10.2. SR 11-02-2015 EGty1� ,.,�� Request for Action
River
To Item Number
Mayor and City Council 10.2
Agenda Section Meeting Date Prepared by
Work Session November 2, 2015 Chris Leeseber , Senior Planner
Item Description Reviewed by
Lake Orono Right-of-Way Access Zack Carlton,Planning Manager
Reviewed by
Cal Portner, City Administrator
Action Requested
Review and discuss existing rights-of-way and city-owned property on Lake Orono and the Mississippi
River to determine:
■ If standards for allowing specific types of uses for public access to the waterways should be
implemented.
■ If any should be vacated.
Background/Discussion
At the October 19, 2015, City Council meeting,Kathleen Heaney spoke during Open Forum regarding
city right-of-way between parcels 75-413-0240 and 75-413-0310 (Property). She, on behalf of herself,her
husband, and Myra Werner,requested the city:
1. Identify the Property as public land;
2. Consider the Property as access to the lake and installation of a dock; or,
3. If not interested in options one or two, access to the property be foreclosed across the board.
She further stated,if the city is not interested in retaining the property, there are a number of residents
interested in purchasing it. The Council referred the item to staff to gather information and bring it back
to a future work session.
The Property
The property includes a driveway and serves as ingress/egress for the house at 1946 Main Street. It is an
approximately 66-foot wide street right-of-way running from Main Street to Lake Orono. The owners of
1946 Main Street have utilized the property for numerous years to access their property.
St+visited on October 26, 20153 and found a fire pit, dock, and driveway on the property. It was also
noted that there is an old concrete boat landing into the lake. Staff has contacted the DNR to see if they
know when the landing was installed.
Previous Right-of-Way Vacation Requests
On September 16, 2013, the City Council denied a request by Robert and June Schwappach to vacate
Western Avenue and Park Lane right-of-way in the Westwood Subdivision which terminate at the lake.
POWERED 6T
Template Updoted 4/14 INAMIRE1
On January 17, 2006, the City Council denied a request by Ron Dargis to vacate the York Street right-of-
way on the subject property. This right-of-way also terminates at the lake. Mr. Dargis visited staff on
October 27, 20153 and stated he wanted to again apply for a street vacation and left with an application.
On November 21, 2005, the City Council denied a request by Bill Houlton to vacate a portion of the
Vernon Street right-of-way south of Main Street. This right-of-way provides access to the William H.
Houlton Conservation Area.
It is not common practice for a city to vacate public rights-of-way unless there is a specific public
purpose. In these instances, the Council determined there to be no public purpose for vacating the
rights-of-way. Staff does not recommend vacating any of the rights-of-way under review.
Lake Access Points
Staff identified 13 city-owned parcels that have waterway access, eight of which are on Lake Orono and
five on the Mississippi River. Most of these are via what appear to be right-of-way. Exhibits showing
these access points are attached.
Options for the Property
■ Vacate the Property.
o Splits the property down the middle with each half attached to adjacent properties. The
driveway is located in the middle of the property. There is no public purpose to vacate.
■ Require the property owner to remove and relocate their driveway, fire pit, and dock. Mark the
property at Main Street and at Lake Orono as "public land with lake access."
o Allow anyone to use the property to access the lake from Main Street.
■ Allow the driveway to remain and provide a vehicular ingress/egress easement in favor of 1946
Main Street. Mark the property at Main Street and at Lake Orono as "public land with pedestrian
lake access."
o Provides the property owner and the city rights to use the driveway for vehicles.
o Allow only foot/bike access to the lake from Main Street.
■ Leave it as is and allow the adjacent owner to continue to use the property.
Financial Impact
None
Attachments
■ Overall Public Access Points to Public Water Exhibit
■ Individual Public Access Points to Public Water Exhibits
■ Street Vacation Denial Letters
■ City Council Minutes
■ Site Photos
N:APublic Bodies\Agenda Packets\11-02-2015\x10.2 sr Lake Access.docx
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September 24,2013
Robert and June Schwappach
13002 Island View Dr. NW
Elk River MN 55330
Dear Mr. and Mrs. Schwappach:
Your request to vacate Western Avenue and Park Lane in the Westwood Subdivision was denied by
the Elk River City Council at their September 16,2013 meeting.
Denial was based on the fact that the Council has determined not to vacate rights-of-way unless
there is a specific need to do so.
If you have any questions regarding this letter,please contact me at 763/635-1034 or email at
ibarnhartnelkrivermn.gov.
Sincerely,
Jeremy Barnhart
Deputy Director
Community Operations &Development
January 20, 2006
Ronald L. Dargis
1946 Main Street
Elk River MN 55330
Dear Mr. Dargis:
Your request to vacate a portion of the right-of-way of York Street was denied by the Elk
River City Council at their January 17, 2006 meeting. The Council directed staff to look at
all existing rights-of-way on Lake Orono and the Mississippi River in order to establish
standards for allowing specific types of uses for public access to the waterways.
If you have any questions regarding this issue,please contact Senior Planner Scott Harlicker
at 763/635-1034.
Sincerely,
Deborah Huebner
Administrative Planning Assistant
November 23, 2005
Bill Houlton
Elk River MN 55330
RE: REQUEST FOR VACATION OF PORTION OF VERNON STREET
RIGHT OF WAY
Dear Mr. Houlton:
Your request for vacation of a portion of the Vernon Street right-of-way south of Main
Street was denied by the City Council at their November 21, 2005 meeting. The Council's
decision was based on the following recommendation by City Engineer Terry Maurer:
"Since there is the potential that someday the Houlton Farm could be subdivided, I
see no public purpose for vacating the Vernon Street right-of-way as requested. I
assume that the private driveway accessing the Houlton Farm can continue to utilize
portions of the Vernon Street right-of-way as long as necessary into the future. If in
fact there is ever a reason to subdivide any of the property, there will be a need to
construct a public road to provide access to the subdivided parcels. Therefore,there
could be a time in the future where the Vernon Street right-of-way is necessary."
If you have any questions regarding this item,please contact Senior Planner Scott Harlicker
at 763/635-1034 or City Engineer Terry Maurer at 763/635-1051.
Sincerely,
Deborah Huebner
Administrative Planning Assistant
M\Departments\Community Development\Planning\Case Files\WS\WS 1501 Lake Access Points\Denial ltr Houlton.doc
City Council Minutes Page 3
September 16,2013
-----------------------------
4.7 Hire Chanda Knoof as EDA Marketing Intern starting September 19,
2013, and ending December 31, 2013, as outlined in the staff report.
4.8 Approve Cooperative Agreement with MnDOT for the Placement of
Mississippi River Trail Signage as outlined in the staff report.
Motion carried 5-0.
5. Open Forum
No one appeared for Open Forum.
6.1 City of Elic River Volunteer of the Month — Mayor Dietz
Mayor Dietz introduced,read, and presented a plaque to Jennifer Wagner, Volunteer
of the Month for September. He noted the following volunteer accomplishments:
® Marketing co-chair for Hockey Day Minnesota 2014
® Marketing and communications cotntnittee for Three Rivers Community
Foundation
® Graduation speaker and Applied Learning partner with Minnesota School of
Business, Ella River campus
® River's Edge Downtown Business Association member
® Women's Leadership Council for Sherburne County Area United Way
® Executive corntnittee member and brand champion for the City of Elk River's
Powered by Nature brand
7.1 Street Vacation: Park Lane and Western Avenue
Mr. Barnhart presented the staff report. He stated staff has not seen any
documentation supporting the opinion that an owner of the neighboring property
west of the subject property indicated they owned one of the streets because it had
already been vacated. If the owner provides documentation that they do own the
street,the city cannot vacate that street, and Park Lane would be the only access
point to the `park'land. Because of this, staff is not supportive of vacating either
street at this tine.
Mayor Dietz opened the public hearing.
Elaine Dryer, 13008 Island View Dr. NW—stated she agreed with staff's
recommendation to deny vacating the property and states she is the owner of the
property and has hied an attorney to provide ownership documentation.
There being no one else to speak to this issue,Mayor Dietz closed the public
hearing.
City Council Minutes Page 4
September 16,2013
-----------------------------
Counciltnember Motin asked if instead of denying this request, should this iter be
tabled until ownership of the land is verified,and if land to the south would be kept
as park property.
Mr. Barnhart stated this item deals only with the street right-of-way areas and does
not include any park property.
Moved by Councilmember Westgaard and seconded by Councilmember
Burandt to deny the request to vacate Park Lane and Western Avenue as
outlined in the staff report. Motion carried 5-0.
7.2 HeritageMaples: Preliminary Plat, Case No. P 13-03, Conditional Use
Permit, Case No. CU 13-11
Mr. Carlton presented the staff report. He stated staff and the Planning Commission
recommend that until they received the requited information from the applicant, the
Council open the public hearing, continue this request, and re-notice the public
hearing date.
Mayor Dietz opened the public hearing. No one requested to speak to this issue.
Counselor Beck noted when the information is submitted, the Council would have
to take action on it, but failure to submit documentation within the 60 day time
period would then cause the item to be deemed approved. He recommended it be
continued to the October planning commission meeting or a date certain,and
therefore, a public hearing notice wouldn't have to be republished and notices
wouldn't have to be resent.
Mr. Barnhart stated his concerns with receiving the required information from the
applicant in time for the October planning commission meeting, and felt it better to
continue to future date certain in order to avoid a month-to-month continuation. He
stated if staff hasn't received the required information from the applicant by the
November planning commission meeting, the Commission would recommend to the
Council the denial of the request in order to stay within the requirements of the
permit. Mr. Barnhart also commented that the applicant can waive the 60-day rule in
writiig.
Moved by Councilmember Westgaard and seconded by Councilmember
Motin to continue the public hearing regarding the Heritage Maples
Preliminary Plat, Case No. P 13-03 and Conditional Use Permit, Case No. CU
13-11 items to November 18, 2013. Motion carried 5-0.
7.3 Conditional Use Permit: Keith Steies for Auto Sales, Case No. CU 13-
10
Mr. Carlton presented the staff report. He stated the Planning Commission
recommends approval of the application with the conditions outlined in the staff
City Council Minutes Page 3
January 17,2006
-----------------------------
Councilmember Dietz stated if the Library expanded on their current site there would be no
room for another expansion in the future or the city would need to consider acquiring
additional adjacent property. He stated the results from the Library survey indicated citizens
were more concerned with the interior of the Library. He felt that Site C would be a good
location for the Library and it would be a passive use the existing adjacent neighbors could
accept.
MOVED BY COUNCILMEMBER DIETZ AND SECONDED BY MAYOR
KLINZING TO:
1. APPROVE A NEW LIBRARY PROJECT ON SITE C, SOUTH OF
ORONO PARKWAY ACROSS FROM THE PUBLIC SAFETY/CITY
HALL COMPLEX.
2. DIRECT STAFF TO EXPLORE FUNDING OPTIONS FOR THE NEW
LIBRARY.
3. DIRECT STAFF TO NEGOTIATE WITH KKE ARCHITECTS TO BE
THE PROJECT ARCHITECT FOR THE LIBRARY.
MOTION CARRIED 5-0.
Mayor Klinzing stated the Library should continue to move forward with getting
information out to citizens about the new Library.
• Councilmember Dietz suggested staff analyze how to utilize the current Library site when
vacant.
Councilmember Motin stated it may be too soon to discuss the future use of the existing
Library site because it may be cost prohibitive.
6.1. Resolution to Vacate Portion of York Street.Requested by Ronald Dargisis.Public Hearing=
Case No. EV 05-12
Mr. Harlicker stated the applicant is requesting a 60 foot wide portion of Right-of-Way
(ROW) that is adjacent to his property be vacated.He stated the ROW provides public
access to Lake Orono and recommended denial of the request.Mr. Harlicker further stated
that Parks and Recreation Director Bill Maertz believe this ROW is a valuable asset on the
lake.
Mayor Klinzing opened the public hearing.
Don Beaudry,230 York Avenue-Stated if the ROW vacation is granted he would like a
condition added that no buildings can be built on it as it will block his view of the lake.
John Warnke,210 York Avenue-Stated he would like the city to keep the ROW. He stated
he didn't know the land was public property and would like to use it as a canoe access.
Mayor Klinzing closed the public hearing.
• Councilmember Motin questioned if the ROW's on Xenia and Watson Streets have been
vacated.
City Council Minutes Page 4
January 17,2006
-----------------------------
Mr. Harlicker stated they were not.
Councilmember Farber stated that in order to be consistent and not set a precedent, the city
should deny granting the ROW to the applicant like they did with the request that came
before Council on January 21,2005 (Case No. EV 05-11).
Mayor Klinzing stated it is difficult for the city to vacate a property when it would be almost
impossible to get it back in the future if it were needed. She suggested staff look at all
ROW's on Lake Orono and the Mississippi River and determine some standards for
allowing specific types of uses for public access to the waterways.
Councilmember Farber stated he didn't know the ROW was there and suggested signage be
installed.
MOVED BY COUNCILMEMBER FARBER AND SECONDED BY
COUNCILMEMBER GUMPHREY TO DENY THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST
TO VACATE A PORTION OF YORK STREET NORTH OF MAIN STREET TO
LAKE ORONO AND DIRECTED STAFF TO REVIEW THE ROWS ON LAKE
ORONO AND THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER TO DETERMINE STANDARDS FOR
PUBLIC USE. MOTION CARRIED 5-0.
6.2. Dodge Avenue Improvement Project-Public Hearing
Mr. Maurer provided a PowerPoint presentation outlining the process he followed with the
• Dodge Avenue improvement and outlining why the improvement is needed.He reviewed
the project area, existing conditions,proposed improvements,financing,and the project
timeline. He stated the project cost is estimated at$281,000 with approximately 40% being
assessed to the benefited property owners and 60% funded by the city.
Mayor Klinzing opened the public hearing.
Gary Santwire,property owner-Stated he supports the project and the amount that will be
assessable to the property owners.
Bill Morrow,Kentucky Fried Chicken-Stated he supports the project but is concerned
about the road being closed,the city taking some of his property to rebuild the road,and his
sprinkler system.
Mr.Maurer stated Dodge Avenue would not be closed. He stated the city would not be
taking any property from owners;the city would be using up the entire existing ROW.
Mayor Klinzing closed the public hearing.
MOVED BY COUNCILMEMBER MOTIN AND SECONDED BY
COUNCILMEMBER FARBER TO ADOPT RESOLUTION 06-06 ORDERING
THE IMPROVEMENT AND PREPARATION OF PLANS AND
SPECIFICATIONS IN THE MATTER OF THE DODGE AVENUE
RECONSTRUCTION IMPROVEMENT OF 2006.MOTION CARRIED 5-0.
•
City Council_\Tinutes Page 2
November 21,2003
-----------------------------
HRA WITH A TERM EXPIRATION OF DECEMBER 31, 2010;AND
ANNE SHCROEDER TO THE LIBRARY BOARD WITH A TERM
EXPIRATION OF DECEMBER 31, 2008.
3.7. SPECIAL ASSESSMENT REAPPORTIONMENTS AS OUTLINED IN
THE STAFF REPORT.
MOTION CARRIED 5-0.
4. Open Mike
No one appeared for Open Mike.
5.1. Resolution Authorizing Execution of a Tax Abatement and Business Subsidv Agreement for
Quality Label.Inc. Public Hearin
Ms. Mebelich stated Quality Label,Inc. has requested a property tax abatement in the
amount of$133,947 from the city for a pay-as-you-go Tax Rebate Financing(ITF) note
with the company receiving 100% of the annual TRF for a maximum of 10 years. She stated
a requirement of the financial assistance will be a commitment from Quality Label, Inc. for
the creation of new jobs with n 2 years.
Mayor I<Mnzing opened the public hearing.
John Jacobs and Chad Johnson, owners of Quality Label,Inc.-Introduced themselves.
Mayor KEnzing closed the public hearing.
MOVED BY COUNCILMEMBER FARBER AND SECONDED BY
COUNCILMEMBER GUMPHREY TO ADOPT RESOLUTION 05-122
AUTHORIZING EXECUTION OF A TAX ABATEMENT AND BUSINESS
SUBSIDY AGREEMENT. MOTION CARRIED 5-0.
Mayor Klinzing welcomed Quality Label,Inc. to the Elk River community.
5.2. Downtown Traffic Control
Chief Beahen stated the"No Left Turn Between 3-6 p.m." signs from north Parrish Avenue
onto Westbound Main Street have been removed. He stated enforcing the signage has been
difficult and the signs are not at the required height. He stated the Police Department
initiated heavy enforcement of the signs for a couple of weeks and that for every car pulled
over and ticketed, two to four times as many would drive by after making the illegal turn. He
stated the signs were installed due to safety concerns'With the view through the construction
fencing for the downtown revitalization project. Chief Beahen stated that due to high traffic
congestion in this area vehicles are forced to automatically slow down.
Discussion was held on other possible safety solutions.
6.1. Resolution to Vacate a Portion of Vernon Street.Requested by Bill Houlton,Public
Hearing-Case No. EV 05-11
Mr. Harlicker stated the applicant would like to vacate a portion of Right-of-Way(ROW) on
Vernon Street. He stated the applicant has a driveway easement over the ROW.
City Council Tkfinutes Page 3
November 21,2005
_____________________________
Mr. Maurer stated the Houlton Farm is subdivided in the future the c' may need to
I city
construct-a public roadway in this area.
Mayor Klinzing opened the public hearing.
Bill Houlton,representing owners of the Houlton Farm-Stated his family is establishing a
management partnership and clearing up the title to the farm property.He stated they would
like ownership of their driveway and are not comfortable with the city oN,.,nmg the ROW.
Mayor Klinzing closed the public hearing.
Councilmember Morin questioned what the hardship is to the owner. Mr.Houlton *indicated
no hardship.
MOVED BY COUNCILMEMBER DIETZ AND SECONDED BY
COUNCILMEMBER FARBER TO DENY THE EASEMENT VACATION
REQUEST BY BILL HOULTON. MOTION CARRIED 5-0.
6.2. Request by-Jimmy Raivala for Administrative Subdivision. Public Hearing-Case No.
AS 05-03
Mr. Harlicker stated the applicant is requesting an administrative subdivision. He provided
an overview of the project and the Parks and Recreation Commission's recommendation.
Mayor Klinzing opened the public hearing.There being no one to speak-to this issue,Mayor
Klinzing closed the public heating.
MOVED BY COUNCILMEMBER MOTIN AND SECONDED BY
COUNCILMEMBER FARBER TO APPROVE THE ADMINISTRATIVE
SUBDIVISION FOR JIMMY RAIVALA WITH THE FOLLOWING
CONDITIONS:
1. ALL COMMENTS OF THE CITY ENGINEER SHALL BE
ADDRESSED.
2. PARK DEDICATION FEES FOR ONE LOT SHALL BE PAID PRIOR
TO RELEASING THE SUBDIVISION FOR RECORDING.
3. SURFACE WATER MANAGEMENT FEES FOR ONE LOT SHALL BE
PAID PRIOR TO RELEASING THE SUBDIVISION FOR RECORDING.
MOTION CARRIED 5-0.
6.3. Request by NRG to Amend Conditional Use Permit
Ms. Haug stated NRG would like to amend their solid waste facility license and conditional
use permit. She reviewed the changes to both items as outlined in her staff report.
Mayor Klinzing opened the public hearing.There being no one to speak-to this issue,Mayor
Klinzing closed the public hearing.
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