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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025-01-28 WK ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP MEETING – JANUARY 28, 2025 MINUTES The Workshop Meeting of the Andover City Council was called to order by Mayor Jamie Barthel, January 28, 2025, 6:00 p.m., at the Andover City Hall, 1685 Crosstown Boulevard NW, Andover, Minnesota. Councilmembers present: Rick Engelhardt, Scott Schue, and Jonathan Shafto Councilmember absent: None Also present: City Administrator, Sarah Cotton Community Development Director, Joe Janish Director of Public Works/City Engineer, David Berkowitz City Attorney, Scott Baumgartner Others DISCUSS SLOTH SKETCH Community Development Director Janish reviewed the staff report in regard to a sketch plan for the Sloth property. Councilmember Schue asked if this had always been proposed at seven lots or if it had once been more than seven lots. Mr. Janish said the density is 4.8 units per acre and when they apply to shoreland criteria, this splits the parcels into two tiers. He noted the tier within the shoreland area equated to 7.1 units. He stated the applicant has proposed seven lots from the beginning, but they are now looking at five lots. Mr. Janish asked if the Council was okay with making the lots 3.75 feet narrower. Councilmember Schue asked if this is just for the bottom four lots. He asked why this is laid out this way if the developer is willing to make adjustments. Mr. Janish explained this is laid out the way that it is because the developer heard from the Planning and Zoning Commission and Council that the 50-foot setback from Bunker Lake Boulevard is more important than the additional width in the lots. Mayor Barthel shared while he thinks it is too many lots, it fits in with what the Council had previously said about residential development. He added he is typically a stickler when it comes to standards; however, if they make all of these lots 80 feet wide, the north lot would be very close to Bunker Lake Boulevard, making it extremely difficult for a family to live in this home. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Interviews for Commission Openings Minutes – January 28, 2025 Page 2 Councilmember Engelhardt agreed. Councilmember Shafto stated he likes the direction this plan is going as he thought the proposal of seven lots was too many. He asked if this will go back in front of the Planning and Zoning Commission as a sketch plan or a preliminary plat. Mr. Janish said he will suggest to the developers that they apply for a PUD which will then go in front of the Planning and Zoning Commission for a public hearing. Councilmember Schue said he would like them to stick to the standards that they already have in the zoning requirements; however, the deviation from those standards is not very much in this case. He added he would like to see less lots rather than more. He said he is supportive of moving this forward as proposed. Council consensus was reached to direct Staff to advise the developer to move forward with a PUD application. RURAL RESERVE PRESENTATION/DISCUSSION Mr. Janish reviewed the staff report concerning the City’s rural reserve area. Councilmember Shafto asked if the Met Council were to adopt a plan to require four units per acre, how long the City would have to get to this number. Mr. Janish explained the Imagine 2050 plan will go into place in 2026 and as they start the planning process, they will need to make sure that their formula for density hits the four units per acre requirement. He added the Met Council is also discussing putting in a checkpoint to ensure that cities are meeting the density requirement on a five-year basis. Mayor Barthel asked if school properties and wetlands are taken out of the calculation for density requirements. Mr. Janish said yes and explained the Land Use Advisory Committee will start looking at these components for what can and cannot be deducted out. Councilmember Schue asked what the repercussions are if they do not meet the required density. Mr. Janish said the Met Council would stop issuing permits. Jake Walesch and Todd Stutz with Tradition Development came forward and reviewed their proposal for a development in the rural reserve. Mayor Barthel asked if this plan were to move forward when the first homes would be built. Mr. Stutz said it would likely be 2028 as there is a lot of work that will need to be done to the land to make it buildable. Mr. Walesch added it would likely be at least a year to grade the land. Mayor Barthel said he is very impressed with the lower density housing and commercial aspects being on the outside of the development with the high density in the middle as it is nice for the Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Interviews for Commission Openings Minutes – January 28, 2025 Page 3 community that there is a transition between the high and low density. Mr. Stutz said they want to be good neighbors to the surrounding areas of this development. Mr. Walesch explained they are trying to design this development so people will look at it as an asset and they will market the homes accordingly. He reviewed the next steps for their plan, including engaging the community. Mr. Stutz showed pictures of other projects Tradition Development has done in other areas of Minnesota. He encouraged the Council to visit one of their developments to get a feel for what this one could look like. Mayor Barthel asked if they already have a purchase agreement from all three families that own the property they are discussing. Mr. Stutz said yes and explained they would not be able to move forward with this project without all three properties. He added they will need to have a conversation with the landowners to the north and the south. Mr. Janish explained the benefit of talking to the property owners to the north and south is to explain the ghost platting process. Mr. Stutz added they will be meeting with the school district in February to see how this plan fits. Mayor Barthel asked if every home in this development would be a part of the HOA. Mr. Stutz said yes and explained there would be a master association that would cover all 1,480 units and there would be separate sub-associations for the different housing types. Mayor Barthel asked if they were to add the property to the north or south at some point if these homes would be added to the HOA. Mr. Stutz said they could describe this land as additional real estate as part of a declaration so they could be added to the HOA. Councilmember Shafto asked if they would only have one neighborhood meeting or if they would have a few to make contact with the most residents possible. Mr. Stutz stated before they would come in for a concept plan application, they would want to host a neighborhood meeting and after they do some work with the Park and Recreation Commission then they would have another neighborhood meeting that would consist of their final plan. He added they are open to hosting as many neighborhood meetings as the City would like them to hold. Councilmember Shafto stated based on the scale of this project they would likely want a few meetings to engage with the neighborhood. Councilmember Shafto said he does not like the idea of the development having private clubhouses. He asked about the value that these private clubhouses would provide. Mr. Stutz explained it would be used as a gathering place for the neighborhood. He said people could use the clubhouse for a wedding or other large event, as well as having exercise facilities and aquatic Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Interviews for Commission Openings Minutes – January 28, 2025 Page 4 centers for the residents in the development to use. He noted these clubhouses are always busy at their other developments. Councilmember Schue asked if they have gotten the current property owners’ feedback on what they would like this development to look like. Mr. Stutz said yes and explained they have been working closely with the families and have been keeping them up to date on each step of the plan. Councilmember Schue shared he knows one of the families who owns part of this property, and they are very excited about this development. He noted the developers have a good reputation. He added he would like to meet with the families directly and chat with them to get their feedback. He said it is important for them to figure out what the property owners really want to do. Councilmember Engelhardt shared that based on feedback he has gotten from residents is that this kind of development does not fit what they are looking for. He said the commercial development plan seems like it was just thrown in. Mr. Janish explained he has worked with Mr. Stutz and Mr. Walesch on the commercial aspects and noted they discussed moving the commercial development to the north side of the future th extension of 157 Avenue. Mr. Walesch added all of the infrastructure in the area will be paid for by the developers and there should not be any costs to anyone else. He noted the commercial piece was designed based on previous Council direction. He said they are willing to do less commercial development as their focus is on residential development. He explained their focus for commercial would be centered around a downtown square feel with a farmers’ market or a general store. Councilmember Engelhardt added this could be a good opportunity for local small business owners. Councilmember Shafto said he likes the commercial space as it is very thoughtfully placed and fits in well. He noted a potential hurdle that they may need to overcome is getting the residents to understand the use for the rural reserve as some residents may think the rural reserve is a protected land that will not be developed. He added he likes the ideas of the public parks and open spaces and suggested highlighting these things at the neighborhood meetings. Mayor Barthel stated he would like to see the low-density housing stay on the outside of the development where other low density housing is. He said the City cares very much for the families who currently own these lots as well as the residents who live in the area. He shared his appreciation for how many outlets they will have in and out of the property. He stated he is a stickler for developers following the City’s codes and while he is willing to work with the developer on some of these things, we would still like the developers to watch the City’s codes as much as possible. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Interviews for Commission Openings Minutes – January 28, 2025 Page 5 Mr. Stutz explained when they are working on a development of this size, they are not planning out every single area on day one. He stated the first approval of the PUD, it would outline how the entire project could be developed and all of this would be disclosed on the front end. Mayor Barthel reiterated he would like the developers to follow the City’s codes as much as possible as by the time the project gets going, some of the current members of the Council may no longer be here. He added if the Met Council makes the density requirement 3.5 units per acre, he would like to see the density of the development go down. He said this would not only help the Council feel better about this project but would also help the residents feel better. Mr. Stutz noted they would also like for the project to be a little less dense. Mr. Janish explained as part of the density discussion, Mr. Stutz and Mr. Walesch both met with Met Council staff and tried to explain to them how cities function and how development occurs. He noted they will likely have to make up more density in other areas of the City. Mr. Stutz shared the City’s current standards do not work with what they are proposing for the single-family home setbacks and still meeting the density requirements. He noted if the soil conditions on the property were better than it would be easier to meet the City standards. Mayor Barthel said he understands; however, in the future, the developers may be dealing with a Council that is stricter on their standards and certain things may not be approved at that time. Mr. Stutz shared they will look to set up their first neighborhood meeting in March, then will work with the Met Council to get their feedback, then work with Staff and bring forward a concept plan to the Council. CANNABIS ORDINANCE DISCUSSION City Administrator Cotton reviewed the staff report in regard to the City’s cannabis ordinance. City Attorney Baumgartner shared when the State passed the law legalizing marijuana, it is inevitable that this will be coming to Andover. He stated they have to allow one cannabis retailer for every 12,500 residents, meaning Andover needs to have two locations. He explained they could get around this requirement if it is met County wide; however, the odds of this happening are low. He shared they do not need to have a City ordinance relating to cannabis; however, this will allow the City to regulate the cannabis industry in Andover. He presented a draft ordinance that he put together for the city of Anoka. He explained the Office of Cannabis Management will be the one who is licensing cannabis retailers to sell cannabis, and this retailer would then have to go to the City to seek registration to sell within the City. He suggested defining what cannabis businesses are allowed within the City. He added the main thing that the City can control is zoning location and the distance setbacks from schools or other areas that are heavily used by children. Mayor Barthel asked why these businesses do not have to follow the same ordinances and distance Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Interviews for Commission Openings Minutes – January 28, 2025 Page 6 requirements that cannabinoids do. Mr. Baumgartner explained that adult use marijuana is under a completely different statute. He noted that cannabinoids are also low potency and less than 0.03% hemp, as opposed to adult use marijuana which is much higher. Mayor Barthel noted they sell low potency hemp drinks at the liquor stores. He asked if these liquor stores will now be able to sell higher potency drinks with this ordinance. Mr. Baumgartner said it would depend on if the liquor stores can get a license to sell these higher potency products, just like any other cannabis retailer. Councilmember Shafto asked if a current retailer could get a cannabis license from the State and this could count towards one of the two licenses the City would need to have. Mr. Baumgartner explained there are certain criteria that have to be met when an application is submitted to the State for licensing. He said the City will need to be concerned with the location of these retailers and where they would want these businesses to be located. He added even when they pass this ordinance, they will also want to review the Zoning Code and make amendments to not allow these businesses in certain areas. Mr. Janish reviewed the current cannabinoid map. Mr. Baumgartner shared they could post a map on the City’s website that would show where these businesses are and are not allowed to be so that applicants will be aware of where they could set up shop. Councilmember Schue asked how many calls they have currently gotten from applicants interested in opening a cannabis shop in the City. Ms. Cotton said they have at least one interested party. She stated they already have a cannabinoid license. Mayor Barthel asked if a retailer could sell cannabis and cannabinoids. Mr. Baumgartner said yes. Mayor Barthel asked if the State could make their own zoning rules for these retailers. Mr. Baumgartner said they could but he is not sure. He noted the City will only be able to control what the State allows. Ms. Cotton shared the existing cannabinoid ordinances states that these retailers must be 1,000 feet from schools and 500 feet from daycares, treatment facilities, or parks. Mr. Janish added they cannot make zoning requirements so strict that there is no logical place that a cannabis retailer would be allowed. Councilmember Schue suggested matching the distance requirements to the cannabinoid ordinance for simplicity's sake. Mayor Barthel agreed. Mayor Barthel asked if the northwest corner of the SilverCrest property is within 1,000 feet from Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Interviews for Commission Openings Minutes – January 28, 2025 Page 7 the school. Mr. Janish said yes and added there is also a daycare in this area. Mr. Baumgartner shared if a school chooses to open up within 1,000 feet of a cannabis retailer this does not mean that the cannabis shop has to shut down. He asked the Council how they would like Staff to handle things if multiple applications come in at the same time. He asked if they are only going to be allowing two retailers, but they receive five applications, how they will decide who gets to move forward. He said they could use a lottery system to decide who gets to open the stores, or a criteria ranking system. He explained each criteria category would be assigned a score to determine who has the highest rating based on these criteria. Mayor Barthel asked if the criteria ranking system would take into account someone who is already a business owner in Andover. Mr. Baumgartner said there may be a few existing business owners who are interested in opening a cannabis retailer; however, a majority likely will not be. Mayor Barthel said he would want to give preference to existing Andover business owners. Councilmember Schue agreed. Ms. Cotton asked about hours of operation for these cannabis retailers. She shared the current cannabinoid retailers are allowed to operate between 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. every day of the week. Councilmember Schue said he likes Anoka’s hours of operation which is 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Ms. Cotton shared her concerns with regulating this in the event there is a retailer that sells both cannabinoids and cannabis. Mayor Barthel noted if they are going to be giving preferential treatment to an existing Andover business owner then regulating this would be very difficult. Councilmember Schue asked how they decided the hours of operation for the cannabinoid retailers. Mayor Barthel said they matched them to the liquor store hours. Mr. Baumgartner asked if the benefit of restricting the hours of operation is worth the difficulty it could cause with enforcement. Councilmember Shafto said he is not a fan of putting in a regulation that they cannot enforced as it gives people the license to break the law. He suggested matching the hours to the cannabinoid hours. Councilmember Engelhardt asked if the buildings along Hanson Boulevard between the Community Center and the middle school would be able to have a cannabis business. Mr. Janish said no as they are too close to the school and the Community Center. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Interviews for Commission Openings Minutes – January 28, 2025 Page 8 Councilmember Shafto asked what areas the retailers would be allowed in. Mr. Janish said they would be allowed in the Hughes Industrial Park or by Target or Walmart. Councilmember Engelhardt asked how this will impact the services from the Anoka Sheriff’s Office. Mr. Baumgartner said it will not impact the current service with the Sheriff’s Office. He explained they will be required to do compliance checks just like they have to do with liquor and tobacco. He added the Sheriff’s Office has not mentioned anything about this being an additional service within the contract. Council consensus was reached to direct Staff to match the distance requirements to the cannabinoid ordinance, to use the criteria ranking system to decide which applicants get the two licenses, and to match the hours of operation to the cannabinoid hours. DISCUSS OPTIONS FOR FILLING THE VACANT CITY COUNCIL SEAT Ms. Cotton reviewed the staff report concerning filling the vacant Council seat. Mr. Baumgartner shared since there is less than two years remaining on the term for the vacant seat, the Council can appoint someone to the seat rather than hold a special election. He added they could also refer back to the results of the general election and appoint the next highest receiver of votes who was not elected. He shared he has been through the appointment process many times with Anoka. Mayor Barthel asked how much a special election would cost the City. Ms. Cotton said it would range from $30,000 to $40,000. Councilmember Schue said he does not think a special election is a financially smart move. He added since there was just a general election, people are likely tired of voting. He noted there is merit in the fact that some of the applicants will likely be those who had run for Council before and have already received votes. He presented a matrix that he came up with to aid in interviewing applicants. Councilmember Shafto shared he is also concerned with the cost of a special election; however, he would like to pursue this option if it were more affordable, and it would give the residents a chance to vote on their new Councilmember. He agreed with putting together an appointment process to fill the vacancy. Councilmember Engelhardt agreed. Councilmember Shafto stated he likes the idea of the Council interviewing the applicants and asking each one the same four questions. Mayor Barthel asked if they have to interview every applicant that applies. Ms. Cotton shared they could request applicants to submit a letter of interest which could help determine who they would Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Interviews for Commission Openings Minutes – January 28, 2025 Page 9 want to invite in for an interview. Councilmember Schue noted they just completed the Commission interviews and during that process, each applicant was only given 15 minutes to talk to the Council. He said 15 minutes for Councilmember interviews would not be enough. He added that there may be applicants that they can determine right away would not be a good fit for the Council; however, every applicant could also be strong enough that they would want to interview. Mr. Baumgartner stated they can ask some of the matrix questions on the application to get this kind of information up front. He asked if they would like to discuss applicant questions this evening or if they would like to think of some questions and send them via email. Mayor Barthel said emailing the questions later works. Ms. Cotton asked what the Council’s goal is for the timeline to have this seat filled. Councilmember Shafto suggested appointing the new Councilmember on March 4, 2025. Mayor Barthel suggested they interview candidates and appoint one the same night. Mr. Baumgartner noted that applicants may want their family to be present if they are chosen to be appointed to the Council. Councilmember Schue asked if they could schedule a Special Meeting to hold these interviews like they did for the Commission interviews. Mr. Baumgartner said they could do this; however, for transparency purposes it would be best to have the meeting in the Council Chambers and recorded for the public to be able to see. Councilmember Shafto asked if the Anoka Councilmembers gave their rationale for why they chose a certain applicant before they made an appointment. Mr. Baumgarter shared they made a motion and gave their rationale, then the motion was seconded. Ms. Cotton suggested interviewing and making a selection on a new Councilmember in the same evening but waiting until the next Council meeting for the new Councilmember to take their seat, this way they can invite their family to the meeting, and it also gives them time to review the agenda for the meeting. Mr. Baumgardner recommended scheduling a Workshop before the Council meeting on February th 18 for the Council to discuss who they would like to interview. Council consensus was reached to direct Staff to put together an appointment process to fill the th vacant Council seat and schedule the interviews for March 4 after making a decision of who they th would like to interview on February 18. DISCUSS POTENTIAL ELDORADO STREET RIGHT OF WAY VACATION Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Interviews for Commission Openings Minutes – January 28, 2025 Page 10 Director of Public Works/City Engineer Berkowitz reviewed the staff report concerning vacating the right-of-way on Eldorado Street. Mr. Janish shared if they were to combine this area into one lot the Met Council will look at this and determine that they are not meeting the density requirements. He noted they will need to do some kind of easement to bring this down to the 2.4 units per acre. Mr. Berkowitz said this will be a very desirable lot and the property owner is not looking to be a developer with this lot. He added it will likely cost the property owners $60,000 to make it a buildable lot. Council consensus was reached to direct Staff to move forward with the right-of-way vacation on Eldorado Street. DISCUSS PROPOSED CROSSTOWN BOULEVARD NW TRAIL/XEON STREET TO PRAIRIE ROAD/23-12A Mr. Berkowitz reviewed the staff report in regard to the Crosstown Trail from Xeon Street to Prairie Road. Mayor Barthel asked what is in the trail fund budget. Mr. Berkowitz said there is $800,000 in the trail fund. He said they are under budget construction wise; however, they will still have to pay for the design which would put them over budget. Councilmember Schue noted past Councils have pushed this project down the road due to the cost. He asked if there were any other reasons that this has not been addressed. Mr. Berkowitz shared other trails have taken priority over this one. He added they also needed to get easement acquisition up the east side of Crosstown Boulevard and they ran into a roadblock that stopped this project. Councilmember Shafto asked if the 10% contingency in the cost estimate is just a buffer. Mr. Berkowitz shared they like to come in on the high end with estimates so that the actual project will not come back higher than the estimate. He added the main unknown with this project is the cost to relocate the railroad horns. Councilmember Shafto asked if this project is something that they are eventually going to want to do or need to have done. He said there are a lot of families who are moving in on this side of the railroad; this area could become a safety issue. He added the longer they put this project off, the more expensive it will get. Mayor Barthel said he is supportive of moving forward to get plans and specifications for this project as he knows the Park and Recreation Commission is interested in this trail segment. Councilmember Shafto said he is supportive of moving forward with this project as it is likely they will have to do it eventually from a safety perspective. He noted a lot of people bike in this area, Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Interviews for Commission Openings Minutes – January 28, 2025 Page 11 and he does not see this decreasing in the future. Council consensus was reached to direct Staff to move this project forward to get plans and specifications. DISCUSS MDH LEAD AND COPPER TESTING REQUIREMENTS FOR THE CITY’S MUNICIPAL WATER SYSTEM Mr. Berkowitz reviewed the staff report concerning the Minnesota Department of Health lead and copper testing requirement in the City’s water system. He shared they would like to offer a credit to resident’s utility bills for bringing in water samples. Council consensus was reached to direct Staff to move forward with issuing credits to resident’s water bills who bring in water for sampling. CONDUIT DEBT POLICY DISCUSSION Ms. Cotton reviewed the staff report in regard to creating a formal conduit debt policy. She noted that Councilmembers Schue and Shafto did not receive the staff packet and therefore have not had time to review the draft policy. Councilmember Shafto asked how they would govern this if they did not adopt a policy. Ms. Cotton said they would just manage this on a case-by-case basis with individual contracts. She added the Council may want to stray from the policy, which they have the authority to do so. Councilmember Shafto said he would be in favor of creating a formalized policy; however, he would like the opportunity to further review the draft policy. Councilmember Schue shared concerns with how this would impact the pocketbook of the City. Ms. Cotton said there would be no impact to the City, this would just be formalizing a process that is already in place. th Ms. Cotton said she can put this item on the Consent Agenda at the February 4 Council meeting. Council consensus was reached to direct Staff to move forward with the draft policy for conduit debt. Councilmembers Schue and Shafto will review the draft policy separately and let Ms. Cotton know if they have any questions or concerns with the draft policy. OTHER TOPICS None. ADJOURNMENT Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Interviews for Commission Openings Minutes – January 28, 2025 Page 12 Motion by Schue, Seconded by Shafto, to adjourn. Motion carried unanimously. The workshop meeting adjourned at 9:17 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Ava Major, Recording Secretary