation to be better having the bins where they are being proposed. 2 Blanhik and what materials would be sold? Applicant Imholte replied a bobcat would be loading materials, which will be sand, black dirt and woodchips for now. Blanhik asked if a customer was to come into the store and take a certain amount of an item, would an employee go load it into their truck? Applicant Imholte responded that is correct. Larson asked have you looked at doing deliveries? Applicant Imholte replied not at this time. Spieler asked if they have plans to use the bins for selling fertilizer, and also, what kind of security is planned for this area? Applicant Imholte responded no we do not plan to sell fertilizer, and there will be cameras installed on the building. Spieler asked several questions concerning the bins including storage, prevention of mold and deterioration, plans for the winter months and the bin colors? Applicant Imholte responded they have plans for tarps to help with prevention of mold and deterioration and the materials would not be in plastic bags. He stated the bins would not be used in the winter months and grey would be the bin color. Spieler asked questions of where the storage of the bobcat would be and the procedure of use of the bobcat? He stated his concerns of the traffic of the bobcat through the parking lot. Applicant Imholte replied the bobcat is already in the building and will be stored there. He explained the details of the location and the use of the bobcat. Hite expressed her concerns of a bobcat close to the main entrance off of Duluth. She asked is there a different place that you can have these bins? Could you have them behind the building so it decreases the traffic of the bobcat? Applicant Imholte replied they are considering adding on to the back of the building for storage and felt the proposed location would work best. Hite -up truck or trailer creates a friction point at a main entry drive and Duluth is very high traffic and feels like those particular items should be in back. Applicant Imholte replied there is no room in the back of the building. 3 Larson explained that there is 2 ½ stalls of protection from the entrance and traffic. He stated this would be the best place to put the bins. Hite stated that the site plan is deceiving as it is different than the aerial and feels that is creating confusion. She asked is the site plan not constructed? Planner Matzke responded the site plan is rendering from the original building permit that was thought to be constructed. He said as Commissioner Larson mentioned, there is enough room. Hite stated her concern is still related to the bobcat maneuvering around the friction point where cars are coming in. She asked whether they could use cones to alert that there is a moving bobcat in the parking lot and it is a loading area? Applicant Imholte replied they definitely could do that. Spieler stated his concerns about congestion and spacing in the parking lot and asked questions about delivery of the product, including how often the delivery, time of day and the size of the truck delivering the product? Applicant Imholte replied they could do three bins for spacing if needed. He specified delivery of the product, stating how often would be dependent on volume of need from clients; delivery of materials would be in the morning around 7:00 a.m.; and material delivered would be by a small dump truck. Public Comment : None. MOTION BY SPIELER, SECONDED BY BLANHIK TO CLOSE THE PUBLICHEARING AT 6:26 P.M. . VOTE: Ayes by Hite, Blahnik, Spieler, and Larson The Motion carried. Commission Comments/Questions: Spieler asked Planner Matzke if he has any concerns in regards to bobcats, flow of traffic or the size of the parking area? Planner Matzke replied there has been good points with defining loading areas with signs and cones for direction. He stated it would be helpful to give direction to motorist when entering this site, although he a high traffic area. He believes there is plenty of parking for their clients and is not concerned about traffic flow; however, he does like the idea of defining a loading area. Spieler asked can they mark the ground with directional paint? Planner Matzke replied yes, that would be another common practice, but cones and signs are more effective, easier to move and are visually easier to see. Spieler asked would there be a certain square footage allowance or a specific area for the conditional use permit? 4 Planner Matzke replied it is generally a certain area that would be defined as an outdoor storage area. Spieler asked whether they are allowed as many bins as they want as long as it fits in the applied area, and if expanded, would they need to come back for another conditional use permit? Planner Matzke replied that it is the area as defined, more so than any specific construction. And yes, if they wanted to do another display area or something in another location on the site, they would need to come back to the City for an application. Spieler asked about materials going into the sewer system and the locatioin of a drain in the parking lot? Planner Matzke responded this has been reviewed by engineering staff and they did not find any need for comment or have any issues with drainage. One of the conditions of the permit does state that the area needs to be neat and clean. The drain is in the center of the lot area, which is where water would drain to. Larson stated he would like to have more of a site plan; however, it appears there is plenty of space. He mentioned the location is good and stated the number of bins is not the issue. It is more of what square footage they can utilize, which Blahnik stated it provides a good product with a good bulk rate price for the community. He understands the concerns of the other Commissioners with the access; however, he feels there is plenty of area. He stated that the storage bins are neat and appreciates the storing of product without plastic bags. As long as the applicant complies with the 12 requirements in subsection 1102.11038, he is in support of this conditional use permit with the usage of cones and signage. Hite stated she does support granting the conditional use permit subject to the conditions as outlined by staff relating to subsection 1102.11038. She mentioned the applicant is required in the marking of the loading/parking area with cones or other safety devices to insure the safety of cars and pedestrians. She stated approval is for the size and location of an outdoor sales area and is not limiting the number of bins the applicant can or cannot have. MOTION BY BLAHNIK, SECONDED BY LARSON TO APPROVE THE CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT SUBJECT TO THE ADDITIONAL CONDITIONS THAT HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED BY STAFF AND COMMISSIONERS. . VOTE: Ayes by Hite, Blahnik, Spieler, and Larson The Motion carried. 5. Old Business: A. Sign Ordinance Amendments Planner Matzke stated this is for discussion. He explained the different signs, but necessary to review all the signs. He explained the banner/sandwich signs, electronic message board signs/dynamic signs, scrolling signs, animation and luminance. Commission Comments/Questions: Larson questioned section 1107.712 stating the units section is confusing. He asked whether applicants have access to correction of the brightness of their signs, or do they need to call in a computer tech to complete this task? 5 Planner Matzke replied the applicant should be able to control the brightness. Larson asked if an applicant was notified for a brightness violation, what is the time limit for the applicant to fix the situation? Planner Matzke replied there has never been much of a problem with this. code enforcement officer is usually the one that would have the communication with the business. If it is a valid safety concern, staff would make sure they have that corrected as soon as possible. Blanhik asked in your research, are there any other communities besides St. Paul that allow scrolling? Planner Matzke replied sometimes communities will have different terminology for their signs, therefore leaving research on scrolling signs difficult to decipher. He stated scrolling signs have been around for years, but named differently. Some communities allow it and but either way, it all amounts to preference and aesthetics. Spieler asked is there a technology and communication committee for Prior Lake, and if so, are they involved with plan for signage? Planner Matzke stated he is not sure if they have been involved; however, staff could ask the group liaison if they would be interested in commenting on the signs before it would go to City Council for approval. He believed they did have some input on the signage when the City put up the monument signs based on establishing a policy on the content, but not how the sign is displayed. Spieler asked have any other business came to the city and asked for a particular sign? Planner Matzke replied no. However, businesses are commenting more and more on digital signage. He stated digital signs are expensive, typically $40,000 to $60,000 dollars per sign. He said digital signs allow businesses to extend their marketing and advertising needs by showing more than a single ad. Spieler stated that the Prior Lake ordinances is more restrictive than what is allowed in other cities. Hite stated she is in agreement with Commissioner Spieler on asking the Communications Committee to be engaged in this review. She commented on one issue regarding public safety in dealing with distracted drivers. She stated that she does support new signage and mentioned that she will look forward to public comment. She would like some clarification on Subsection 1107.806(1) and (2) regarding signs that face toward the public right-of-way, which are prohibited from having a moving video image. Number 2 assumes that if not facing public right-of-way, one can have scrolling text and/or scrolling images, and asked if a scrolling image is the same as a moving image? She stated either way, staff needs to be sure that terms are very clear. She also stated could we be mindful for the benefit of proximity of closeness to a home if there is a sign that is dynamic, bright, lit up and moving as stated in number 7. She stated she could see a sign that could be  use of enjoyment because of the proximity and its brilliance illumination. 6. New Business: A.Pledge of Allegiance tabled to next meeting in approval of agenda 6 7. Announcements: th City Council Meeting from Monday, April 28, 2014 Godsons Way final plat and roadway easement vacation approved. Public hearing for comprehensive plan in the Deerfield Industrial Park Area referred to Planning Commission. Public hearing related to shoreland ordinance controlled access lots and marinas referred to Planning Commission. 8. Adjournment: MOTION BY HITE, SECONDED BY SPIELER TO ADJORN THE MEETING. . VOTE: Ayes by Hite, Blahnik, Spieler, and Larson The Motion carried. The meeting adjourned at 6:58 p.m. Sandra Woods, Development Services Assistant 7