04-12-2021 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Monday, March 8, 2021 6:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Page 11 of 24 26. LA21-000014 – MARK RAUSCH AND AZIZ SADDIQUI O/B/O UNIVERSITY OF ST. THOMAS AND DAVID WEEKLY HOMES, NW CORNER OF WILLOW AND WAYZATA BLVD., COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AMENDMENT, ZONE CHANGE, PRELIMINARY PLAT, AND DEVELOPMENT PLAN APPROVAL – RESOLUTION NO. 7177 – Continued there are a couple waivers he wants to alert the Council to. There are external setback requirements off of Kelley, Wayzata, and Willow. Setbacks required off of Kelley are 35 feet, off of Willow and Wayzata are 50 feet, and there is a drive line setback of 20 feet from the property line. The drive line off Wayzata Boulevard is 10 feet (waiver is requested), and the Applicant proposes a row of arborvitae or screening along that edge to provide some buffer. The buildings are 35 feet off of Kelley and meet those requirements; most buildings are 50 feet from Willow Drive though lot 4 is 36 feet back (waiver of 14 feet requested). Blocks 6-8 are 50+ feet from Wayzata Boulevard and are okay. The external setbacks were an issue during the sketch plan review and at the time the setbacks were quite a bit tighter. During the development of that project, they came to learn that they really cannot drop below 10 units/acre – if they start dropping below 10 units/acre or 37 units they start running afoul of those other things mentioned, such as the affordable housing calculations and the overall growth numbers. They go from a deficit of 4 to a deficit of more than 4. The Applicant really tried to stay to the minimum 35 feet and has conformed to the setbacks with the exception of that issue. Staff does support that change. Barnhart said one concern Staff has, and identified with the Planning Commission, if they look at the overhead map there is a potential concern is the front of the buildings front onto sidewalk. Owners would enter the garage space from the rear of the structure and it is this area (noted on screen) that the rear of the structure faces Willow and faces Wayzata which are two highly-visible streets in town. He wants to make sure the Council is aware that is the face that will be seen as one is sitting at the intersection – they will be seeing the rear of those buildings and the garage doors. The screening proposed is fairly robust based on the landscaping plan, but from a planning perspective they generally try to avoid a situation where screening or landscaping fixes the problem, rather they try to find situations where berming or street orientation or other features help address a design issue. From a Planning Staff perspective, they identified a potential concern as to how those buildings are oriented. In solution, Staff suggested perhaps flipping the buildings so the front would face out, then they would have the “public face” of those buildings. To do that they would route the road interior to basically circle Outlot C there. The Planning Commission was not supportive of that suggestion; they did not think it was necessary and to flip those buildings they would have to reduce the setbacks a bit further and the Planning Commission was not willing to go that far. Barnhart throws that out there and looks for feedback on whether the Council would like that. The Applicant did react to the Council’s comments from the original sketch plan process. Crosby asked if there is any room for berming. Barnhart replied no there is not, it is a 10-foot setback. Even with 20 feet it would not be enough for berming. From an RPUD standpoint the project shows the 10% private recreation area and since this project will be a subdivision there will be a park dedication fee required. Seals said if they mimic what Stone Bay has, they do not have any garages facing exterior. Walsh noted they would have the fronts on Kelley. But the problem is this project has three roads on three sides. Crosby noted there are no garages sides showing on Stone Bay.