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Home My WebLink About2022-08-11 Public Hearing Items Distributed by Applicant 8/11/22,4:07 PM (Oak Park Heights Condominiums)Ben S.@mentioned you in Who Says You Can't Go(Back)Home?PR Update! From. notifications@3.basecamp.com, To: Jaimecpa@aol.com, Subject: (Oak Park Heights Condominiums)Ben S. @mentioned you in Who Says You Can't Go(Back) Home? PR Update! Date: Thu,Aug 11, 2022 1:37 pm Oak Park Heights Condominiums Ben S. @mentioned you in Who Says You Can't Go (Back) Home? PR Update! ... Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal Commercial Real Estate 36 condos planned for Oak Park Heights, just south of Stillwater Oak Park Heights Condominiums Media Monitoring • Download MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL BUSINESS JOURNAL ,00 ie a III III z �i Ii t ,b gy jj111111 1111 1 elmftro. .'1�i11li(I+i�i - Developer Jaime Junker has proposed a two-building condominium complex with 36 units in Oak Park Heights.This is a rendering of one of the buildings. CEDAR CORP. By Kelly Busche Reporter/Broadcaster, Minneapolis/ St. Paul Business Journal Aug 8,2022 Oak Park Heights Condominiums Media Monitoring • Download "Oak Park Heights, a community just south of Stillwater, may land a new development with 36 condo units. https://mail.aol.com/webmail-std/en-us/PrintMessage 1/4 8/11/22,4:07 PM (Oak Park Heights Condominiums)Ben S. @mentioned you in Who Says You Can't Go(Back)Home?PR Update! Developer Jaime Junker has proposed a two-building condominium complex with underground parking for the community of nearly 5,000 people. The city's Planning Commission will review development plans and related land density changes during its meeting on Thursday. Junker is currently a hay and cattle farmer in Wisconsin as well as a certified public accountant and financial planner. He's branching into development as he ages out of farming. He chose Oak Park Heights for the project because he grew up there, and he plans to live in the development with his wife once work is complete, he said. "We're not a traditional developer," Junker said. "But we have owned the property ... for a long period of time." The project, called Walk-a-Bout, is located at 5676 Oakgreen Ave. N. The site is near a number of trails that connect to the city's trail network. This will help attract health- conscious residents, a news release said. The project will have one-, two- and three-bedroom units, all with dens. Units will range in size from 1 ,000 square feet to 2,200 square feet. They'll be priced from $400,000 up into the $600,000s, Junker said. Junker expects there to be demand for the condos – and so do consultants working on his behalf. Consultants anticipate all units to sell within 120 days of project completion. Pending approval, crews could break ground next spring and finish work in one year, the release said. Menomonie, W.I.-based Cedar Corp. is the project's architect, and New Richmond, W.I.- based Derrick Building Solutions is the general contractor. There has been some pushback against the proposal, with some neighbors saying there are too many units in the project. The development site is north of a residential neighborhood. In response, Junker said, a city-owned buffer zone should alleviate these concerns. The 150-foot-wide buffer zone is made up of trees and is located between the development site and residential neighborhood. It's intended use is as a transition between low- and high-density developments, he said." Finance & Commerce Condos, workforce housing for Oak Park Heights , . oy: bails .iui insun August 8, 2022 4:47 pm Oak Park Heights Condominiums Media Monitoring • Download "Two new developments that could add more than 100 multifamily housing units to Oak Park Heights – including a rare condominium project — are going before the city's https://mail.aol.com/webmail-std/en-us/PrintMessage 2/4 8/11/22,4:07 PM (Oak Park Heights Condominiums)Ben S.@mentioned you in Who Says You Can't Go(Back)Home?PR Update! Planning Commission this week. Up for review at Thursday's meeting is a plan for up to 36 condominiums in two buildings on a 2.9-acre site at 58th Street North and Oakgreen Avenue, and a proposed 79-unit workforce housing project at Norwich Avenue North and 58th Street North. The condominium developer hopes to begin construction as soon as next year, but city staff is recommending approval of only the senior project. Condo project Jamie Junker is the developer of the condo project, known as Walk-a-Bout @ Oak Park Heights. He's asking the city to change the land use classification for his site from low density to high density. The existing classification allows up to 28 units. A city staff report notes that the existing classification is "consistent with the low density land uses to the south and east," and that the city's comprehensive plan designated the property as low density to preserve the neighborhood's "small town, single-family character." The comp plan calls for the proposed development site to be "low-density residential," and 58th Street is the "break line" between low-density and high-density, said Eric Johnson, Oak Park Heights city administrator. Junker is confident that the City Council will take a kindlier view of his development plan. For one thing, the proposed 36-unit count is just a "concept" at this time, and he "might be fine with" 28 units, Junker said in an interview. The developer sees the project as a homecoming. Though Junker and his family have lived on a farm in Forest, Wisconsin, for the past 25 years, Junker grew up in Oak Park Heights. Junker adds that he and his wife, Maureen, started their family in a home just two blocks from the property. Junker said he has owned the development site for more than 20 years. An accountant by trade, Junker said he initially thought the property could be a "nice place for a little bookkeeping and CPA firm," but that never panned out. "Over the years, we determined that wasn't the best use for it, so it's been a rental house for over 20 years," he said. Junker said the site is appealing in part because it has pedestrian and bike trails on three sides. What's more, he believes the project would offer an ideal transition from an existing 72-unit building to single-family homes in the neighborhood. Though he concedes that there has been pushback from some neighbors, Junker said seniors looking to move out of their single-family homes in the area have expressed interest in the project, which would provide a more maintenance-free lifestyle. If the project is approved, construction could begin as soon spring 2023, Junker said. He pegs the project's cost at about $14 million. The condo prices would range from about $375,000 to $700,000, he said." https://mail.aol.com/webmail-std/en-us/PrintMessage 3/4 8/11/22,4:07 PM (Oak Park Heights Condominiums)Ben S. @mentioned you in Who Says You Can't Go(Back)Home?PR Update! Oak Park Heights Condominiums Media Coverage .141• CREATIVE COMPANY Mention Analytics Mentions by Media Type Audience by Media Type Publicity by Media Type 4 1,241,406 $25,510 Mentions Audience Publicity Online+Print Online+-Print Online*Print Oak Park Heights Condominiums Media Monitoring • Download Pictured above are the latest audience and advertising values from the articles above! Kelly's article makes up for more than one million viewers alone! Let me know how the meeting goes this evening. Jaime! When you get the good news, we can coordinate our own meeting so I can introduce you to Hallie and Shareen! Thank you! Reply to s or Unsubscribe• Change your notification settings Get easier, faster access to Basecamp when it's on your phone. Grab an app! $ App Store O. Google Play https://mail.aol.com/webmail-std/en-us/PrintMessage 4/4 July 8,2022 Eric A.Johnson,City Administrator Julie Hultman, Building Official Planning Jennifer Pinski,Assistant City Administrator,City Clerk &Code Enforcement Scott Richards,City Planner Lisa Danielson,Arborist Andrew Kegley, Public Works Mary Seiger,Administration Dear Eric and Scott and City Staff, Thank you for the time and guidance you have given to us on our project site to explain our options.You answered all of our questions and walked us through to a better process for everyone. We are submitting this application for a change to the Oak Park Heights Comprehensive Plan which would change the zoning to our two lots to R-3 Multiple Family Residential,we as applicants offer that our combined lots just under 3 acres* is an appropriate complement to the low-density homes in the area and is complementary and compatible with the transition to the higher density to the north of 58th across the street. The reasons set forth in our application are based on support references of conformity with the 2018 Comprehensive Plan. The site is at 5676 Oakgreen Avenue North and the adjacent lot to the west. A note on our references to the comprehensive plan of 2018. References were duplicated 1 from the comprehensive plan. The comprehensive plan is a voluminous document and making references to such a substantial document has its inherit limitations. In some of the longer references for example it is not always best practice to copy the entire section of the comprehensive plan topic to help ease of readability. Sometimes the whole reference section is not necessary to describe an idea being discussed in the application. In other examples the whole section of the reference may not have applied to the section of the narrative being discussed. Not all readers of this document will be the city staff, city professionals, and city plan { commission members who will likely have the comprehensive plan at hand. For those that want exact references to the plan and the full context of the comprehensive plan document, we encourage you to download the comprehensive plan from the City's website. We have attempted to include exact page numbers of the section we are referencing. Thank you,j iii *A professional survey has been ordered and is in process at this time. History of the Application Site. The 2008 Comprehensive Plan shows both our lots and the property north to us as Medium Density Residential. The 2018 Comprehensive Plan shows our house as low density Residential where(other than the house)our property is now shown as Park Facilities Open Space so it was moved down in density where the properties to the north of 58th from us were moved to up to high density. We do not wish our sites to become a buffer to the buffer zone and we will explain in the pages ahead that it is fair and consistent with the Comprehensive Plan to identify our lots as Multiple Family Residential R-3. See Comprehensive Plan Land use maps at attachment 10a-a.0b. J K & K Group, LLP Jaime Junker • 11550 Stillwater Blvd North, Suite 106 • Lake Elmo, MN 55042 • 651-246-1058 The Biggest Challenge in Changing the Application Site to R-3 Multiple Family Residential I along with Maureen had our third meeting with the city staff and city administrator and professional team on June 29th to discuss an amendment in the Oak Park Heights 2018 Comprehensive plan. One of the items that stands out is near the end of the meeting, Eric Johnson, City Administrator suggested that in our narrative,we not only include why the project site was compatible with high density for the project application but what we feel is the biggest challenge or where the site falls short of the comprehensive plan. We will begin the application with that challenge. It struck me that after completing the matrix at attachment 1 on the many compatibilities with changing the comprehensive plan to identify the project as multiple family residential,that the biggest weakness in the application is the opposition from the immediate adjacent neighbors that we met at the neighbor meetings. Although attachment 1 identifies a dozen criteria where the application not only meets, but exceeds,the comprehensive plan standards for changing this property to high density,the item that we see will be "paramount" in this is that the City has a tough decision to make because it is impossible to make everyone happy on this somewhat subjective issue of where should the line be drawn between low density and high density around our property. We do not begrudge our neighbors that showed up at the neighbor meetings in opposition of our project. There were also many adjacent neighbors that attended in support of the project. After the 6:30 PM evening neighbor meeting number 2 on May 17th, I told the adjacent neighbors that I always felt that I had to tell them about the project first and that I knew from years of"hearsay"that I knew how they were going to respond, but i had to come "through that door" and tell them about the project personally. When one asked me "Where do we go from here Jaime?" we joked together and I told them that i was going home to my room and lock the door and stay inside a few days. The meeting ended with that humor, but I also told the most vocal attendees that they were genuine,and they came to the meeting face to face on a difficult subject,so I very much respected them for that. Isn't it beautiful in this country that we have processes to peacefully debate our differences publicly? So, I start the application with this acknowledgement that this is a very difficult decision that the City and staff will need to make. The buffer zone is a sacred cow. Back in the day we used to have a saying that"sacred cows make great steaks". I say this respectfully. This is a tough decision, but the public debate is at the core of the hard decisions Oak Park Heights has to make to balance the budget for the next twenty years. The world has changed since the last comprehensive plan update. Inflation is now a consideration that was not nearly as prevalent in 2018. The Allen S King plant situation puts pressure on the City's revenue stream,and the list of criteria spelled out in this application goes on and on. I suggest that because of the difficult decisions that the City has to make in the coming years,this is the model application that demarks extraordinary public input with the comprehensive plan at the center of the discussion. What an opportunity for the City and the taxpayers alike to confront challenges that the City and the residents will have in the next twenty years. There needs to be give and take. "We can't make everyone happy." The Oak Park Heights Comprehensive Plan is an extraordinarily in depth and well laid out vision of the future for Oak Park Heights on what challenges the City faces, and how land decisions will be made. I suggest that if we embrace the challenges we are going to deal with and use this application review and the Comprehensive Plan as the tool it was meticulously and painstakingly built for,this application 2 process will not only be genuine, but valuable for all of us. I expect the decision based on the Comprehensive Plan to be a difficult one where everyone cannot be pleased. The litmus test for a great deal of what the Comprehensive Plan talks about and proposes and has in its Goals and Policies in it, in regards to redevelopment is this: Is the land owner willing to take their building down and replace it? The second part that will play out over the next thirty years and longer will be this: can we make the tough decisions as it relates to the adjacent properties and figure a way to transition, buffer,and screen in order to make the redevelopment feasible? The applicant proposes that we can't make everyone happy and this application for a change to the Comprehensive Plan is very important because it is one of the "front runners" to this important debate that will play out over the next twenty years and more in Oak Park Heights. When a property owner comes to the City and says "I've worked out on my side howl can pull my old home(or other building)down and replace it with something nicer without asking for any help from the City", (let alone the project opportunities when the City would want to help)those opportunities should be very interesting for the City because that is what will be needed for the City to successfully implement its Comprehensive Plan with compliant properties over the next thirty years. Escentially, this is probably why this application for a Comprehensive Plan amendment is so important. Why a change in the Comprehensive Plan via application ammendment? The sequence and process we are following is unique. Through discussions with the Oak Park Heights Planning staff the step of first applying for a Comprehensive Plan amendment resonated with us as the applicant because it gets to the foundational nature of the end result of land use. That is,what is the best use of the site in the overall context of the City's land use plan at this location?This is an application for a change to the Comprehensive Plan in order so the resulting application for Walk-a-Bout would then proceed in an orderly fashion. It is our intention as the applicant,to submit in good order an application for a project whose site plan and renderings are in this application at the attachment 2a-2g. It is substantially the same footprint plan we shared with the city staff planning group on March 16th of this year and at the four recent neighbor meetings on May 17th and May 25th held at city hall. We feel a change in density at this location is an opportunity for us all (City, neighbors, applicant)to play to our collective strengths and such a decision is substantially supported by the Comprehensive Plan. Because this application is the penultimate* application we as applicants submit that a traffic study,if required,would need to be submitted with the project application at that time rather than now. In reviewing the Comprehensive Plan,there is not robust traffic data in the plan about the counts in the interior of the city or at this site. We are asking the city administrator, the city planner,and the planning team and city staff to approve our notion that if such data was not relied upon at the time the 2018 comprehensive plan was completed, it should not be a burden on the applicant in this application for comprehensive plan amendment at this time. The other reason we ask you to consider that a traffic study, if required,should be a condition of the ultimate application rather than this comprehensive plan application is cost. With a fee of$500 for the Comprehensive Plan Application and a traffic study cost up to 10X of that, it makes more sense that if a traffic study is a requirement upon the applicant at the time of final project application,that anticipated$3,000 to$5,000 cost would be incurred at that time. This request is reasonable because high density is already immediately across 58th from the project site. Please approve this sensible notion of this recommended sequence. Additionally,was a traffic study required and completed in 2019 when 72 units were built along 58th for the Oak Park Senior living that can be utilized in this application? *Penultimate. Last but one in a series of things. Second to the last item 3 Limited (if any)Residential Resources left in the city. The applicant feels it's prudent financially for the City as it comes to the end of it's residential resources to leave no stone unturned in determining high density site alternatives. In this application for a comprehensive plan amendment,we the applicant,will show examples of how the site fits residential high density in the comprehensive plan. Page 31 of the 2018 comprehensive plan states: "Other than what is currently in development,there are no significant parcels of residential land available for development in the city." With this site being right on the border of high density in the city already and with a substantial buffer zone between the application site property and the adjacent neighbors to the south of the site,the property is a strong candidate for a high-density designation. Guidance in the 2018 Comprehensive Plan makes the application site stand out for High Density. Throughout this narrative,we will give examples of criteria in the Comprehensive Plan why the value of the project for the City is very high and the cost for the City for high density at this site is very low. Examples will show that a high-density assignment for the application site is warranted because it is higher in revenue and lower in cost than either a low-density project,or a future hypothetical annexed project. Comparisons will be looked at for city revenue, less automobile dependency at the site, housing diversification,city utilities capacity and road infrastructure including original costs to build roads and increase utilities as well as long term maintenance costs, and the comparable traffic per new home in the city. Page 23 of the Comprehensive Plan states a very important Oak Park Heights Goal: Promote a responsible fiscal balance(revenue versus service costs)on an ongoing basis. "The policies of the Comprehensive Plan are intended to outline the community's desires and set forth guidelines for how these desires are to be achieved. These issues must be continually assessed in terms of value compared to costs incurred by the City for implementation. Indicators of value include, but are not united to,potential revenue,facility enhancement, and the common good of the Oak Park Heights community" Oak Park Heights Has it's Own Identity. Walk-a-Bout @ Oak Park Heights Minnesota,USA When I was five, I asked my mom a little bit about the 55082 zip code because I couldn't figure something out. She explained that 55082 is the zip code of our city,Oak Park Heights. I told her that I was going to write a letter to Stillwater and tell them they need to stop using our city's zip code. I was proud that I lived in Oak Park Heights, not Stillwater. Although I am proud of my roots of things like being the captain of the Stillwater Pony baseball team in 1980,this home project NAME says it all about how I feel about the identity of the city I grew up in and started my family. Oak Park Heights has it's own identity. The point is: this application is about pulling out the Comprehensive Plan and making the tough decision on what is best for the greatest good and greatest number of people in Oak Park Heights. Want to talk Oak Park Heights baseball? Ask me where you can learn about arguably,the greatest little league baseball game ever played in the St.Croix Valley where the undefeated regular season Oak Park Twins won the little league Championship. On this day,forget Lake Elmo,forget Stillwater,forget Bayport, Lakeland, Marine on the St.Croix and Hugo. Oak Park Heights was"World Champions.". Walk-a-Bout @ Oak Park Heights Minnesota, USA will be home to some thirty-six high value condominium residences. The old home,although functional now and can be for the next many years, will be taken down. The residences have been designed to attract both active lifestyle residents interested in the proximity to the City's trail system as well as existing Oak Park Heights residents looking to downsize their footprint and live in a park-like setting with simple amenities and above average green space. The Walk-a-Bout name comes from the idea that in the search for happiness and meaning in life, some of the simplest things like going for a walk with a friend or meeting a family 4 member on a bike ride across town at a park for a simple visit can still aspire to offer the most basic and meaningful moments in life. Oak Park's vision was to invest in the park system over the last twenty-five years and it is an attractive feature of the city. Walk-a-Bout @ Oak Park Heights will advertise the Oak Park Trail System as we fully expect this elite project will sell out the thirty-six units within 12odays from completion. The existing home is old and can be maintained but is there a better use consistent with the comprehensive plan? We think so and here is another goal in the comprehensive plan that supports the change to high density at this site: RESIDENTIAL LAND USE Goal 2:Maintain and enhance the strong character of Oak Park Heights'single family residential neighborhoods. Policies:A. Promote private reinvestment in the City's single-family housing stock. B. Pursue the redevelopment of substandard single-family homes when it is judged not economically feasible to correct the deficiencies.C.Encourage single family home rehabilitation programs through the City. The site requires less automobile dependency. With walking trails on all three sides of the property, the site is less dependent on automobile travel than much of the city for things such as shopping, chiropractic and dental services and restaurants and grocery, and it lends itself well for foot and bike traffic to and from the property. Because of this,the site is a strategic growth location in Oak Park Heights and counter-intuitively,gently higher density equates to lower automobile traffic per added household for residences at this location. Put another way, it would be difficult to add 36 residences in Oak Park Heights that create less traffic per household than at this site because of the site's close proximity to services and the related walkability of the location. Economic Efficiency for Oak Park Road Infrastructure and utilities. The application site maximizes the City's ability to utilize existing roads and utilities. With Oakgreen avenue and 58th abutting the property on two sides,a modest high-density zoning change is appropriate because the property reduces relative future road maintenance and new utility infrastructure per new home added now,which is very difficult for any municipality to achieve with a new project. Higher density would be economically advantageous to the City at this location because these additional homes would not require additional road construction and substantial additional utilities. Low road construction per home on this project factors favorably for the City's future inevitable rise in road repair costs. Maximizing the site's benefits with sensible higher density,therefore,would be strategically prudent because a higher number of homes in this case, is spread over lower additional future road maintenance. This property location is well suited for a higher-density strategy to minimize the future road and utility costs per new home. • ,gym. sZ Alkt3ki 1, . 5 The above narrative on Roads and Utilities Efficiency is"echoed"in the comprehensive plan on Page 56 Through the comprehensive planning process, the City has the ability to direct and focus development in a pattern that maximizes the utilization of existing utilities and services.This type of land use management assists the community in regulating and budgeting for investment in future public utilities, streets,andservice eds With limited vacant land, it is likely that the City will be almost completely developed by 2025.Small parcels of residential property scattered throughout the community will be infilled with single family and tovvnhome development. Based upon this premise,the focus of the land use, transportation, community facilities/administrative sections of this Comwill on redevelopment, infill and maintenance of the community Unfortunately,Post-Covid equals a period of higher inflation and higher costs for both individuals and governments providing services. so things have changed since the last comprehensive plan update when increasing costper home were not as great of a concern for communities. The average homeowner is currently feeling the inflation increases and even in a financially well-managed city like OakParkHeiQhts,thesiteshou|dnotbeusedfor|uwdenshx'fora||torea/ize/ater,thatasensib|y' gentle-higher-density approach could have been optimal. It is fair to say that the current concerns of increasing cost pressure is a valid reason to look at a change to higher density as a sensible adjustment to an earlier unforeseen situation. Higher density in this location is a sensible, low-risk adjustment for the City and making such a change is a savvy response by leadership at the City to changing economics that impact all taxpayers. It should be noted that the likelihood of the recent inflation on all of us is permanent because inflation is cumulative. That is, even if the rate of inflation slows down,that inflation that has recently occurred presents a lasting challenge. So we can all say, "the genie is out of the bottle regarding inflation impact and this has all happened since the last Comprehensive Plan update." Something substantial has changed since the last Comprehensive Plan that has created a brand new challenge. Air Quality and environmental efficiency.The project as contemplated will be environmentally efficient due to several factors. First,the walkability of the site offers less dependency on automobile use. Other factors of efficiency include less waste of duplicate equipment and machines. Consider one lawn mower or lawn service rather than thirty-six lawn mowers. Recycling programs which conserve resources shall be required by the homeowners'association. A Gently Higher Density will allow the project to offer home options to allow seniors and existing Oak Park Heights residents an opportunity to stay in the city by downsizing. Although it is impossible to know how many existing Oak Park residents will want to look at the offering currently designed shown at attachment 2a=2g, it is factual from the recent neighborhood meetings that one existing resident couple stated at the meeting that the project,as designed,would give them an opportunity to stay in the city by downsizing out of their single-family residence. They currently live in the neighborhood. The comprehensive plan states in its goals section on page 52. RESIDENTIAL LAND Provide of the community and the changing demographics of the City and region through new development and redevelopment. Policies:A.Encourage design and planning innovations in housing units and land development. 8, Recognize the development of townhouses,condominiums and non-traditional home types to supplement existing conventional single-family homes, and apartments,giving due consideration to local market demands, C.Attempt to provide housing opportunities which attract 6 persons of all ages and income levels and which allow them the ability to maintain residence within Oak Park Heights throughout the various stages of their lives. Gentle High Density for the site adheres to a tried-and-true principal of best practices approach of diversification. Simply expressed: low-density housing, plus low-density housing plus gently higher- density housing that is carefully integrated in and complementing, would be more responsive to the Comprehensive Plan than more low density both at this time and in the future. Many changes have taken place in the world since the last Comprehensive Plan was completed. A strong homeowners association set of rules for a larger group of homes can add a layer of good compliance and help enforce the City's rules in such areas as police calls and property aesthetics at this strategic location. This is because associations of homeowners of less than,say eight to ten,are notorious for being poorly managed maintenance headaches for the local governments to enforce compliance rules on the residents. This is even more true when they are lower income. When an association is over fifteen to twenty residences,the associations statistically are much stronger than a smaller association could ever hope to be,this shifts a portion of maintenance compliance and even some efforts of its police force from the City to the homeowner's association. Six homes at this site would likely create a very week compliance record. Possibly not initially, but in 5 to ten years that could change.The old saying that "a new broom sweeps clean" would be remindful that six to ten homes at this site is not good for the neighbors or the City.A gently higher density project lessens this risk of hassle for the City in a number of areas. Traffic. Based on 3 K& K Group's traffic expert's trip summary report we don't see a compatibility issue with traffic. We are completely in conformity with the Comprehensive Plan here. Our experts state, "Therefore, both Oakgreen Avenue and 58th Street have the remaining capacity to accommodate the approximately 306 daily trips expected to be generated by the proposed development. Therefore,proposed development trips are expected to have limited impact on the adjacent roadway network. Consequently,roadway improvements are not anticipated to be necessary to accommodate the proposed development." ALLIANT Please see attachment 3a-3c Additionally, there could be an improvement to 58th street based on our internal conversations that could improve 58th, Although that is somewhat out of the framework of this application, here it is for your consideration: "We would anticipate no operational issues at a single 58th Street site access or at any adjacent intersections. 58th Street is currently striped as a four-lane undivided road. Four-lane undivided roads can be improved in the traffic engineering world; many of them are being converted to three-lane undivided roads(one through lane in each direction plus a center two-way left-turn lane). If 58th Street eventually gets restriped to a three-lane undivided road, the 58th Street site access would then have a westbound left-turn lane to accommodate inbound site traffic. The narrower two-lane undivided cross-section of Oakgreen Avenue does not offer the same flexibility, but eliminating it gives additional options and takes additional pressure of the back of the linear park." Two Access Points Rather Than One Is a Response from the Neighbor Meetings. It was noted at the neighborhood meetings that an access for the west building of Walk-a-Bout onto 58th moves 50%of the access pressure off of the Oakgreen access point. Heading to Kowalskis'for groceries taking a left onto 58th from the underground parking in the west building makes good sense and has little impact on the surrounding traffic. There is another major benefit of this additional access point. For the west building, 7 we directed our engineer planners to remove the paved entrance next to the linear park and walking path for much of what would have previously been in place if the access to the west building would have been from Oakgreen. This keeps additional green space at the project near the walking path to the south of our property. Although the linear park is significant in size, 150 feet wide with a tremendous tree canopy,we are still not opposed to working with the City arborist and adding an additional landscape buffer and modest mounding(say 3'to 4' high) creating a further natural separation to this section and adding to the linear park. The Comprehensive Plan is a Continuous Process. On page 20 of the OPH Comprehensive Plan there is an illustration of the ideal comprehensive planning process. attachment 4.The illustration depicts a circular continuous process balancing existing conditions,visioning,goals and objectives, needs and alternative scenarios. With the next comprehensive plan process set for 2028,the Oak Park Heights Zoning Ordinance recognizes and allows the benefit and opportunity for the city to be responsive in allowing for zoning changes in the interim. This application for a rezoning to R-3 Multiple Family Residential is reflective on the desire to make continuous improvement between the ten-year comprehensive plan update processes. It is the applicant's proposition that when we as a community, weight the benefits of the property towards a gently higher density,the overall,across-the-board- benefits to the community will be that the property is trending greater and greater towards R-3 each and every year. The main reason for this: The location of the property lends itself to be less dependent on automobiles and with walking trails on three sides of the property,the walkability(and biking)of the property is among the highest in the city. At the time of the next Comprehensive Plan update,the property will continue to trend and be more compatible and consistent with a higher density zoning than a lower density zoning. It is the applicant's assertion that now,and especially increasing as we near 2028, if the property were to be developed with a low-density zoning compliant project, it would be a permanent symbol of a property being out of step with the best use for the city and the greatest number of people and the greatest good.With tax rates being identified as the number two issue on the recent Comprehensive Plan, it would be difficult to see six to eight residential units taking up this strategic site knowing that it would have been more financially and economically prudent for a higher density zoning project. The applicant points to the City's Mission Statement and Goals on pages 21 and 22 of the Comprehensive Plan and makes the following complementary statement of the vision of the comprehensive plan document. "It will be challenging to see another R-3 project come along in the next twenty years in Oak Park Heights that is seemingly as consistent with the city's Mission Statement and Goals, expressed in the Comprehensive Plan especially when you consider that there will be minima!infrastructure needed from the city for a higher density project at this location': The applicant feels that if one were to list the properties that were suitable for R-3 (Residential High Density) in the city,this property is, if not number one on the list,very,very high up on the list. The Application Property is In the Transition Area. R-3 zoning for the property is consistent with the property across the street to the north from it. When we purchased the property over twenty years ago, we felt that everything to the north of the buffer zone abutting the south of the property would be treated similarly in the zoning ordinance and Comprehensive Plan. The buffer zone offers a transition area for this exact purpose. The City purchased the buffer zone to the south of our property in 2006. It makes good sense that the buffer demarks the transition to higher density in this part of the city. 8 Changing Times. Based on the emphasis of the Comprehensive Plan it is far more likely than not that by the time the next comprehensive plan update occurs in 2028,the application property will not only be saying "this should be R-3", it wouldn't be out of the question that the best use of the property could be R-B Residential Business Transitional District or even B-1 Neighborhood Business District. attachment 5a-5b Comprehensive Planning Aspects of Allen S King Plant Closure by 2028. A higher density for the application site is prudently responsible and extremely proactive by the city to upcoming revenue challenges more than likely to occur which it will have to face.A change to a higher density for this property is responsive and in the correct direction. The comprehensive plan states on page 65 that"Xcel Energy plans to close the King Plant by 2028, a decade sooner than originally planned. ....the city receives 33%of it's annual property tax revenue from the King Plant." "When the King Plant closes and no longer remains a viable source of tax revenue, the City will have a significant gap in its ability to fund municipal services.Accordingly, the city, like many other communities that host power plants(being coal,nuclear or natural gas)must begin to contemplate about,how it would respond when such closure happens." Furthermore,you have to go no further than the City's stated challenges to understand that there needs to be a focus on compatible revenue management practices and one can see that of the top six City challenges, item number 2 through item number 6 are closely intertwined with Revenue and Tax Rates. On page 15 of the comprehensive plan: The most important challenges facing the City: 1, Protecting the St.Croix River and other bodies of water 2.Tax rates 3. Maintaining and enhancing municipal services 4. Reducing crime and enhancing public safety 5.Capital investments in community facilities, parks 6. Improving pedestrian and bicycle access and safety Higher Density at this site is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan as it relates to the trail system. It is not only the applicant's idea that properties near walking and biking paths are beneficial to the transportation needs of Oak Park Heights. The Comprehensive Plan states on page 109: `7n the last 25 years, the City has invested significantly in the pedestrian and bicycle network throughout the community. It is possible to travel west to east and north and south through the entire City on trails with limited need to travel on streets. The City sees this investment as important to recreation as well as the transportation needs of the community': In this spirit,the owners of the property(the applicant) donated the easement to the city in 2019 for the path built on the applicant's property along Oakgreen. A low-density use for this site would be terminal for the site. A gently higher density zoning assignment for this site would be a continual symbol for the City and its residents that a thoughtful adjustment in the City's plans were struck, adjustments to unforeseen financial impacts were strategically made, and the ultimate intended project when built would be an extremely low--risk response with many positive merits and meet the (Revenues vs Service Costs standard of the Comprehensive Plan). A low-density housing buildout, unfortunately, would be terminal for the site and a perpetual reminder in the future that we had a better option. A low density project at this site is not only terminal,which understandably is a strong word from the applicant,a low-density use at this project site does not embrace the encouragement the document envisions, to be bold,to solve problems, and to be proactive, but principally page 22 states as a goal Encourage continued but orderly 9 and diverse growth and redevelopment in Oak Park Heights.To maintain a strong economic and social base for Oak Park Heights, development and redevelopment is viewed as positive. In that the amount of vacant, developable land is limited to primarily commercial properties, the focus of the City will be on infill development of the remaining developable land and continued redevelopment and improvements to commercial and industrial properties. Higher density for this site with upper-value-levehomes can have a positive impact on minimizing police calls(as compared to lower income lower The modestly highr density we are proposing is beneficial (as compared to low density)due to the higher home values that will be emp|oyed'oomp|ementarytoS5m,56*'0ak8neentovvnhomesandPa|merStadon. Please note neighbors, our point is "complementary to your history of being good neighbors". The comparison is not to your good record which we feel we would complement, rather, it/SmcornporbontuwhotoWm+ density project would be for this sitePlease see the discussion below of how a larger home-owners association,than say six to ten homes(low density)would be beneficial for police statistics because the association will have by-laws that are legally enforceable upon it's residents for many things that otherwise fall into local enforcement responsibility. A strong homeowners association with a "zero clutter policy', its own noise rules,and ongoing reserves put in place for maintenance can complement the neighbor's investments and be consistent with the high standards of the city. The applicant asserts that six lower priced residences at this visibly strategic location adds a risk the city should not want to take. This p 'cotQivasthecityaprojectthatwi|| minimizetheprecedingrisksandaddeyeappea|tn the location. Why didn't we oppose the 2018 Comprehensive plan change? Some might ask why we didn't spend the time and energy in 2018 when the Comprehensive plan was being revised to oppose the change in density then? This is a very good question, but it's not the best question. |fweca/| itthe ^oanu/timate question",the answer is simply in 2018 Walk-a-Bout @ Oak Park Heights Minnesota USA wasn't an answer because we didn't have the courage or the answer for the community to what a better plan than a1OO'year'uldhouse would be. 'The WxN-o-8owt@ Oak Park Heights Minnesota dream had not been dreamt." Now, in 2022,the world has changed,costs are going through the roof for families and cities,and we have built up say a bit of courage to meet the neighbors and tell them of our plans. The best question in 2022 is: Can anyone envision a better use for the application site in the next 5, 10, 50 or even 100 years than Walk-a-Bout @ Oak Park Heights while substantially meeting the revenue vs service cost explained on Page 23 of the Comprehensive Plan? But still, I do see,and I do take responsibility for not being active during the 2018 Comprehensive Plan public input process. In retrospect,even though I take personal responsibility for not communicating and opposing the Comprehensive Plan change to our property at that time, I actually feel the way that I have been challenged by this process and I have worked with City Administrator,staff and City Planner to submit a Comprehensive Plan amendment,the work has all been worth it. For example, I see now how complex the balancing act that City staff and Mayor and City Council are always up against. Still a long answer but I think I'm even a better team player now than I could have been in 2018 and I have been able to make adjustments in my thinking about the Comprehensive Planning process and everything it entails. If we're able to move back to Oak Park Heights and live at Walk-a-Bout, I plan to contribute as a community member to Oak Park however I can. When I leave Forest,WI however, I will be retiring personally from elected government roles as a transition in my current responsibilities allows. This Comprehensive Plan Amendment Application gives me a chance to correct my error. 10 The Walking Trail Easement Donation. attachment 6a-6f When we donated the easement, pure and simple, we did so in good faith with the understanding that when it came to the calculation of buildable square footage,the easement donation arrangement would not penalize us relating to the number of buildable unit's calculation. UTILITIES Comprehensive Plan Page 56 Through the comprehensive planning process, the City has the ability to direct and focus development in a pattern that maximizes the utilization of existing utilities and services.This type of land use management assists the community in regulating and budgeting for investment in future public utilities,streets, and service needs. With limited vacant land, it is likely that the City will be almost completely developed by 2025.Small parcels of residential property scattered throughout the community will be infilled with single family and townhome development. Based upon this premise, the focus of the land use,transportation, community facilities/administrative sections of this Comprehensive Plan will be on redevelopment, infill and maintenance of the community The Comprehensive Plan Recognizes the Buffer Zone Concept of Transitioning Uses. The application site has one of the largest buffer zones in the city already in place to the south of our lots. The comprehensive plan provided for this buffering and the comprehensive plan reads in part on Page 66 Land use compatibility concerns exist, to respond to these land use compatibility concerns,the Comprehensive Plan establishes a policy of screening, landscaping and buffering commercial establishments near or within residential areas to minimize the impact on surrounding uses and enhance the neighborhood and community. Although the comprehensive plan talks about buffering commercial properties from residential properties,the point is that our property is significantly buffered to the south. The Site is compatible with high density across 58th and to the north of the buffer zone In 2019, the last phase of the Oak Park Senior Living project at Oakgreen Avenue and 58th Street,will be completed and will include 72 units.This is the last area of high-density development other than what is included as part of the Residential/Business Transitional Areas. Comprehensive Plan Page 76 The linear park is the existing buffer zone is such a screening and buffering area along the entire south side of our property. The application site is in somewhat of a unique location because of the design of 58th. If 58th would have been straight rather than curved,then 58th would have intersected Oakgreen Avenue to the south of our property. Our property would then have had 58th and the buffer zone to the south of it, high density would have been to the north of 58th and this low-density vs high-density transition "sorting out"would not be the same as it is as 58th would have demarked the transition to high density from south to north in the city. We are proposing the plan should be that the buffer zone is the feature in the city that should be the dividing line between low density and high density to the north. With a green space designation for our property, it has the effect of making our property"the buffer zone to the buffer zone". The linear park purchase agreement attachment 7a-7c also called the buffer zone can be divided into two parts,that part along the south side of our property(nearer Oakgreen) and the part adjacent to 58th as the buffer zone moves to the west and 58th curves from Oakgreen in a southwesterly direction. The property was contracted on May 5th 2000 in a second amendment to a developer's agreement and ultimately purchased for a cost of$278,546.10 on September 6, 2006 by the City. 11 Our property is approximately 126,324 square feet and approximately 2.9 acres(pre-survey). The buffer zone is 198,633 square feet and approximately 4.56 acres,or 157%larger than our two-lot property at 5676 Oakgreen Avenue and the lot to the west of it.attachment 11 for a google picture of the area including the linear park(buffer zone),adjacent properties to the south and Palmer Station homes next to Oakgreen. The picture illustrates that all homes adjacent to our proposed buildings—8 in total(five on 56th and 3 at Palmer Station)are in complete conformity of the City's screening criteria for a development within the 2018 Comprehensive Plan. There are 13 homes adjacent to the buffer zone to the south of it. Of those homes,7 are to the south of our property and 6 are to the west of our property still along the buffer zone. Only 5 homes are adjacent(or south of our two proposed buildings while 2 of the homes on the buffer zone are south of our unbuilt green space and the buffer zone. The buffer zone is 150 feet wide and the average height of the tree canopy is 40 to 50 feet tall, much taller than our proposed buildings. The buffer zone is considered "dense" by any engineering standard,and it substantially eliminates any sight of our property from the back yard of the adjacent neighbors let alone the 8 other homes on the linear park not south of our buildings. The linear park contains mature established trees(not a landscaped recent area). The linear park provides a substantial separation from our lots. We feel that with the linear park established and paid for by the City,the investment benefits RiverHills and should also fairly benefit our two lots as well. The City has substantially met its responsibility per the Comprehensive Plan in the screening requirement and R-3 Multiple Family Residential should be allowed north of the buffer zone. Palmer Station Analysis Palmer station shows seven homes on Oakgreen. Four of the seven homes are across or south of the buffer zone and have landscaping, screening on their side of the street. The three homes across from our property also have more substantial screening on their side. Our plans are to leave a number of significant trees along Oakgreen for screening. City Annexation Discussion of Other Properties. In the years to come the City may have opportunities for expansion through annexation. We feel before annexation is considered,existing lots appropriate for high Density based on the merits of the Comprehensive Plan should first be explored because high density will be more cost effective for the city than annexation. Additionally,we propose that the Walk- a-Bout@ Oak Park Heights option will be one of the highest on the ranking to the City's standard of Promoting a responsible fiscal balance (revenue vs service cost test). We submit the notion that Walk-a- Bout's fiscal merits(and all other merits)will rival most any annexation opportunity the City has in the next twenty years(and more) primarily because Walk-a-Bout @ Oak Park Heights does not need much if any,added roads or utilities. Options For the Application Site In this application We feel we have substantially met the key criteria in the Comprehensive Plan to amend the application site to Multiple Family Residential but we simply cannot continue to postpone development. After owning the property over 20 years and always planning on the site being at the same density as everything north of the linear park,we have few choices should this application not be approved. We can: 1. Continue to rent the house at 5686 Oakgreen and monitor the landscape in the city and wait for the 2028 comprehensive plan process while we continue to maintain the current house and be highly active in the process at that time. Albeit with the owners'ages in mind at that time,that strategy has significant limitations. The 2028 Comprehensive Plan will probably receive final approval in 2029 or 2030 and then starting this application process again at that time is just not feasible. That is just too far away. At that time,we will have lost ail design value from our 12 engineers and planners for the current Walk-a-Bout @ Oak Park Heights Minnesota USA. We feel with a pro-active application to amend the Comprehensive Plan and the criteria we are resoundingly meeting,this amendment process is a superior strategy than waiting for 2028 and beyond. 2. We can look to sell the land. If the City is absolutely set on six to ten units for perpetuity for our site,then the likely candidates for purchasing our land would be affordable income housing sponsors which the City has stated in the 2018 Implementation plan on page 166 that it would support several choices for affordable housing including: Zoning and Subdivision The City currently has adequate zoning and subdivision regulations to support affordable housing. TIF The City has in the past and would consider TIF proposals to promote affordable housing, CDA The City will work with the CDA on available programs that provide additional affordable housing such as the GROW fund, Low Income Housing Tax credits and CBDG funding. Livable Communities Work with CDA in sponsoring an application to the Metropolitan Council's Livable Communities Account program for affordable housing development. Super REP The City would support an application to Super RFP programs for affordable housing. There are certain aspects of selling or donating to a non-profit affordable housing authority that resonates with us for both charitable reasons as well as federal tax benefits. 3. The third option is we could develop the site ourselves for six to ten units and live there basically acquiescing* on this Comprehensive Plan amendment application all-the-while feeling we had substantially met the criteria requirements of this application through meeting the Comprehensive Plan standards for Multiple Family Residential. For the reasons laid out in this application illustrating our beliefs that this property site should be R-3 Multiple Family Residential,we would unlikely either go through the process to develop it low density or sell it to someone for that purpose given our ardent stance herein on what is right and fair. Acquiescing To accept something reluctantly, but without protest In conclusion,we ask Eric Johnson and Scott Richards and the intregal City Staff members that no doubt we will work with on this important project to approve moving this application forward. Your team and Mayor McComber and the City council will find that we will work with you to make this important project the signature complement to this area of the city while we believe this application shows in a conclusive way that our request is in complete conformity with the 2018 Comprehensive Plan. Eric and Scott, please approve this request upon your review of the application to move it forward to City Plan Commission and Public Hearing. Respectully, Jaime Junker, ForJ K&K Group, LLP 13 Lo1N :Im e _df ei~o t ! Ell twi it r nt v j o Copy Service Corporation Stillwater Serif Green Twig Villa I & II map ILI Oakgreen Ct N �- vta 58th St NL, it Oak Pa •' St 5676 Oakgreen Ave N, Stillwater, MN 55082 tam WAS O 0 t m MPA 56011MiN Z _ Y I , • � ,. � F fes. r� 3 GOW6 #r is itis'` i 6 2oo8 & 2018 Comprehensive Plan 5676 Oakgreen Avenue has a low density designation. 4F Process from City: Applicant meets at City Hall on June 151h & June 29th with city staff and TPC. Told: "Submit application for Comprehensive Plan Amendment - Goal: an amended per application 2022 Comprehensive Plan 5676 Oakgreen Avenue to change to high density designation. Change supported by Comprehensive Plan 2018 Zoning Ordinance it* :# 11 ltINPMN OAK PARK HEIGHTS ZONING ORDINANCE TABLE OF CONTENTS TPC Pew Adff"IF1111011SKI0M M I rlc Johnson 401.01 - TAa"Apphcabon 01.1 40101 A Tile 01.1 I ROW Scott Richards PJMOW 401018 Rebhan .... 01-1 40101 C IMISM 4ot O1D Rebhan to � Qwnp^S'w �'n'cVU Pun ��.j DATE: 4 -Aug -22 40101 E Sir+drd R+PAn'n'a 01.2 401 01 F Qviaw+Y ue" 01.2 401.01 G Mxufwft - 01-2 40101 H UM W4 Rtaw3sd Wlevn Z'"V DAA Ow Mp Oak Park Heights -Comprehensive 401011 S4ortCMT -- o1a Plan Amendment - 5676 aot 01 J A'+roor+1T 01-3411 01 K Rottman _. 40102 %ows"Rrwisby" Conclusion/Recommendation 401 024 RWas a wad Consruc0on . _.... _. _. 02-1 02.1 411026 Application For Comprehensive Plan Amendment Lists no less than thirteen (73) items from the 2018 Comprehensive Plan that supports the Walk -a -Bout location to be turned to high density. These thirteen (13) items pulled from the plan text were intended to be reviewed by staff, and the subject of conversation and debate at tonight's I hearing. The purpose of the public hearing on August 11th, 2022 is to assess publicly whether the comprehensive plan change is supported by the applicants 13 items pulled from the plan text. Who should the decision makers be? Public, Plan Commission members, City Council Report Errors: • TPC omits substantially all of applicants 13 items pulled from Comprehensive Plan. • Large omission on traffic study relating to county and state data. • ather Virtually all of TPC report supported by historic comp plan r than "2022 comp plan." ISSDES iDERTIFICAT1031 I • TPC assumes for applicant 36 unites is the only choice the applicant has. Oak Park Heights Comprehensive Plan continuous process ja — � h & lh Group. LLP inx Junko 11590 Stilhrau r Rh d North- Suite hili Lake F,Inio. MN C, ;(112 Ga1-2-16- 1 0aS