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PC-08-17-10 CITY OF SHOREWOOD COUNCIL CHAMBERS PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING 5755 COUNTRY CLUB ROAD TUESDAY, 17 AUGUST 2010 7:00 P.M. MINUTES CALL TO ORDER Chair Geng called the meeting to order at 7:01 P.M. ROLL CALL Present: Chair Geng; Commissioners Hasek, Hutchins, Ruoff, Vilett and Arnst; Planning Director Nielsen; Council Liaison Woodruff Absent: Commissioner Davis APPROVAL OF AGENDA Arnst moved, Hasek seconded, approving the Planning Commission Meeting Agenda of August 17, 2010 as presented. Motion passed 6/0. APPROVAL OF MINUTES  June 29, 2010 Arnst moved, Hutchins seconded, approving the Planning Commission Meeting Minutes of June 29, 2010 as amended. Motion passed 5/0/1 (Geng abstained).  July 20, 2010 Hasek moved, Arnst seconded, deferring approval of the Planning Commission Meeting Minutes of July 20, 2010 pending additional commentary by Commissioner Hasek regarding aerial photos in the Edwards C.U.P. application. In addition, Chair Geng recommended rephrasing the last sentence of paragraph 11 on page 2. Motion passed 6/0. 1. DISCUSS MOBILE TOUR OF REDEVELOPMENT PROJECTS rd At its last meeting of August 3, the Planning Commission toured a number of sites containing residential complexes, commercial establishments, or a mixture of each. Director Nielsen said the purpose of discussing the tour was to determine the positives and negatives of the various projects as to how that could relate to the Smithtown Crossing vision. He said there is a need to focus on building mass and especially height. He said ultimately he hopes to end up with an Area Plan of the Smithtown Crossing area for adoption into the Comprehensive Plan as an appendix. This Area Plan could also serve as a reference point for ordinances that will be developed regarding mixed use, life-cycle housing, etc. It would be useful for developers as well, especially when paired with photographic examples. Nielsen said the first stop on the tour was the Glen Lake development which included vertical mixed use of retail and residential. He said there are four stories on the front and four stories plus underground parking at the rear of the building. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES 17 August 2010 Page 2 of 4 The Commission discussed the design features that stood out to them which included siding material, roof lines, landscaping and water features, outdoor seating, colors, etc. These items help to serve the purpose of breaking up the mass of buildings and parking lots. Commissioner Arnst commented that the outdoor seating area at the Glen Lake site was gorgeous. Commissioner Ruoff noted that the City should convey to developers that it wants to avoid trendy architectural designs that tend to look dated after a while. Director Nielsen said he will try to determine a way to word that into the Plan. Commissioner Hasek cautioned that many adjectives (e.g. “timeless”) are too subjective to have any meaning. Councilmember Woodruff commented that one of the projects had the rear of its building right next to the street and it looked pretty nice, but acknowledged that it is on a quiet street and that is not the case in the Smithtown Crossing area. Director Nielsen agreed and said that P.U.D. regulations are designed to be flexible which could allow for different setbacks. He went on to say that preserving some space for parking in view of passing traffic can be beneficial as a display of activity. Golden Valley Commons, a retail development, had many subtle details like simple flower boxes and pavers or stamps in the concrete sidewalks that define different areas within a large retail complex. Vilett noted that the signage with awnings in coordinated colors for the different tenants was a good idea. Arnst agreed and said it also helps to break up and soften the façade of the building. She said it was hardly noticeable how close to Hwy. 55 it was. Commissioner Hutchins pointed out that this establishment was developed with foot traffic in mind. He said it is surrounded by a lot of multi-family housing and contains many alleyways and sidewalks for pedestrian access and circulation. Councilmember Woodruff noted there were bicycle racks as well. Commissioner Ruoff questioned how the two sites along Co. Rd. 19 (the northwest quadrant and the south east quadrant) can be tied together so they appear visually coordinated. Director Nielsen said as far as the actual architecture goes that can only be encouraged, perhaps with incentives such as with building height. He said that the Area Plan can specify what the City is looking for from developers. He also said the City could contribute to a coordinated effect through streetscaping. The Town Square, a mixed use development of commercial and residential across from Golden Valley Commons was visited next. Director Nielsen said if the City could just take a project and plop it onto the Smithtown Crossing corner, this would be the one if it was up to him. He stated a lot of things about it are positive such as the HVAC equipment is well hidden; the parking is set down into the site and broken up; the architecture is broken up also; and the landscaping is well established and mature. The Sunrise Senior Housing is a three story assisted-living complex also in Golden Valley. Director Nielsen said it’s a large building but retains an attractive residential character. Commissioner Arnst said what makes the difference are the lines, the landscaping and the color and texture. Commissioner Hasek said one of the other buildings actually had a fourth story, but it was built into the roof and not really apparent. Summerwood in Chanhassen is a four-story vertical mixed use building with commercial on the ground level and senior housing above it. There was consensus that it has an unattractive design lacking in detail. Chair Geng commented that water features such as ponds and fountains were always a nice amenity. Commissioner Ruoff agreed adding that they also offer a soothing sound buffer. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES 17 August 2010 Page 3 of 4 2. DISCUSS MIXED-USE Director Nielsen said he has been looking at other city ordinances with regard to their mixed-use regulations, some very simple and others many pages long. He said Shorewood’s P.U.D. ordinance could technically allow the City to handle a mixed-use application, however, he didn’t think it would get what is really wanted. He said developing a separate ordinance regulating mixed use and tying it to the Comp Plan is what is needed. Director Nielsen stated the main issue needing to be addressed is building height. The Commission re-viewed the photos from the tour and discussed the types of features that help break up the appearance of height, such as rooflines, tiers, awnings, siding material, colors, balconies, lighting, landscaping, etc. Director Nielsen said four stories is where buildings start getting above tree-top level. The current regulation for the C-1 Zoning District allows for three stories, or 40-feet, whichever is least. Commissioner Hasek asked if four stories would be allowed if it were built no higher than 40-feet. Nielsen said it may if some of the building’s stories were either partially below grade, or incorporated into the roof as half-stories. Commissioner Arnst asked if the C-1 District would need to be amended if the City were to change the height limitation. Nielsen said the zoning district text would not need to be amended because the height regulations could become part of the mixed-use ordinance and exclusive to the mixed–use district. It would not apply city-wide. Arnst said that since the appearance of height can depend so much on where and how a building is positioned and designed, she would like to have the latitude to allow increased height, depending on the proposal. Councilmember Woodruff said if a rendering of a four story building on the specific site could be produced that would be very useful to see. Nielsen said he would see if that could be done by staff. Director Nielsen said a developer should have to earn an increase in building height and not get an automatic approval just because a proposal is consistent with what the ordinance allows. Rather, increased building height could be an incentive to a developer to adhere to the Plan, and the code would require consistency with the Plan. 3. MATTERS FROM THE FLOOR None. 4. NEW BUSINESS Commissioner Arnst requested that a report be provided to the Commission in regard to a legal case involving variances in Minnetonka. Director Nielsen said he and the City Attorney are planning to prepare that. 5. DRAFT NEXT MEETING AGENDA Director Nielsen stated upcoming items needing study include: review of the no-right-turn sign at the Cub Food store’s westerly parking lot exit onto Lake Linden Drive; draft of a mixed-use ordinance; discussion of life cycle housing; study of undeveloped rights-of-way (paper streets); and discuss Deephaven’s desire to upgrade the intersection of Highway 7 and Vine Hill Road. The Commission chose to split the items over thst two meetings: September 14 and 21. 6. REPORTS • Liaison to Council Commissioner Hutchins reported on items considered and actions taken by the City Council at their meeting of August 9, 2010. PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES 17 August 2010 Page 4 of 4 • SLUC None. • Other None. 7. ADJOURNMENT Arnst moved, Vilett seconded, Adjourning the Planning Commission Meeting of August 17, 2010 at 8:55 P.M. Motion passed 6/0. RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED, Patti Helgesen, Recorder