LA21-000017 (480 Big Island) Ex E Draft PC Min

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO PLANNING COMMISSION Tuesday, March 15, 2021 6:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ options, asking for easements, and speaking with the Three Rivers Park District. Where Kirchner struggles with this application is that he feels this could potentially create a bit of a ripple effect, in that if the City will allow this for one lot, will it produce other similar applications. In that case, he believes that perhaps there needs to be a larger scale approach to this, to find a solution if a dock is deemed appropriate, rather than try to band-aid this several times over the next many years. That is Kirchner’s biggest hang-up, and he is concerned that by allowing one parcel this, it merely kicks the can down the road. He thinks there needs to be a larger evaluation of this to find any potential solutions and work at it on a larger scale. Libby said there was quite a bit of material given to the Commission fairly late in the game so it took him a while to actually read through some of this and it was very interesting. As they were listening to the cases of the property owners, there seems to be a reason for him to ask Staff a question. He noted there was a submission by Aleya Champlin, 210 Big Island, which is very detailed. Having had many, many years working with LMCD and MCWD (Minnehaha Creek Watershed District), he is quite familiar with their authority and functionality. He does not know how to ask this any other way than to ask Staff if they have known that whether one of the MCWD functional assessments of wetlands has actually been performed on this public access they are talking about. Curtis brought up Hennepin County’s wetland map. Libby stated the information provided to the Planning Commission is quite well-delineated and is very specific in the categorical classification. He said he is bringing this up as a point of information. He has about 30 years of living on the lakeshore and having the blessing of having a dock and owning lakeshore, so he is familiar with properties that have riparian rights where they actually have lakeshore and a lot and are allowed to put it up. He noted the circumstances of these permits are quite unique, pretty much in Orono, Mound, and surrounding municipalities there are common areas and permits that can be lotteried and assigned. However, when there is a landlocked property without any access to the lake, he can see why this is a very sought-after commodity and why it is a point of discussion. He thinks when they see in the City of Orono – particularly within the auspices of the LMCD – one cannot really even have a dock on property that is owned even if they have riparian rights, unless there is a structure there. Libby said this is a different situation because they have landlocked properties that do not have access. If in fact MCWD has delineated this area and has conservation and wetland attributes, he wonders if it could have been an oversight by the City over these many years that people are talking about. He feels it would be prudent before a decision is made by this body to find out whether or not this type of a survey has actually been done by the MCWD because it could actually be appropriate from a conservation standpoint. Curtis does not believe the area identified on the map indicates a wetland. She believes it indicates what the commenter has written here, that it is noted as a MCWD conservation area but not a wetland. Libby said it is a conservation area but does not need to be a wetland to be a conservation area. Curtis noted they do not have any specific protective requirements over that and if there are other regulatory bodies that have input on this application, they will not purport to assume what they will decide. She clarified they have to talk about the City issues. If this issue moves forward, she thinks the Applicant would need to inquire with the Watershed District and the LMCD what regulations and rules they need to follow. The location they are talking about has had a dock so that is what the Applicant is asking for as well.