3.6. SR 07-05-2011REQUEST FOR ACTION
TO ITEM NUMBER
Ci Council 3.6.
AGENDA SECTION MEETING DATE PREPARED BY
Consent ul 5, 2011 erem Barnhart, Plannin Mana er
ITEM DESCRIPTION REVIEWED B~/
A. Authorization to Complete Ordinance Amendments
i. Variances REVIEWED BY
ii. Landscaping
B. Authorization to Initiate a Conditional Use Amendment
to Amend the Planned Unit Development Agreement
for Trott Brook Farms
ACTION REQUESTED
Council motion authorizing staff to bring forward two different ordinance amendments: one related to
variances and the other to landscaping. Staff would also like authorization to initiate a Conditional Use
Amendment to amend the Planned Unit Development Agreement for Trott Brook Farms.
Staff will not be at the City Council meeting on July 5. Should Council wish to putt this item from the consent agenda, it
will be added to the July 7 7 zvorksession.
BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION
Variances
In June 2010, the Minnesota Supreme Court made a decision on a variance case, stating in basic terms
that if a property has a reasonable use, a variance should not be granted. This effectively made variances
very difficult to approve, if not impossible. In response, the legislature amended the variance standards
statute, adopting the standard employed by Minnesota counties. Staff will be preparing an ordinance
amendment incorporating the new language.
Landscaping
In conjunction with the recently adopted City beautification goals, staff seeks authorization to review and
propose amendments to the landscaping/ screening ordinances, with several goals, including:
• Increase the presence of landscaping on streets and high visibility areas
• Increase the presence of flowers and shrubbery in landscaping plans
• Review the landscaping requirements based on `benchmark' cities; propose adjustments as
necessary
• Encourage the use of additional landscaping
• Encourage the use of `native' landscaping where appropriate
• Clarify existing requirements
C:\Users\jjohnson\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Temporary Internet Files\Content.Outlook\SFWAYSNS\Request for Action OA
authroization 7-5-11 (3).docx
Trott Brook Farms PUD Amendment
Staff has been approached by a property owner whose building plans would require a variance; however,
the PUD agreement establishes the setbacks, not city ordinances. Because the PUD agreement does not
include language for a variance, the agreement needs to be amended, via the Conditional Use Permit
process. Staff will propose the variance process will follow the City's variance/appeal process. Future
.PUD agreements will include an appeal process.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Postcards will be mailed to notify all property owners in the Trott Brook Farms subdivision. This will
cost approximately $400, in addition to the normal publication and preparation costs.
ATTACHMENTS
^ None
Action Motion by Second by Vote
Follow Up
C:\Users\jjohnson\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Temporary Internet Files\Content.Outlook\SFWAYSNS\Request for Action OA
authroization 7-5-11 (3).docx