HomeMy WebLinkAboutapplicant response Orono City Council agenda item 18 - 1360 and 1370 Baldur LLCFrom:Julie Thometz
To:Richard Crosby; Aaron H. Printup; Victoria Seals; Denny Walsh; Matt Johnson; Jeremy Barnhart
Subject:Orono City Council agenda item 18 - 1360 and 1370 Baldur LLC
Date:Friday, July 10, 2020 3:25:56 PM
This proposal is a very reasonable solution for a site that contains enormous practical
difficulties. It delineates two homesites on over an acre of land on Lake Minnetonka
by combining seven legal lots of record. At city staff’s request, the proposal includes a
large cul de sac which takes up more land than an average building site on Baldur
Park Road. The proposal includes a 20 foot right of way paved to 18 feet which is
wider than any pavement anywhere on Baldur Park Road west of Birch Lane. The
building sites meet the 66 percent rule for lot size described in chapter 78.
Paved width of Baldur Park Road
The first 2/3 of Baldur Park Road west of Birch Lane has only 17.5 feet of pavement
width and it narrows to 15 feet in width at 1400 Baldur Park Road. The final 1/3 of
Baldur Park Road, before its termination at lot 20, is 12 feet wide or less. It narrows to
11.5 feet at 1392 Baldur Park Rd (3 lots from its current termination) and, at its
current termination on Lot 20, pavement width is only 12 feet wide. Since the road
was recently rebuilt about five years ago, it seems unlikely the City will be widening
Baldur Park Road.
To require 20 feet of pavement width after the road has narrowed to 11.5 feet is not in
keeping with the character of the neighborhood. However, the proposal provides 18
feet of pavement width which exceeds the existing pavement width anywhere on
Baldur Park Road west of Birch Lane. To meet city staff’s request, a 20 foot right of
way has been provided as well as a huge cul de sac.
Dry Buildable Area
The dry buildable area estimated by city staff is incorrect. Not all floodplain is wetland.
The vast majority of the land between the ordinary high water elevation of 929.4 and
931.5 is not impacted by wetlands as was delineated by Jacobson Environmental.
The two lots proposed (with 16,954 and 14,526 sf of land) meet the 66 percent rule
outlined in chapter 78 of Minnesota Rules and are approximately 50 percent larger
than all but one of the other lots on Baldur Park Road. Furthermore, most of the
homesites on Baldur Park Road fall beneath the floodplain elevation of 931.5.
Conclusion
This thoughtful solution by Gronberg and Associates overcomes many practical
difficulties in providing two well-spaced homesites on over an acre of land along with
a large cul de sac requested by city staff and therefore merits City Council approval.