PUBLIC HEARING: Consider a Site Plan and Final Plat from St. Katharine Drexel at 7633 161st Avenue NW

The City has received an application from Station 19 Architects (the "Applicant"), on behalf of The Church of St. Katharine Drexel, for a Site Plan and Final Plat on the property currently described as Outlot B, PACT Addition (the "Subject Property"). The Subject Property is generally located at the northwest corner of 161st Avenue NW and Variolite Street NW, east of PACT Charter High School.

Staff attempted to notify property owners within 700 feet of the Subject Property, as reflected in the Anoka County Property Records, of the request and the Public Hearing to be held by the Planning Commission. A notice of the Public Hearing was published in the Anoka County UnionHerald, the City's official newspaper. A proposed development sign was placed on the property.

Subject Property
The Subject Property is located at the northwest corner of 161st Avenue NW and Variolite Street NW, east of PACT Charter High School. The Subject Property is zoned PI, Public/Institutional District, and is guided for low-density residential use in the City's 2040 Comprehensive Plan. It is approximately 6.38 acres in size. Access to the lot currently comes from an existing driveway on Variolite Street; however, the proposed site plan would vacate the existing driveway and establish a new driveway onto 161st Avenue NW. Surrounding properties to the east (across Variolite Street NW), north, and west are all guided for low-density residential use and properties to the south (across 161st Avenue NW) are guided as "Rural Developing".

Site Plan
The proposed building is 15,912 square feet, and designed to have the main entrance facing south. The building is proposed to be more than 100 feet from all property lines. The Applicant is also proposing a trash enclosure southeast of the proposed building, with the gates facing westward. The Applicant intends to have the trash enclosure match the proposed building in appearance and color. In addition to the proposed building, there is an existing 1,200 square-foot garage located at the northeast corner of the site that was constructed by the Applicant in 2022. The garage will remain on the Subject Property for the Applicant's use. Additionally, the existing sign at the corner of 161st Avenue NW and Variolite Street NW will remain in its current position.

Access to the building and parking lot will come from a new driveway onto 161st Avenue NW, which lines up directly with the main entrance of the building. The driveway stub was built as part of the reconstruction of 161st Avenue NW last summer. Minimum parking requirements for assembly uses, including religious institutions, are one space for each three seats of design capacity. The building's main assembly space is designed for 390 occupants, which results in a minimum parking requirement of 130 stalls. 98 stalls are proposed for the first phase. However, it should be noted that 289 additional parking stalls are shown as part of a future phase. The Applicant has verbally indicated their preference to only pave 98 stalls, based on current membership, noting that the shared parking agreement with PACT can accommodate any overflow to meet the 130-stall requirement.

Pedestrian access to the site will come from a newly-constructed shared-use trail along 161st Avenue NW. A new sidewalk will be built to connect the building's main entrance to this shared-use trail. Another sidewalk will run west to east, parallel to the building's south facade, to connect to PACT Charter School's parking lot to the west. Additional sidewalks will serve all secondary entrances to the building, as required by Minnesota State Building Code.

Landscape Plan
As noted in the Environmental Policy Board's (EPB) recommendation from March 18, a Tree Inventory and Preservation Plan was included with the submittal.  Slightly over seventy percent (70%) of the existing DBH inches of significant trees will be preserved, exceeding the tree preservation standards (in fact, the plan includes removing some Siberian Elm, an invasive species, so the percentage of significant tree DBH inches preserved on site is likely slightly greater since the removal calculations include the DBH inches of Siberian Elm).  As the church expands parking areas in the future, there will be additional tree losses, but additional plantings would be installed, at a minimum rate of one (1) tree for every ten (10) new parking stalls.  The majority of tree removal will be done to account for stormwater ponding (exempt from removal calculations) and the building pad.

A Landscape Plan was included with the submittal.  Over 300 existing deciduous and evergreen trees are being preserved, and the Applicant is utilizing these to partially meet the landscape requirements.  They are proposing to install seventeen (17) new trees, including a combination of overstory, ornamental, and evergreen trees.  The plan also includes ninety-two (92) shrubs, including both evergreen and deciduous species.  Staff has recommended relocating some of the proposed shrubs between the trees being installed along 161st Avenue, just to provide a bit more screening for the home(s) on the south side of this road.  Ground cover will be a mixture of sod against the building and entrance, and various seed mixes (low maintenance turf and a stormwater mix). 

Utilities
The building will be connected to municipal water and sanitary sewer. 

Storm Water Management
Storm water will be managed northwest of the site in a shared basin with PACT Charter School.  The stormwater plan will be reviewed by the Lower Rum River WMO.  

Final Plat
The Subject Property was platted in 2022 as Outlot B, PACT Addition, as part of a land sale to PACT Charter School for their new school, located immediately to the west. The PACT Addition plat established Drainage and Utility Easements along all four sides of the Subject Property; these easements are 10 feet wide along the south (161st Avenue NW) and east (Variolite Street NW) sides of the property, and are 5 feet wide along the north and west sides of the property. Also in 2022, a Reciprocal Easement Agreement was recorded on the property, allowing cross-access, shared parking, and shared drainage between the PACT Charter School and the Subject Property. Another agreement was recorded in August 2023 to further establish a Stormwater Treatment and Ponding Maintenance Agreement between PACT, the Church of Saint Katharine Drexel, and the City. With the Final Plat, the Applicant proposed to plat one existing outlot into one buildable lot to accommodate a religious institutional use.

Alternatives
Alternative 1: Recommend approval of the Site Plan and Final Plat as recommended by Staff.
Alternative 2: Recommend approval of the Site Plan and Final Plat with modifications based on discussion.
Alternative 3: Recommend denial of the Site Plan and Final Plat based on supporting findings of fact.
 

All costs associated with this request are the Applicant's responsibility.

Staff recommends approval of the Site Plan and Final Plat.

Motion to recommend City Council adopt Resolution #24-093, Approving a Final Plat and Site Plan Review for St. Katharine Drexel Church Addition.