##VIDEO ID:0BUkQpjpbAM## good evening call to order the regular meeting of the Planning Commission December 5th 2024 you have the roll call Pearson here willenbring is absent Campbell is also absent moli here di here Hagen here Wilson here thank you with Pledge of Allegiance please I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America to the Republic for it stands one nation under indivisible liberty and justice for all okay we have approval of the agenda is there any you need to add to the agenda I take it as no uh so um somebody move to approve the agenda make a motion approve tonight's agenda second second second thank you all those in favor I any opposed approval agenda of the agenda approval of minutes we have two before us October 3rd and November 7th October 3rd 1st any changes from anyone no uh motion to accept as presented make a motion to approve the October 3rd minutes a second all those in favor I any opposed Iain I wasn't here I will too uh November 7th minutes do anyone have any changes for those for that if not may I have a motion to approve as presented Alin I guess I'll make a motion to approve as agenda as presented uh you were here so if You' second it please second sorry all those in favor I I any opposed uh motion the motion to approve as presented is accepted next is the open Forum this is an opportunity for anyone in the audience to present something that is not on the agenda already so if anyone cares to voice voice an opinion or a point please come forward open the open Forum uh see no one moving to the front I'll close the Forum then and we'll go on to uh old business of which there is none new business a public hearing for zop 4066 Goodwin Avenue North conditional use permit for the home occupation of a dental Workshop Luke thank you chair so on the screen we'll have it showed up here in just a moment whoops let me switch bear with me just a moment while I uh get things straightened out there so on the screen there is the property in question so the address is 4066 goodwi Avenue it's directly across from Goodwin Park and this general area is located north of 40th Street the zoning of the site is R1 so that is our very low density residential district where home occupations are allowed through the initial use permit process or cup process so the applicant is seeking formal approval to uh continue operating a dental Workshop which specializes in making crowns and Dentures so here's a closer look at the site in question the business operations are contained within the applicant's garage and the applicant is the property owner in this instance uh the applicant describes the use as being similar in intensity and in nature to like a wood shop or jewelry repair business so equipment used for the business includes polishing machines suction units and molds for polymer impression devices uh reportedly there are no uh customer visits on site and there are no there are no non-standard deliveries for the use so no no specialty deliveries in other words so the applicant essentially picks up and drops off the Dental products to dental offices so conditional use permits are subject to certain review criteria that's found in the city's ordinance and here's just a quick summary of the review criteria that the city must use when evaluating these requests so there's a one set and then I'll I'll follow up with a a more specific set of criteria so compliance with the city's comprehensive plan compatibility of the use with the zoning District No nuisance effects generated no traffic congestion or parking issues created the use must be adequately served by public services no excessive costs incurred for public services and minimal impacts to the environment and natural features and then specifically for home occupations and when we say that with or in other words it's like a home business essentially uh the business must be conducted by a family member residing on the property up to one non-family member may also be employed by the use the operations must occur fully within the home or an accessory structure in this case it's the garage the uh use cannot create noticeable externalities hours of operation shall be specified in the conditional use permit and then finally if the use requires a license or outside approval it will essentially be tied to the conditional use permit and I do want to address this uh specific criteria so per the city attorney's office the applicant is solely responsible for ensuring that they have received any applicable uh state or federal approvals or licenses to operate the use that's um again the responsibility of the applicant it's not the responsibility of the city um so staff is recommending a condition of approval that addresses this issue so with all that said staff finds that the conditional use permit review criteria of the ordinance has been satisfied as detailed in the staff report on file and staff recommends approval of the requests subject to the following four conditions and I'll read those off number one hours of operation for the use shall be from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Sunday through Saturday no more than one outside worker shall be employed for the use number three all signage for the use shall comply with the city's regulations and number four if applicable and again I want to emphasize that if applicable the applicant shall obtain and maintain any required approvals or licenses from state or federal government agencies to operate the use so as a reminder this is a public hearing the applicant is here if you have questions otherwise I am available if you have questions thank you thank you I do have one question for you item number one uh of your list hours of operation from 9 to 5 why since it's a very low noise low observable occupation why would we limit it to five o'clock that all was asked for that's right just in my conversations with the applicant those were the general business hours now we if the commission would like to adjust those or the applicant would like to adjust those it's certainly at the discretion of the commission to make updates I'm just I'm just questioning why the the 5m limitation at that point but if the applicant is okay with it that's perfectly fine anyone else have any questions I I do um uh chair um Luke is there a um a limitation on how many customers could be served at the same time and the home acation mhm so the city's ordinance does not specify how many customer visits are um are are limited and in this instance the the applicant is uh uh states that there there are no customer visits uh the applicant goes to the dental offices picks up the products works on them in the garage and then returns U those products back to the dental office uh as a followup I think one one of the condition is that uh they should only one outside employees working for them right correct how internet if the the the the property owner or the the business owner has people that live with them right are they excluded from that condition so if the way you phrased it was there was one nonf family member yeah right that would by language say family members would be allowed at that point exactly but this is such a specialized operation um you know with uh uh the the the qualifications that you need to operate or this type of business um I I guess I don't want to speak for the applicant but uh it's likely this this is just a onep person operation okay thank you anyone else have questions no I'd like to offer the applicant opportunity to come forward if he wishes otherwise we'll just proceed okay any final comments from anybody on the commission no no I look for a mo for the motion then um chair sir just reminder this is a public hearing so we want to open up for any comments as well okay open a public hearing on this issue anyone wishing to make comment please come forward I'm Robert Betts uh I live at 444 next door uh we've been there since 1977 and we've had great luck with Neighbors in the in the past like most people uh at a certain point I decided my garage was not big enough and you always want more room and uh so I applied for a permit from the city and at that time uh the requirement was through my shock that I had to basically since my h garage is attached the requirement is that you have to dig another Foundation it's like putting a basement under your garage so I had to go down six feet and uh put her foundation put put it in black and and uh the other requirement was that I had to be 20t off the line well since then that requir has been CH been changed but uh so I wish I knew then because I could have had a bigger garage but anyhow uh reason why I bring that up is uh at 4066 uh the garage was also made bigger and supposedly the city gave a variance so that garage could be 4 foot from the property line so uh right now uh we're experiencing noise from this operation and uh I I could tell when he gets a big order because he's working out there late at night even you know 10 11 o'clock at night and uh I don't know what's making the noise I I I imagine there's some kind of consolidation type unit or or something like that to mix the chemicals and consolidate the mixture so we're not too happy with it but we haven't said anything but now it's it's come to this and I'm worried that this is going to become even a bigger operation and uh you know we have to live next to it so uh there's also a vent on the garage that vents out the chemical fumes that I don't know what they are but I don't know if you've looked into any of this but uh that's kind of where we're at so you'd be in favor of the 5m limitation then I take it which is in is in there at this moment if if it's going to continue yes but uh I I guess you know we're we're not too happy with the noise so that's what I wanted to bring up thank you there anyone else who wishes to come forward for the public hearing part hi my name is Mike Marone and I live right across the street from 4066 our driveways are basically you know straight across from each other our houses are straight across from each other we have an office upstairs uh that we look out over our driveway and I can see everything that goes on out there all the time because we're always in the office okay we've lived there for 38 years um I honestly if it wouldn't be that Z leaves at 9:00 typically every morning I think and I'm assuming this but I think to take a package out and he comes home with the Starbucks Coffee almost every day you know to me he's just going out and get a cup of coffee but I think he's taking some product out but it wouldn't be for that I wouldn't have any idea that he's even got a business in there we never hear any noise I don't I don't know about the venting if that's even true or not but there's absolutely no negative issue about them about him having that business over there in I from my perspective anyway and like I say we're there all the time we're retired so and we see and hear going on all the time the other two other things I'd like to say or one other thing like to say then I have a question uh like I say we've lived there for 38 years okay and I can't remember how long Z's been there there but it's probably been four or five years now but by far in the 38 years that we've been there they've been the very best neighbors we've ever had okay as far as you know taking care of their kids taking care of their yards doing the kind of things that they need to do like normal citizens so they contribute to the community very well I don't see any negative impact whatsoever on what he's doing out of his garage okay that being said uh I have a question you know all these people nowadays that are working from home be it computers or being at other things uh I assume that a lot of those don't need conditional use permits is that only for products that are made in in a facility or in a garage or something or do you have conditional use permits for anybody that works out a home on a computer I'd like to know where the limits are for this I'll have to pass that question to Luke as the expert on the requirements good question so apologize I have to address the commission um so uh the the city's ordinance it really is intended to review home occupations when there's externalities in in this case specialized equipment uh but uh other things can trigger a home occupation permit such as customer visits non-standard deliveries um uh noise or other externalities are produced we're trying to better Define that we have a code update project that the commission is aware of um we're trying to better get a handle of that but just um for most folks who do work at home you know think of like a a graphic designer or someone who's just on the computer that that does not rise to the level of a home occupation it's when it um operations may have an impact on on neighboring property is when we were would require a permit and I can understand that and we we would all want to see that naturally uh but like I say again in this case you know we're there all the time we see it summer winter all that and there's AB like I said I wouldn't even knowbody had a business over there there's just no sign of it other than going out for a cup of coffee every morning so okay thank you thank you very much is there anyone else to come forward uh I will ask you to limit it to have you said this said it before if you're just restating it that I I just don't want to have to put up with the noise at any time of the day you mentioned five o'clock so I come up you're I'm assuming you're the applicant I am yeah okay so I'm Z cha I reside at the address 4066 um yeah I'm not sure uh how we even got to where we are now um I thought when I moved into this neighborhood it was going to be my last place that I will reside at and I really enjoy living there um with the neighbors and everything everybody's been really nice and cool and uh sharing details about the neighbors uh whatnot and you know like I said I don't know how this got off on the wrong foot and as far as like the noise go like I said if you were just stand outside the house you couldn't even hear I mean if you could if you put your ear up against my garage okay maybe you might be able to hear something but other than that I I I don't know actually where this noise is coming from the vent as far the as far as the vent in the uh in the garage is just to vent out air to control the climate inside I'm not sure where um he get all this film from um but I assure you there's not nothing going on in there and like I said I've always been kind to the neighbors we've always made food and meals and we've always handed out including to everyone around us you know including our neighbor right next to us you know um like I said I've never had any issue um sometimes you know neighbors do kind of come out and lash at lash out at us and the kids and I don't understand why I just tell everybody just ignore it you know don't feed into it um and like I said we doing our best to not um escalate this any F further like I said I don't know where um where where how how we ended up in this situation I mean it was just because of a disagreement we had um did I really truly um violate any ordinance or laws or anything like that I as far as I know I'm pretty obedient to ordinance and laws so it's really confusing to me why um this matter has to be brought up so that's just where I stand now thank you thank you very much can ask you a question sir yes how long youve been working in the the business in your garage oh probably a couple years couple years is your garage finished just the one just the one area yeah the the stall the one stall the stall not the whole garage no okay so is it separated between the two then it is yes okay how did it come to you to have to get a permit or to get the ordinance to do how did it come to your attention that that you're coming through here to get a conditional use permit well I was notified through the city okay yeah all right thank you thank you very much bring back to the uh is is there anyone else who wishes to bring come forward I have a question though you have a question for who yeah um for the applicant should I wait for the applicant yeah I just got a quick one um I live two houses down from uh 46 6 and my kids I just moved there like 4 years ago and uh first time home buyer he is a old friend of my brothers and uh just realized that and then my kids go over and play with these kids a lot and when I have trouble with like I need a lawnmower issue snowblower any questions that I have I go over to him because I Look to Him like a big brother he knows more every time I go over I'll sit at the door for like 5 minutes I'll call him see what he's doing and his kids will come to the door and be like oh where's your dad oh he's working in the garage and I can't even hear nothing I'm talking about nothing so you know that's the only just want to add that little comment there about the noise and I I didn't even know he had a business until maybe half six months down the road and I was like what do you do in your garage he goes well I work and I'm like well I would even know that if you didn't even tell me cuz I didn't I don't hear nothing and when it he's done working during the summer he has garages open he fixes cars and I wouldn't even know that there's a shop there cuz it looks just like a garage so thank you yeah you had a question uh yes either for either Luke or the applicant So based on how um the purpose statement is sort of phrased so he has been operating before coming to se seek for this right is it is it for lack of knowing that he need to do this or sort of like let me start operating until I get C situation I I believe it it's um the applicant did not know the regulations there are many um many Property Owners operating home businesses they simply don't know that they need to get a permit this is something I've uh experienced both here at Oakdale and in in a previous community that I worked with but I mean the goal for the city is always to bring help bring the the property and the use into compliance with zoning regulations if I might comment uh the applicant's letter addresses that question he was not aware of the requirement prior to it bring brought to his attention of the city yeah and I get it um I do appreciate it because you know the C is we want compliance not punishing people right I get it it's customer service but again this is this is a health issue sort of uh working people's uh sort of Dental issues or I think it's bigger than what I am reading right now here so has he contact the State at all is he okay with the state so my understanding is and I'm by no means an expert in this area because it gets very complicated if you're talking about what what is required to have approval or licenses through uh government agencies such as the f da um you know that's fully on the the uh applicant to ensure that he does that um and again the city attorney's office was their direction is that that that's fully on the applicant to ensure that they do it's it's no liability to the city similar to like uh someone who's operating a barber shop out of their garage they it's it's on them to ensure that they get a license through the cosmetology um State cosmetology board oh that's good to know because I that's where I'm going with this I just sort of kind of worry that we might be talking about something either appr or approval something that may have larger implication with the state if it's on them with the state I'm I'm good I'm good yeah it doesn't involve the city anyone else have questions okay I close the uh public hearing bring it back again if there's any questions otherwise I'll ask for a motion I'll make a motion to approve the resolution for the conditional use permit I had 4066 good one Avenue second all those in favor I I I any opposed thank you very much motion is passed uh next is a public hearing on the Larson family real estate lllp and the United properties 3 mation planned unit development amendment to allow an additional pylon sign at $34.90 Hayward Avenue North Luke thank you chair so the location of this site it's on the Forefront technology and office campus which is located in the Northeast quadrant of Interstate 694 and 34 Street which is also referred to as County Road 14 so the proposed pylon sign would be located on the property addressed 3490 hey W Avenue so that is the superior third-party Logistics site so that's a warehousing and distribution business the Zoning for this area is 3M imation planned unit development or PUD which was established back in 1997 for the campus and just a little bit of information on the Pud uh PUD zoning is an alternative to Conventional zoning and it allows greater flexibility for development as a way to promote Innovation and efficiency so the purpose of the request here is that the applicant is seeking flexibility from these City's zoning regulations to establish a 50ft tall pylon sign containing two sign faces each sign face would be 350 square ft so the requested signage exceeds the city's uh standards for pylon signage so by code you're only allowed a pylon sign to be 30 feet tall and each pH can only have up to 150 square ft also pylon signs are only allowed on commercially commercially zon property and the site is not uh Zone commercial however the Pud zoning enables a great deal of flexibility provided that there's some type of public benefit that is derived from the flexibility provided so here is a look at the signage across the Forefront campus uh so for reference the campus is approximately 120 Acres there are 13 existing signs throughout the Forefront area including one pylon off uh in 34th Street here near the um soon to be open Aldi um and again this request is to allow for an additional pylon sign on the west side of the campus uh so that it has a it utilizes visibility from Interstate 694 the applicant states that additional signage will help brand the Forefront campus and here's a look at the proposed sign again it's 50 ft tall in height and would contain two sign faces each sign face is 350 square ft now with all that said uh staff finds that the additional pylon sign is acceptable given that it will be placed away from existing signage on the Forefront campus in a manner that prevents signage clutter the design elements appear consistent with the existing signage throughout the this area and additionally the materials appear to be of high quality uh just a reminder here that if the Pud amendment is approved the applicant still has to seek a building permit for before they install the sign so the Minnesota DOT Department of Transportation they also reviewed and commented on this request they only noted that any illumination for the sign should be kept to a reasonable level so it doesn't distract drivers on the interstate uh with that all said staff recommends approval of this PUD Amendment and just a reminder this is a public hearing as well and the applicant is here in attendance if you have questions and I'd be happy to answer any questions thank you okay anyone have any questions of Luke before open public hearing no I do uh Luke uh chair uh Luke is there a a possibility for the sign at some point in the future to turn into a digital sign sort of changing messages within seconds if the applicant would want to convert the signage from static to dynamic or electronic they would have to come back to the Planning Commission and city council for a conditional use permit that's how we process the the dynamic signage thank you and that would also have to get passed by do because it's so it's on their property or right away I believe too any other questions um would the applicant care to make any comment first okay I open the public hearing if there's anyone in presence which there isn't uh would like to come forward please do otherwise I will close the public hearing seeing none I close the public hearing bring it back if there's any further questions or discussion from the commission no I don't have any okay then I ask for a motion motion so moved so moov Sor so moved any second please second second all those in favor say I I I any opposed see none the motion is passed I thank you very much uh done with a new business onto staffle aison update just a couple updates quick updates here so I do not expect that we will have a January Planning Commission meeting we didn't receive any land use applications by our submittal deadline so I think we'll have a a month off there and uh the other thing is just wishing you a good holiday season thank Youk thank you any updates from Commissioners no okay Council Y is on Jake Inger brickson yeah this will be my last meeting uh here as your liaison uh my term expires January 6th uh I do want to just kind of I'll have a lot more to say at my last meeting which is next Tuesday but uh I do want to thank our past city planner Emily shivley our current uh city planner Luke and uh also Andy gits laugh it's been an absolute pleasure to work with you guys we're lucky to have you um and I also want to thank all Commissioners past and present um for serving Oakdale uh you've been a big help to the council um and uh I don't think this is the end of my political career but we'll save that for another day so um to be continued to be continued so thank you guys very much um it has been a pleasure and uh I have no idea who your leaon is going to be so don't ask thank you thank Youk uh that finishes the agenda so I look for a motion to adjourn motion to ad Jour second all those in favor hi I any opposed thank you very much meeting is closed see you guys thanks me