Parul Butala and Sahithya Cheruku with Amerco Real Estate Company (the "Applicant") have submitted a Land Use Application on behalf of U-Haul (the "Permittee") for the development of an 8.73-acre parcel, bounded by U.S. Highway 10 to the north, Riverdale Drive to the south, and the Pearson Farm to the west. The project will consist of eight structures: 

• An approximately 37,728 square foot building on the west side of the lot to be used for climate-controlled self-storage, equipment dispatch and receiving, and retail sales;
• An approximately 11,088 square foot building on the east side of the lot to be used for pod-style self-storage;
• Five buildings, each measuring approximately 4,414 square feet, along the north side of the lot to be used for garage-style self-storage;
• An approximately 1,000 square foot canopy structure for equipment rental return and check-in operations.

In addition to the structures, the Applicant is proposing to construct 12 parking stalls for customers and employees and 17 parking stalls for rental trucks and trailers. There will be an additional parking area for the staging of rental trucks and trailers next to the canopy. In order to accommodate the proposed development, the Applicant is requesting a Conditional Use Permit for Motor Vehicle Rental and Self-Storage Facilities in the B-3 Zoning District.

Staff attempted to notify property owners within 350 feet of the Subject Property, as reflected in the Anoka County Property Records, of the request and the Public Hearing held by the Planning Commission on July 25th. A notice of the Public Hearing was published in the Anoka County Union Herald, the City's official newspaper. A proposed development sign was placed on the property along Riverdale Drive, facing south toward the intersection with Snowy Owl Street.

Subject Property
The Subject Property, 8725 Riverdale Drive NW, is located in the southwestern part of Ramsey, bounded by U.S. Highway 10 to the north, Riverdale Drive to the south, and the Pearson Farm to the west. The Subject Property was recently rezoned to B-3, Regional Business District, alongside the Donna Farms final plat. It is guided for Commercial land uses in the City's 2040 Comprehensive Plan, and is approximately 8.73 acres in size. Surrounding properties to the west and east are also guided for Commercial land uses, and properties to the south (across Riverdale Drive) and north (across U.S. Highway 10 and the BNSF railroad tracks) are guided for Residential land uses.

Site Plan
As noted above, the proposed Site Plan includes eight structures and associated parking areas for customers, employees, and rental trucks and trailers. The proposed development has 18.9 percent building coverage, and 65.2 percent impervious surfacing coverage (including all buildings, pavement, and sidewalks) on the lot. Other commercial developments of this nature in Ramsey have similar percentages. There will be two driveways into the site, each spaced at least 150 feet from the centerlines of Pearson Street and Snowy Owl Street, across Riverdale Drive from the site. This spacing will help facilitate safer traffic patterns into and out of the Subject Property.

The west building is designed to have the main retail entrance at its southeast corner, adjacent to the customer parking and close to the west driveway. The climate-controlled self-storage portion of the west building will have a separate entrance and loading area along the east side of the building. This building will be three stories tall, with a maximum roof height of 38.25 feet and a top-of-parapet height of 42.25 feet.

The east building is designed for U-Haul's U-Box storage, which consists of pod-like storage containers stacked inside the building. This building will have its main entrance facing westward, adjacent to customer parking stalls. There will also be a loading dock along the south side of the building. This building will technically be one story tall, although the clearance height will be taller to accommodate the stacking of the U-box units. This building will have a maximum roof height of 45 feet and a top-of-parapet height of 47.5 feet.

The five garage-style buildings along the north side of the site will each have twenty garage doors (ten on each long side), resulting in 100 garage-style storage units. These buildings are not proposed to be climate-controlled, and there will be no dedicated parking stalls for any of these five buildings. However, there will be 30-foot-wide drive aisles between each of these buildings to allow for customers to drive up to their respective storage unit to load and unload items.

Lastly, the check-in canopy is proposed to be located in the center of the site, just north of a 200-foot-long staging area for rental trucks and trailers. This canopy is intended to be the "landing spot" for customers looking to return rental equipment. The canopy will be built for drive-through operations, and will have a clearance height of 14 feet, which will accommodate all of U-Haul's rental trucks and trailers. Each of these buildings will be 10 feet tall.

Architecture and Building Elevations
All seven buildings are designed to consist primarily of insulated metal panels (Metl-Span Santa Fe) with a stucco appearance.  This material is considered an "other material as may be approved by the Planning Commission and City Council given the building's use and context."  Metals otherwise are limited to an accent material on the building.  The panels proposed by the Applicant will have a higher level of finish than traditional metal panels.   

Accent materials include lyrical articulated accent fins (in orange, lime green, and teal), dark-brown walnut lap siding, tilt-up concrete, and metal trim. The west building will also have storefront windows on the second and third floors at all four corners of the building, as well as a storefront window design on the first floor at the southeast corner of the building, surrounding the retail showroom. The garage doors on the west and east buildings will consist of ultra-grain walnut material, whereas the garage doors on the north storage buildings will be orange metal, similar to the company's branding.

Signage
The east and west buildings are proposed to have signage that meets City Code reqirements.  No signage is proposed to be installed on the garage-style buildings and no freestanding, monument, or directional signs are proposed. If the Applicant chooses to add any additional signs to the site, they will be subject to regulations in City Code.

Parking
The site is not expected to have a large need for employee and visitor parking.  Most of the parking on site will be for the rental vehicles and trailers.  A condition is included in the CUP resolution that requires the installation of "no parking" signs along Riverdale Drive so that trucks and trailers are not parked off site.

Landscaping Plan
As noted in the Environmental Policy Board's (EPB) staff report from July 15th, the submittal includes a Landscape Plan for the project.  The landscaping is focused primarily along the east and west sides of the Subject Property as well as along Riverdale Drive. Staff requested various minor revisions to the original plan set, and it appears that all comments were addressed with their last submittal of revised plans.

Lighting Plan
Section 106-310 of City Code provides lighting regulations for all developments in the City. All photometric readings shall measure less than 0.5 footcandles at the property line and shall measure at least 1.0 footcandle throughout the parking lot in compliance with City Code.  The lighting plan includes a mix of freestanding and wall-mounted light fixtures to illuminate the site. All lighting must be downcast and shielded. Staff is working with the Applicant to ensure compliance with lighting regulations in City Code, as compliance with these regulations is a condition within the Conditional Use Permit resolution.

Utilities
The building will be connected to municipal water and sanitary sewer under Riverdale Drive. There will also be an infiltration basin along the south side of the property to manage storm water. The Applicant is using this basin, as well as additional landscaping along its south edge, to increase visual screening along Riverdale Drive.

Conditional Use Permit Standards for Motor Vehicle Rental and Self-Storage Facilities
As is common for most conditional uses in Ramsey, each of the requested conditional uses has a set of specific performance standards that needs to be met before that use can be approved. Those conditions are listed below, as stated in City Code Section 106-525 (in italics):

• Motor Vehicle Rental
  • In I-1 and I-2 districts, sales and inventory must be located indoors only. No outdoor displays of parking of sales vehicles are permitted. - The Subject Property is zoned B-3, so this condition does not directly apply. However, Staff has requested that all inventory and retail sales of non-motorized equipment, such as trailer hitches, be conducted indoors, and that only trucks and trailers are stored outdoors.
  • The building on the property must occupy at least ten percent of the buildable site. - The proposed building coverage is 18.9 percent of the lot, which satisfies this requirement.
  • A minimum lot area of one buildable acre is required. - The Subject Property is 8.73 acres in area, which satisfies this requirement.
  • Only one state-licensed business entity is allowed per property. - The Applicant has stated their intent to solely occupy the Subject Property as one entity (U-Haul), which satisfies this requirement under Planning Commission's review. State dealer's license applications are reviewed and approved administratively, and thus do not need review and approval by Planning Commission or City Council.
  • State wholesale and lessor licenses may be considered office uses provided no vehicles are located on site. - The Applicant is not proposing to operate a wholesale license, but there will be rental trucks and trailers stored on-site, so this condition does not apply.
  • Vehicle sales inventory and display lots must follow the same design requirements as a parking lot found in section 106-560. All vehicle parking spaces must have direct access to a drive aisle. - The site plan shows 17 standalone parking spaces for rental trucks and trailers, as well as a 200-foot-long shunting area for returned trucks and trailers, arranged for one-way traffic facing westbound. Staff has added several conditions to the CUP to ensure that all rental trucks and trailers are parking in designated parking spaces on-site, and that no vehicles may be parked in the driveways, drive aisles, or on Riverdale Drive.
• Self-Storage Facility
  • In B-2, the rental spaces within the principal structure must be internally-accessed and climate-controlled. - The Subject Property is zoned B-3, so this condition does not directly apply. However, the Applicant is proposing to allow for internally-accessed, climate-controlled storage units within the west building, in accordance with their business model, which satisfies this condition.
  • Multiple buildings on the same property are considered permitted. The architectural design of all buildings must be coordinated. - Staff is working with the Applicant to ensure compliance with this condition, and it has been included in the CUP as a condition of approval.

Additional Considerations
As noted throughout this staff report, there are several outstanding review comments, mainly pertaining to lighting, fire hydrant coverage, and utility specifications. The most recent versions of the architectural, civil, and landscape plans do not reflect these outstanding changes, but they are attached to this staff report for reference. Staff added a condition of approval to the Conditional Use Permit resolution, stating that the Applicant must resolve all outstanding review comments (Changemarks) in ProjectDox. If the City Council approve the Conditional Use Permit, the Applicant must address these comments to meet all applicable code regulations.

Alternatives
Alternative 1: Approve the Conditional Use Permit, contingent upon satisfying the conditions listed in Resolution #24-202 as recommended by the Planning Commission.
Alternative 2: Continue the application to the next City Council meeting, to be held on August 27th, 2024, to give the applicant additional time to update the plans.
Alternative 3: Deny the Conditional Use Permit, based on supporting findings of fact.

At their meeting on July 25th, the Planning Commission voted 6-0 to recommend approval of the Conditional Use Permit, contingent upon satisfying the conditions listed in Resolution #24-202, as recommended by Staff.

Motion to adopt Resolution #24-202, Approving a Conditional Use Permit for Equipment Rental and Self-Storage Facilities at 8725 Riverdale Dr NW, subject to the conditions specified within the Resolution.