09-19-2016 Planning Commission Packet

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� 16-3855 September 14,2016 Page 5 of 10 Applicants propose that 7 of the 25 lots, i.e. those abutting Long Lake or the Creek, be developed under LR-lA 2-acre zoning standards. The Zoning Code requires that lot acreage in the 2-acre zones be contiguous dry-buildable. The definition of"lot area, minimum" specifically addresses the categories of"rural zones not served by sanitary sewer" (requiring two acres of contiguous dry buildable land) and "urban areas served by sanitary sewer" (requiring no more than 1/2 acre of contiguous dry buildable land) but does not address the category of properties that are rural zones served by sanitary sewer. Under the LR-1 A standards, each lot must contain two contiguous acres exclusive of wetlands. The acreages reported on the sketch plan for Lots 1-6 and Lot 25 appear to include wetlands and non-contiguous acreage. Each of these 7 lots appears to be lacking in dry buildable acreage, dry buildable contiguity, or both. The definition of Lot Area, Minimum appears below. Lot area, minimum, means minimum area required for each proposed lot as prescribed in chapter 78. In rural zones not served by sanitary sewer, each lot must contain a minimum of two acres of contiguous dry buildable land exclusive of wetlands, public and private rights-of-way, vehicular ar pedestrian easements, surface areas below the ordinary high water mark of any surface water or areas at or below the floodplain elevation for a specific property.All rural lots must comply with chapter 58, article II. In urban areas served by sanitary sewer,each lot must contain contiguous dry buildable land equal to the minimum areas as prescribed in chapter 78 or half-acre, whichever is less(exclusive of public and private rights-of-way, vehicular or pedestrian easements, surface areas below the ordinary high water mark of any surface water wetlands or areas at or below the floodplain elevation for a specific property), and have legal access to the building site without encroachment of a wetland or floodplain area. In discussions with the applicants' former attorney, he argued that absent any mention of standards for rural zones served by sewer, the requirement for dry buildable contiguity does not apply. To take that one step further, we assume he concludes that the only portion of the definition of"Lot area, minimum" that does apply to the Larson property is the first sentence: "Lot area, minimum, means minimum area required for each proposed lot as prescribed in Chapter 78". The current definition of"lot area, minimum" is virtually unchanged from when it was adopted in 1984. At that time, per the 1980 Community Management Plan, the boundary between the defined Urban and Rural Areas was established as being consistent with the MUSA line, and the MLTSA incorporated the higher-density zones (1/2-acre and 1-acre minimums) plus a few existing rural-zone higher-density housing clusters retrofitted with sewer. During the 1980s and 1990s many such"rural clusters" were retrofitted with sewer, but none were rezoned to an urban- density zoning. As retrofitting of existing neighborhoods progressed, sewer lines necessarily passed properties that were further subdividable. It was a conscious decision when the City brought much of the unsewered Rural Area Shoreland into the MUSA in 2000 to not rezone subdividable properties for higher densities. The City's goal was and is to protect the City's lakes by providing municipal sewer within the Shoreland, by maintaining the low densities that have been in place for decades, and by preserving wetlands and floodplain areas. Did the City fathers intend that the defined Rural Areas should be subjected to urban zoning and urban development standards once sewer was provided? Staff thinks not, given that the City has not rezoned to urban density any of the "rural clusters" that were retrofitted with sewer over the past three decades. However, if one assumes that the onlv reason to have a 2-acre "conti uous dry buildable" requirement was to accommodate septic systems near the homes they serve, perhaps the opposite conclusion has some validity. This assumption is untested. Staff's default