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09-26-17 CC/Planning Comm Joint Mtg MinutesCITY OF SHOREWOOD 5755 COUNTRY CLUB ROAD CITY COUNCIL/PLANNING COMMISSION WORKSHOP COUNCIL CHAMBERS MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2017 7:00 P.M. MINUTES 1. CONVENE CITY COUNCIL/PLANNING COMMISSION JOINT WORKSHOP Mayor Zerby called the meeting to order at 7:01 P.M. A. Roll Call Present. Mayor Zerby; City Administrator Lerud; Planning Director Darling; and, Assistant Planner Helgesen Park Commission Chair Mangold; Park Commissioners Bean, Davis, Riedel and Sylvester Also present: Northwest Associated Consultants: Chloe McGruire Brigl, Alan Brixius, and Bob Kirmis Absent: Couneilmembers Johnson, Labadie, Siakel and Sundberg B. Review Agenda Riedel moved, Sylvester seconded, approving the agenda as presented. Motion passed 6/0. 2. REVIEW THE INVENTORY AND PLANNING TACTICS CHAPER OF THE 2040 COMPREHENSIVE PLAN UPDATE Mr. Brixius stated the Northwest Associated Consultants (NAC) consultants are present to provide an update on the work done to date to update the City's 2040 Comprehensive (Comp) Plan. That work relates to the inventory and planning tactics. Tactics interviews provide the local perspectives of the community and basically guide the Comp Plan policies and goal objectives. He reviewed the process NAC uses for preparing a Comp Plan. ➢ The planning inventory and community profile are basically a snapshot of what currently exists. It is empirical data about land use, social profiles (i.e., demographics), utilities, transportation and so forth. It is an accumulation of data about the community. ➢ The tactics interviews are about how people perceive the community and where they want the community to go. That information serves as the local basis for how the plan goes together. ➢ The inventory analysis and the issues summary are used to formulate the goals, objectives and policies. The intent is to establish a goal statement for each topic area identified through the vision study and to provide policy statements which are implementation tools to achieve the goals. ➢ The plans will address chapters of the code — Natural Resources, Land Use, Transportation, Community Facilities /Services and Housing. ➢ Implementation will generally include specific recommendations related to regulations, capital improvements, and opportunities for financing some of the goal objectives. CITY OF SHOREWOOD CITY COUNCIL /PLANNING COMMISSION JOINT WORKSHOP MEETING MINUTES September 26, 2017 Page 2 of 8 The Metropolitan (Met) Council requires that Comp Plan be updated every 10 years. After review, NAC considered the City's current Comp Plan to be good for the next 10 years; it does not require a lot of attention. NAC's intent is to update and respond to some of the Met Council's objectives and to reaffirm some of objectives stated in the City's 2030 Plan. The seven categories NAC will look at are: land use, natural resource protection, water sustainability, affordable housing, transportation, economic competitiveness, and building resilience. Shorewood is designated in the Met Council Thrive document as a suburban community. In that respect the City received a systems statement that identified some of the City's obligations within the County. The objectives set forth by the Met Council include: ➢ Maintaining overall average densities of at least five units per acre. Shorewood is unique in that it does not have a lot of high density areas and the lots are very large. ➢ Identifying areas for redevelopment. The City has already done that with a number of plans that preceded the Comp Plan. ➢ Collaboration with communities in order to promote inter -city cooperation for providing services and other elements for delivery. ➢ Planning for local infrastructure needs. He highlighted the Met Council's forecast for population, households, and employment for 2020, 2030 and 2040. The 2040 forecast is 7600 for population, 3000 for households, and 1400 for employment. The household forecast does not include the new units in the Minnetonka Country Club (MCC) development. He does not think the forecast for employment is realistic. The existing Land Use Map indicates Shorewood is mostly residential. Single - family low density residential is 63 percent of the total buildable land (i.e.; without open water being factored in). The next highest category is street rights -of -way. Being predominantly residential is not going to change. The 2030 land use plan shows the locations of vacant or underdeveloped land. It shows most of the development will be infill development. The 2030 map does not show a lot opportunity for a dramatic change in land use. The Smithtown Crossing Redevelopment Area will carry forward into the 2040 Comp Plan. Commissioner Bean asked how many people were interviewed. Mr. Brixius stated members of Council, members of the Planning Commission and City staff. There will be three open houses at the end of October to present the material to the general public and solicit their feedback. Mr. Brixius distributed a list of Shorewood's community issues and he asked people to prioritize the issues. Mr. Brixius reviewed the perception of the City's strengths that were identified during the tactics interviews. ➢ People like the lakes, trees and large lots. ➢ They like the quality parks. ➢ The like the trail networks /local networks and there is a desire to expand them. ➢ The City is part of strong school districts ➢ There is quality housing development, attractive neighborhoods, and nice people ➢ The City has a small town feel ➢ The city has quality government, staff, services, and responsiveness; and it is financially strong CITY OF SHOREWOOD CITY COUNCIL /PLANNING COMMISSION JOINT WORKSHOP MEETING MINUTES September 26, 2017 Page 3 of 8 ➢ The proximity to the commercial areas in Excelsior He reviewed the perceptions of the City's issues. ➢ An undefined community identity. The 2030 Comp Plan identified Shorewood as a residential recreational community and that is something people want to maintain. Yet, there is no focal point in the City. ➢ The majority of people indicated there should be city -wide municipal water. The use of private wells was raised an issue from an environmental standpoint. ➢ The trail networks are incomplete. ➢ Pedestrian / bicycle movement through the community was always emphasized. ➢ Traffic congestion and access to Highway 7. ➢ Pedestrian / vehicle conflicts on local streets. ➢ Shared services with other communities (e.g.; police). There is some degree of uncomfortableness with the current contracts for the joint powers entities. ➢ Lack of local commercial services. Even though a lot of people want commercial services there is no guarantee of what the market will support. ➢ Limited housing choices including multi- family and affordable. NAC needs Council and staff to offer insight into the type of housing, housing densities and the location of various densities. ➢ Local street conditions — widths, on- street parking, snow storage, and stormwater drainage. ➢ Housing tear -downs and rebuilds. There are opportunities to define what people want to see. He reviewed the perceptions of the City's challenges. ➢ Upgrading the City's infrastructure (i.e.; water, sewer, storm sewer, streets) including financing and implementation is a critical component for many / most cities. Some cities take a cyclical look at things by neighborhoods. ➢ Funding for park and trail improvements. ➢ Alternate housing locations, densities, parking and amenities. ➢ Commercial development — location, land area, changing markets. And, the Smithtown Crossing Redevelopment Area. ➢ Intercommunity cooperation needed for providing shared services. ➢ Legal non - conforming conditions and their impact on tear -down and rebuilds. He stated based on feedback the 2040 Vision for the City is to maintain a residential recreational character; a vision consistent with the 2030 Comp Plan. The vision identified is: to be an energy efficient city and provide for alternative energy technologies; to have attractive and creative public open spaces; to expand the municipal water system to more areas in the City; to have a mix of housing types; to be a pedestrian and bicycle friendly City; and, to have safe traffic patterns. Commissioner Sylvester stated she loves her well water and believes that it tastes exceptionally great. So, from a resident's perspective, she would not want to convert to city water. Chair Maddy and Commissioner Davis both stated they also have good well water. Commissioner Bean noted that city water system is a series of wells; the water comes from aquifers. Commissioner Riedel stated using water from the aquifers is not sustainable; the aquifers are being depleted. Mr. Brixius stated on the west side of town where there is not municipal water he asked if fire protection services are provided using tanker trucks. The response was yes. CITY OF SHOREWOOD CITY COUNCILJPLANNING COMMISSION JOINT WORKSHOP MEETING MINUTES September 26, 2017 Page 4 of 8 Commissioner Bean asked what alternative water sources there are besides aquifers. Chair Maddy stated if there is an issue with the aquifer the City can try and control consumption through pricing. Commissioner Riedel stated the updated Comp Plan is for 2040 and people are already raising concerns about the sustainability of the aquifers. Mr. Brixius stated concerns were expressed about the City's stormwater management system. Commissioner Bean stated throughout the area there are very challenging stormwater runoff issues noting a lot of the stormwater runoff structure is more than 100 years old. He then stated 20 years ago there was great opposition to installing curb and gutter. Mr. Brixius asked if that has changed. Bean stated he was not sure but he assumes that opposition has lessened. Mayor Zerby stated the number one complaint the City hears about is about traffic and the speed of traffic. More people want to have safe places to walk now. Walkers compete with vehicle traffic. Most of the city's roads are rural style road and were built about 50 years ago; they do not accommodate walkers. He then stated he thought residents are more receptive to installing curb and gutter when roads are reconstructed. He went on to state there is now a turn toward extending city water when a road is reconstructed. He thought part of that was because there are more people relocating to Shorewood from places that had municipal water. Mr. Brixius asked what the most frequent complaints or concerns are about when proposing doing a utility improvement project. Mayor Zerby stated drainage is the number one concern. Mr. Brixius asked if curb and gutter work is done as part of stormwater management improvements. Zerby responded yes and noted that adds considerable expense. Zerby stated Council is considering an overall approach to stormwater management improvements on the west side of town for a cost of about $4 million; that would require the City to bond for those improvements. He explained the engineers are discussing an open style system which would use ditches rather than pipes to carry runoff; and having retention ponds and so forth. Mr. Brixius asked if those types of projects are assessed for. Zerby noted they have not been assessed for in the past. Commissioner Davis suggested considering a water treatment facility to reclaim water from the sanitary sewer system and then use that for irrigation purposes. That has been done for the clients of the company she works for. She thought that has been very successful. Mayor Zerby stated a similar thing is done in St. Paul and the reclaimed water is put back into the river. Mr. Brixius stated for regional treatment systems he thought the cost to push that water back to the communities would be extremely expensive. Commissioner Riedel stated the report lists that Lake Minnetonka is listed as impaired by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA). And, Silver Lake is also going to be listed as impaired. What it means from his perspective is there could be more pressure from the MPCA to manage stormwater. He suggested that be part of the planning. Mr. Brixius stated the City of Albertville had discharged into Hunters Lake. Because that city had reduced the phosphorous going into that Lake that city is now going to install a pipe around Albertville up County Road 19 through the City of Otsego and with a discharge into the Mississippi River. That is going to be done because the cost to upgrade its plant was going to be cost prohibitive. Albertville had also explored treating the phosphorous in the Lake and gain the reduction but that was rejected by the MPCA. Mayor Zerby noted that the City more than exceeds its annual required phosphorus reduction through street sweepings. CITY OF SHOREWOOD CITY COUNCIL /PLANNING COMMISSION JOINT WORKSHOP MEETING MINUTES September 26, 2017 Page 5 of 8 Mr. Brixius reviewed the more immediate general needs; ➢ Highway 7 /Vine Hill Road intersection improvements, ➢ Improvements to the City trail system, ➢ Alternative energy systems, ➢ Improvements to the Southshore Center, ➢ General street upgrades, ➢ A City -wide water system, and ➢ Expansion of Public Works storage space. In response to a question about the need to expand the storage space at the Public Works facility, Mr. Kirmis stated the comment was the facility was maxed out when it comes to storing additional equipment. The person making the comment thought some of the equipment could be stored off site because all of the stored material is not related to Public Works (e.g.; for some police related items). Mayor Zerby stated the need for storage for police items is not just Shorewood's responsibility. Mr. Brixius reviewed residential developments. ➢ People are pleased with the quality of residential development within the Shorewood. ➢ There continues to be concern about the lack of housing choices; currently it is predominantly single- family. The challenges for providing the alternative housing are location, land area and density. ➢ There is an expanding need for senior housing. It is everyone's desire for people to be able to age in place or at least to continue to live within the community. A comment was made that many of the baby boomers would not be alive in 2040. ➢ There is overdevelopment of tear -down sites. ➢ There is a desire for more proactive code enforcement. Most people have indicated the neighborhoods Look good. Commissioner Bean stated there are a few areas in the City with "relatively high" density. For example, the Minnetonka Manor area has was platted with small lots. He thought preserving that level of density with 10,000 square foot lots with some type of zoning would be the right thing to do. Mayor Zerby stated he has been told that the cost for a half -acre lot in the city ranges from $300,000 to $350,000. And, typically the cost for building a structure is twice the cost of the lot which means the structure will cost $600,000 to $700,000 structure. The end result is a cost of $1 million for a lot and house. The owner of that $1 million house /property would not someone to build houses on much smaller lots next to their property. Mr. Brixius stated when discussing the availability of housing choices people must be realistic about where that could possibly occur. Mayor Zerby stated he finds it frustrating that the Met Council expects each city to act as a standalone entity. He explained there are 14 cities that surround Lake Minnetonka and 13 of them have a population less than 10,000. A few of the core cities serve as the commercial area. Mayor Zerby commented that he does not view the cities around the Lake as a community. He stated Shorewood is not a community on its own; it is part of a community. Mr. Brixius stated the way things will be presented to the Met Council is Shorewood cannot change patterns and it cannot change the market. An argument will be made to the Met Council to look at things from a regional perspective. CITY OF SHOREWOOD CITY COUNCIL /PLANNING COMMISSION JOINT WORKSHOP MEETING MINUTES September 26, 2017 Page 6 of 8 Mayor Zerby stated he has heard residents strongly tell him that they moved out to the area so they did not have to live near Section 8 or affordable housing. Mr. Brixius stated even though it has been stated there is a desire for affordable housing he does not know how that would be applied. Mr. Brixius reviewed commercial challenges. ➢ Everyone wants commercial. But, if you don't have the location or the market for it is more complicated. Excelsior provides a full range of services. ➢ For the Smithtown Crossing Redevelopment Area, the question that will be asked of people is what they envision going in there. That will need to be tested with a potential developer or the market to determine if it is realistic goal. Chair Maddy questioned why people think there is a need for more commercial development in the community. He thought that could possibly reduce the demand in Excelsior. Mr. Brixius stated Excelsior has a concentration that provides accumulative attraction. Because it has a variety of commercial entities people go there because then can go from one place to another. Shorewood would be more limited because it would have a smaller group of shops. Mayor Zerby stated that Shorewood may have more commercial square- footage space than Excelsior does; Shorewood's is more spread out and not full of bars and restaurants. Mr. Brixius stated the desire for more commercial is to create more of an identity while noting he thought Shorewood has an identity but it is not a downtown. Commissioner Bean asked what kind of additional commercial services people want. Mr. Brixius stated people did not specify what types; office space was mentioned. Commissioner Riedel asked if there is a desire or need for small health related businesses. Mr. Brixius stated people need to look at what spaces are available in the South Lake area and what kind of market support there is. Mr. Brixius reviewed the transportation issues that were identified. ➢ Roadway maintenance required because of the condition, width, lack of curbing, stormwater management issues and the surface. ➢ Traffic volumes on County Road 19. ➢ The Smithtown Road / County Road 19 intersection. ➢ Access points to Highway 7 and congestion at those access points. ➢ Pedestrian / bicyclist safety. The recurring theme is there is a need for more trails. Pedestrian and bicyclist safety are a high priority for people. ➢ Lack of on street parking because of the rural street design and the width of streets. People want it when they have social occasions at their home, but not necessarily for others to use. Commissioner Bean stated it seems like most people want more bike rails yet bicyclists ride on the street. Commissioner Sylvester stated some of the trails do not connect. Commissioner Davis stated it is dangerous when racers ride on the trails. Chair Maddy stated bikers choose to exercise and congest traffic. Mr. Brixius explained on roadways with curb and gutters sometimes the roadway shoulders are striped so they are defined. If / when the City redoes its streets with curb and gutter it may be worthwhile to construct a wider surface and stipe some surface on one edge so there is walkable edge that is not competing with vehicle traffic. CITY OF SHOREWOOD CITY COUNCIL /PLANNING COMMISSION JOINT WORKSHOP MEETING MINUTES September 26, 2017 Page 7 of 8 Mayor Zerby stated when a person is standing still any vehicle going by seems to be going very fast especially when the walking surface is narrow. Commissioner Bean stated when vehicles are driving by going 30 miles- per -hour it is terrifying to the pedestrian. Mr. Brixius displayed a map showing the average daily trips on various major roadways in the City. The trip ranges were: 0 — 999; 1000 — 5000; 5000 — 10,000, 10000 — 20000, and greater than 20,000. Mr. Brixius reviewed opinions about community facilities. ➢ The interviewees believe Shorewood has an excellent park system. People want the City to be proactive in keeping the parks up to date and to ensure the needs of its residents are addressed. ➢ There are water service and water pressure issues with the City's water system. ➢ There are problems with stormwater management and the rural street (ditch) design. ➢ Some said that the water treatment plant needs to be replaced. Mayor Zerby noted the City does not have a water treatment plant but there has been discussion that one may be needed in the future. ➢ City Hall is in good condition. ➢ The Southshore Center needs improvements and there is a need for a long -term use plan. ➢ The Public Works facility needs to be expanded to meet its storage and operational needs. Commissioner Bean asked if people indicated what additional amenities they wanted in the parks. Mr. Brixius stated they did not and noted they will try to find out more specifics during the open house events. Bean stated some city just installed a challenge course for younger children. Administrator Lerud noted that was the City of Golden Valley. Mr. Brixius reviewed the opinions about the environmental elements that were raised. ➢ There are water quality and invasive species issues with Lake Minnetonka and the community lakes. ➢ There should be promotion of alternative energy sources. He noted that he recently drafted a couple of alternative energy ordinances for solar, wind, and geothermal. Providing them and making them functional and available may be contrary to the City's tree preservation objectives. Trees are as valuable as solar energy as far as keeping temperatures reasonable in the shade. ➢ Private wells use of the aquifers. ➢ Stormwater management needs to be improved. ➢ The access to Christmas Lake was deemed to be adequate by some and others thought it could be eliminated. ➢ Some people have expressed their desire to have Howard's Point Marina on Lake Minnetonka become a public access noting he was not sure if that was a predominant opinion. Mayor Zerby stated there have been a number of developers who have pondered reconverting the Marina area into housing. He noted he was against doing that because he considers it to be valuable service to the community. He stated if push came to shove the City may want to consider making it a municipal marina. Other cities around the Lake that have municipal marinas find them to be profitable. He would like the Comp Plan to reflect that. ➢ There was some desire to expand the public beach. Mr. Brixius stated when NAC personnel first looked at the 2030 Comp Plan when preparing their proposal to provide services to the City they concluded that Shorewood was a fully developed CITY OF SHOREWOOD CITY COUNCIL /PLANNING COMMISSION JOINT WORKSHOP MEETING MINUTES September 26, 2017 . Page 8 of 8 community. There is not much for regional impact. The local issues are what will drive the updates for the 2040 Comp Plan. In response to a question from Chair Maddy, Mr. Brixius explained Shorewood is almost 100 percent fully developed. There is limited land and limited space. Land prices will not provide for the opportunity for affordable housing. Commissioner Davis asked what is considered affordable housing in Shorewood. Mr. Brixius stated that regionally it is 80 percent of median income. Mayor Zerby stated the only way to achieve affordable housing in Shorewood is to subsidize it. He does not think the residents would be willing to support that. Commissioner Davis commented that there is no way for her to get downtown Minneapolis on a bus on Saturdays unless she drives almost all of the way downtown. Commissioner Bean stated the median family income in 2010 was about $135,000 in Shorewood and $81,000 in Hennepin County. And, the median household income in Shorewood was $118,000 and $61,000 in Hennepin County. Commissioner Davis stated from her perspective the discussion about affordable housing is for those who want to age in place. There was consensus to place the City of Shorewood Community Issues Ranking questionnaire on the City's website. 3. ADJOURN Maddy moved, Riedel seconded, Adjourning the City Council/Planning Commission Joint Workshop of September 26, 2017, at 8:12 P.M. Motion passed 6/0. RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED, Christine Freeman, Recorder ATTEST: Sandie Thone, City Clerk