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2021.08.09 - MinutesApproved Planning Commission Minutes – August 9, 2021 CRYSTAL PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES Monday, August 9, 2021 at 7:00 p.m. Council Chambers, Crystal City Hall and Zoom Video Conference 1. CALL TO ORDER The regular meeting of the Crystal Planning Commission convened at 7:00 p.m. with the following members present: X Commissioner (Ward 1) Sears [Vice Chair] X Commissioner (Ward 2) Selton [Chair] X Commissioner (Ward 4) Einfeldt-Brown X Commissioner (Ward 1) Heigel  Commissioner (Ward 3) Maristany [Sec. Vice Chair] X Commissioner (Ward 4) Johnson X Commissioner (Ward 2) Strand X Commissioner (Ward 3) Buck X Commissioner (At- Large) Seffren Other attendees: City planner Dan Olson, Mahmoud Abumayyaleh, and other interested persons. 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Moved by Sears and seconded by Heigel to approve the minutes of the June 14, 2021 regular meeting. Ayes: all. Nays: None Motion carried. 3. PUBLIC HEARING a. Subdivision request (preliminary plat) from Mahmoud Abumayyaleh for Crystal Flats at 6613 – 36th Avenue North (Application 2021-05). Olson presented a summary of the staff report and stated he is recommending approval of the subdivision. Commission member Strand asked if the former home was accessed by the alley. Olson said yes. Strand said she is concerned that during home construction there will be disruptions to those who access their property from the alley. Strand asked how the covenant in condition #2 is enforced. Olson said that the document would spell out the responsibilities of each property owner and is then recorded against both properties. Commission member Seffren asked if the existing sanitary sewer connection is sufficiently sized to provide service for both lots. Olson said yes. Approved Planning Commission Minutes – August 9, 2021 Chair Selton opened the public hearing. A first Crystal resident said she lives adjacent to this property and she is concerned that the property lines were not clearly marked by the surveyor who created the plat. She also wondered if the applicant will underground all existing alley overhead utilities. She is concerned that these homes will drain onto her property. She said there is not room enough on this property for two homes. Olson said any new utilities would be buried underground. A second Crystal resident began to make a comment but interrupted herself midway to say that she’ll let her husband speak to their concerns. A third Crystal resident said he is concerned about increased traffic in the alley for two new homes. He is not in the favor of the application. Olson said that the applicant has provided sufficient off-street parking since parking would not be allowed in the alley and overnight parking is not allowed on Hampshire. A fourth Crystal resident said she’s opposed to the application because it will bring too much traffic to the alley and she will lose enjoyment of her property. She has spent a lot of time improving her property and she will lose the value of that investment. A fifth Crystal resident said that each lot will not be 50’ wide and that according to the zoning requirements, homes cannot face the alley. He said the lots are too small for this neighborhood. Johnson assumed the Chair position while Selton stepped out momentarily. A sixth Crystal resident said he believes it will be very difficult for existing homeowners to access the alley during construction. Olson said the city adopted a construction management process a few years ago and that provides a way to address any construction issues. We also meet with the builder before construction to make the city’s expectations clear. A seventh Crystal resident said the lot is too small for two homes and this project will have a negative impact on the beauty of the creek area. Hearing no one else from the public who wished to speak, Johnson closed the public hearing. Commission member Heigel asked the applicant how he will make sure the construction will not be unreasonably difficult on the neighbors. Mr. Abumayyaleh said he will cooperate with whatever the city requires. Heigel asked the applicant what was the result of the soil testing. Mr. Abumayyaleh said the soil was adequate where the homes will be constructed. Commission member Seffren said he was concerned that the alley was too narrow to support parking for two new homes. Seffren also asked Olson about the question that the new lots were not 50’ in width. Olson said that the zoning code allows for lot dimensions to be rounded up and since each lot is 49.6’ in width, that can be rounded up to 50’. The surveyor also said this lot was platted as a 100’ wide lot decades ago Approved Planning Commission Minutes – August 9, 2021 and when the adjacent lots were subsequently replatted, they have overlapped an inch or two into this property, causing confusion to the lot width. Commission Chair Selton returned to the meeting. Commission member Buck asked where the UDC prohibits homes facing an alley. One of the residents who spoke previously said it is found in City Code section 525.05, Subd. 10. Olson said the homes were required to face the alley to avoid negative impacts to the creek. Commission member Strand said she didn’t like the fact that the sanitary sewer was shared for both properties and she didn’t like that we were going to require signs on the property to direct people to the homes on the alley. She said during construction the alley will be too narrow to support all of the construction traffic. She will not be voting for this project. The seventh Crystal resident asked if the alley could support additional garbage trucks. Commission member Seffren asked Olson if the UDC prohibited homes facing the alley. Olson said he thought it was an existing condition since the previous home had faced the alley. City Code section 525.05 was adopted in 2018. Seffren said he is not in favor of this application. Sears said that he heard from those making comments that additional traffic was an important reason why they did not want two homes, but were okay with one home on the lot. Olson said that the City Council approved various new UDC requirements to increase density, including reducing lot area, lot width and allowing accessory dwelling units. Commission member strand said increased density is not a good idea for this specific property. Moved by Strand and seconded by Seffren to recommend denial to the City Council of the subdivision application at 6613 – 36th Avenue North. Ayes: Strand, Buck, Sears, Einfeldt-Brown, Johnson, Seffren, and Heigel. Nays: Selton. Olson asked what were the Findings of Fact for the recommendation. The Commission agreed that the main finding for denial is that the homes would face the alley, in contradiction to the UDC. Motion carried. 4. OLD BUSINESS - None 5. NEW BUSINESS - None 6. GENERAL INFORMATION Approved Planning Commission Minutes – August 9, 2021 • City Council actions on previous Planning Commission items: Olson stated that the Council approved the variance at 3556 Major Ave N and construction of the new home has begun. • Update from Council Liaison: City Council liaison Brendan Banks was not present at the meeting. • Staff preview of likely agenda items for Monday, September 13, 2021 meeting. Olson said he is expecting a site plan application for the September meeting, but that the deadline to apply is not until next week. 7. OPEN FORUM Commission member Buck asked Olson what the new construction is along Highway 81. Olson said that is the Midwest Water Sports addition at 5160 West Broadway. The site plan was approved by the City Council in 2020. Commission member Seffren asked about the Verizon cell tower. Olson said they have until next January to apply for the building permit. Commission Sears said the Commission might consider future discussions about whether the city should have 50’ wide residential lots. That lot size creates parking issues. Strand added that she moved to Crystal to not be in higher density areas. 8. ADJOURNMENT Moved by Sears and seconded by Buck to adjourn. Ayes: All. Nays: None Motion carried. The meeting adjourned at 8:28 p.m.