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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08.14.23August 10, 2023 Page 1 of 3 Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, the Planning Commission for the City of St. Joseph met On Monday, August 1411, 2023, at 6:00 PM. in the St. Joseph City Hall opening with the Pledge of Allegiance. Planning Commission Members Present: Commissioners, Keith Louwagie, Bob Loso, Gina Dullinger, Mark Thompson, Jon Hazen, Carmie Mick Staff Present: Nate Keller, Community Development Director Public Comments: None. Approval of the Agenda: Hazen made a motion to approve the agenda. The motion was seconded by Louwagie and passed unanimously by those present. Approval of the Minutes: Hazen made a motion to approve the minutes of June 12t", 2023. The motion was seconded by Thompson and passed unanimously by those present. New Business: a. Public Hearing - Conditional Use Permit — KAB Land, LLC KAB Land, LLC has submitted a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) for Special Event Facility on the property located at 28617 Jade Rd. This property is in the Rural Residential District (RRD). City Council approved a Zoning Ordinance Amendment at their May 5th, 2023, meeting which allowed a Special Event Facility in the RRD. Keller provided details on the topography of the property, size of buildings proposed, proposed parking areas, and details of the interior layout of the facility. Keller explained the Planning Commission may add reasonable conditions to the Conditional Use Permit. Those conditions can be related to location of access points, fencing, screening,, restrictions on signs, height/size of buildings, operation hours, noise levels, and other conditions related to protecting public, interest. Staff are recommending a Development Agreement which would include extending water and sewer to the property and potentially the addition of a right turn lane. The Planning Commission is asked to provide recommendation to City Council by adopting a Finding of Fact for the;,Conditional Use Permit. The City Council acts as the final authority on all the CUP's. The 60- day land use rule does apply; Council would need to act either through approval or denial by September 1gt" unless written extension is provided to the applicants stating the reason for the extension. Dullinger asked if the event center will accommodate roughly 300 occupants. Ken Bellicot, 2244 Orchid Loop South, St. Cloud, Applicant. Bellicot shared an occupancy of 300 would be on the high end. Dullinger asked if it's possible to hold more than one event at a time. Bellicot responded there is no intent to hold more than one event at a time. The Commission inquired about water/sewer that will be connected to the accessory shed, the purpose and use of the accessory shed as well as how the number of parking spots were determined. Bellicot shared the accessory shed will be used to house trailers, skid loader, and other equipment used to maintain the facility. Water will be ran to the building for use of a power washer and possibly a % bath. Bellicot informed the Commission parking spaces were determined based on code requirements and they have added parking above code requirement. Hazen inquired about the construction timeline of the special event center. Bellicot responded, his hope is to get the dirt work done this fall. That would allow construction to begin in April. He expects the project to take 7-8 months from start to finish and for operations to begin fall of 2024. August 10, 2023 Page 2 of 3 Commission and Staff discussed the site plan, development agreement and hours of operation. Noting the applicants have hours of operation listed from 6AM —1AM. Bellicot explained the wedding contracts will end at 11:59PM giving event attendees time to exit. Kristyn Farrell, 2244 Orchid Loop South, St. Cloud, Applicant: Farrell spoke to the Commission regarding hours of operation. She noted the 6AM time would be for brides and the wedding party to have their hair and makeup done. Dullinger opened the Public Hearing at 6:35PM. Ken Bellicot, 2244 Orchid Loop South, St. Cloud, Applicant: Bellicot noted the patio that extends to the northeast corner of the building is no longer part of the plan. They are interested in moving the parking to a higher elevation on the property. Bellicot would like to see the water and sewer line extend to just the corner of the facility and prefers not to have to extend utilities to the driveway entrance. He feels that route is less disruptive to the land versus going down Jade Road and up the driveway. Bellicot noted he is working with Staff to look at the verbiage in the Developer's Agreement (DA) to allow simple voice amplification during outdoor ceremonies. Bellicot described the layout of the special event facility including outdoor spaces and how they will be utilized. Staff and Commission discussed the definition of amplified sound according to the City's noise ordinance. Carmie Mick, Jade Road, property owner adjacent to proposed Special Event Facility: Mick shared concerns regarding the Special Event Facility which included noise, hours of operation, light pollution and traffic control. Gary Ganje, Executive Director of Operations for St. Cloud School District 742 provided the following written statement, his concerns were read by Keller: • There is an elevation that creates a blind approach at the school entrance, the traffic count and congestion at the intersection of County Road 121 and Jade Road was identified as a concern in the safe routes to school study. • Increased traffic would magnify those identified concerns. County Road 121 is not posted as a school zone, allowing traffic to progress at highway speeds. Any road improvements on Jade Road would be disruptive if carried out during the school year. Events occurring at the proposed site during school hours would increase traffic volume on Jade Road. Dullinger closed the Public Hearing at 7:00PM. The Commission discussed: Limiting hours of operation. Planting vegetation to reduce sound. Limiting types of events and number of guests. Light pollution. arranged so sound could carry toward the highway. The possibility of the site plan being re Bellicot explained the layout and decision as to why the outdoor ceremony site is proposed where it is. He also feels the current site plan is the most respectful place for the building as to not disturb the land too much. Bellicot noted with the current site plan, noise is directed more towards the school. They are considering putting a noise barrier on top of the north side of the berm to reduce noise. August 141h, 2023 Page 3 of 3 Dullinger made a motion to table Adopt a Finding of Fact for the Conditional Use Permit; requesting the applicant to provide elevation drawings of the height of the facility, depiction of sound barrier/wall on north side, revised patio depictions to clarify patio size, and graphics showing outdoor space. The Planning Commission will meet again on August 281h, 2023, at 6:OOPM to review the new information. The motion was seconded by Hazen. (1:25) Aye: Dullinger, Thompson, Hazen, Mick, Louwagie Motion Prevails: 5-1 Nay: Loso b. Public Hearing — Variance — KAB Land LLC Keller shared the Variance Request should be tabled until the Conditional Use Permit is acted upon. Dullinger made a motion to table Adopt a Finding of Fact for the Variance Request until the Planning Commission meets August 28th, 2023, at 6:OOPM and the Conditional Use Permit is acted upon. The action also tables the Public Hearing for the variance. The motion was seconded by Mick. Aye: Dullinger, Thompson, Hazen, Mick, Louwagie Motion Prevails: 5-1 Nay: Loso c. Murals Keller shared the CVB is looking for ways to increase art and tourism in the community. Staff and the CVB are looking at potential grants through the Central MN Art Board to help support mural painting and other art related projects. Staff would like the Planning Commissions input on murals and potentially a code Amendment as there is no code on murals currently. The Commission and staff discussed adding language to the current sign ordinance versus creating a public art ordinance. The Commission directed Staff to continue looking at creating a public art ordinance as it would allow for expansion in the future. d. Landscape requirements in Industrial Zoned property Keller informed the Commission that Staff has received concerns regarding landscape requirements for trees/shrub plantings in Industrially zoned properties. Current language requires trees and shrubs to be planted based on square footage of the building. Staff is asking the Commission to discuss, evaluate, and potentially amend the ordinance to create more flexibility. The Commission was open to Staff providing information on the requirements other communities have with regard to landscape requirements in their Industrially zoned areas. Old Business: None Other Business: None Ad'ourn: Dullinger moved to adjourn the meeting at 7:45PM. The motion was seconded by Mick and the motion carried. Minutes approved by: 2&--- Nate Keller Community Development Director