07-12-2021 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO PLANNING COMMISSION Monday, June 21, 2021 6:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Page 4 of 6 Ressler noted the comments are appreciated and the Planning Commission and the City Council take into consideration in their guidance. It is also nice to have the developer here to take those things into consideration, as well. Ms. Mahoney is also concerned about who would find this location attractive given that it overlooks the existing business which is not aesthetically pleasing in any way. George Mileusnic, 2110 Sugarwood Drive, also wants to share his concern about the patio, the noise level, and how close it is to his deck. He does not know if there is another location to put it as a gathering spot. His is also curious about fire access on the north side, what that would look like, and how far back that would require excavating and understanding how much that may encroach on the properties behind it, as well. Barnhart said the Fire Chief has advised that he has to be able to touch every point of the building with a 300 foot hose. It is not necessarily a road. Barnhart noted the Fire Chief seemed to be generally okay with this but they do not expect to see fire roads. Karl Berg, 2112 Sugarwood Drive, said the comments made about it being a nice place to live and viable community are all very applicable. He noted the senior housing development is behind his house and in the wintertime when leaves are off the trees it is like staring at a battleship in the backyard. He suspects they will have a hard time selling their house because of the development that is there. It’s a little better in the summertime because of leaves on the trees, although air conditioners are noisy in the summer. He thinks it is a hardship for everyone that lives on the south side of Sugar Woods and to see this come in now is a huge disappointment. He said it sounds like there has been some good thought and consideration given to the project which he appreciates. He asked if they are at about 20,000 cars per day on that road. Barnhart does not know what that traffic is. Mr. Berg thinks that should be done before they do this project because they are seeing a tremendous increase in traffic at his medical building on the same street. Adding 40 more units there and with the other developments in the area, he does not think they can really predict what will happen when people get off that bypass and start coming into town through his community there. He thinks the City will have their hands full in managing that. He noted the majority of the development is right in the Ricks’ backyard and he hopes the Commissioners will listen to the concerns of the residents and good choices will be made. Chris Case, 2100 Sugarwood Drive, noted the development has been there since about 1991 and he is here in support of everything that has been said by the other neighbors. He would ask the Commission to consider that the reason he and many of his neighbors live in Orono is because of the low density and green space in the community. Orono has kind of been defined as single family homes with large lots. He knows there are Met Council requirements on density and Mr. Case respectfully requests that the Commission re-look at this site as the appropriate place to meet those requirements, to step back and look at the families that have invested in this community and if there is a way to move those dense developments closer to other dense developments or other green space in the community rather than immediately adjacent to single family homes. Before retirement, Mr. Case was director of real estate for Target, so he has looked at sites for viability. From a residential standpoint, he is concerned about the long-term viability of what market rents will mean to that site. Because the site will look directly out at semi-trucks, gas pumps, and an industrial site, those rates may decline quickly if they struggle in leasing