Review Sketch Plan for Riverstone South; Case of Capstone Homes

The purpose of this case is to review a Sketch Plan for a project known as Riverstone South proposed by Capstone Homes located on the south side of Highway 10/160 east of Bowers Drive. The purpose of Sketch Plan Review is to provide high-level direction prior to the Developer preparing a Preliminary Plat. This is the time to indicate level of overall support and identify any red flags. 

The Planning Commission and City Council have been discussing this project in planning stages since the beginning of 2020 along with multiple opportunities for public comment. The previous policy direction of the Planning Commission and City Council are summarized in the attached Planning Framework.

In addition to review of the Sketch Plan at the Regular Planning Commission Meeting, a hybrid In-Person/Virtual Open House is also scheduled for August 6 at 5:30 in the Lake Itasca Room or online at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83564456992. 

Notification of the Sketch Plan Review was sent via Standard US Mail for all Property Owners, according to Anoka County Property Records, within 700 feet of the Subject Property. Additional signage has been placed on the Subject Property. Staff also worked with nearby Property Owners prior to a formal application.

Comprehensive Plan

The Comprehensive Plan guides this area as LDR - Low Density Residential. This designation guides future development at 3-4 units per acre. 

The Net Density of the site as a whole after factoring out the 7 acres preserved for forestry/open space preservation is 3.38 units per acre. However, Staff is requesting that Net Density Calculations be provided for each individual lot type provided (65 foot wide lots, 55 foot wide lots and 40 foot wide lots). It is anticipated that the area for the 40 foot wide lots as detached townhomes will need a Comprehensive Plan Amendment to MDR - Medium Density Residential. 

Zoning District

The Subject Property is in the process of a Zoning Amendment for consistency with the 2040 Comprehensive Plan. Primarily as it relates to this scope of review, the following requirements are noted.
 

Minimum Lot Width	80 feet
Minimum Lot Size	10,800 square feet 1/4 acre

With that in mind, a Zoning Amendment will be required anyway. The following Zoning Districts will be required for this project.
 

65 Foot Wide Lots	R-1 Residential (Villa) District
55 Foot Wide Lots	R-2 Residential (Detached Villa) District
40 Foot Wide Lots	R-2 Residential (Townhome) District

The Subject Property is also located in the Mississippi River Corridor Critical Area (MRCCA), a designation of the State of Minnesota. Said rules were recently updated. The project generally conforms with the updated rules. The City will need to revise its Critical Area Ordinance as part of this project. 

Tree Preservation

A significant amount of discussion has centered on preserving portions of the existing forestry cover. The canopy coverage of this forest is high-quality. While the understory has had some disturbance due to previous grazing by farm animals, the Planning Commission, Environmental Policy Board and City Council have agreed that the quality of the ecological area is worth attempting to protect portions thereof. 

Through discussions, the Developer is proposing to convey fee title of approximately 7 acres along the back side of Bowers Drive for purposes of tree preservation. Staff recommends that this is contingent upon the City successfully securing a third-party funding source intended for natural resource protection. This funding and implementation plan will continue to be discussed with Preliminary Plat. 

Public Park

The proposed project includes a 1 acre public park. The Park and Recreation Commission is supportive of this general approach. There are limited recreation areas in this area including for existing residents in the Bowers Drive Neighborhood and Alpaca Estates Neighborhood closer to Armstrong Boulevard. Eventually, the area of the east of the Subject Property is anticipated to develop as single-family residential as well. The Park and Recreation Commission feel a public park in this area is warranted. 

In addition, this park is anticipated to be a nature-based park intended to preserve existing trees on the site with a tree fort theme. 

Riverdale Drive

The project will require the extension of Riverdale Drive, a collector road serving multiple neighborhoods and business districts. The Riverdale Drive Extension is part of the long term plans to improve safety and mobility of Highway 10/169 regardless of future development. Additional detail is known since previous review. Staff will continue to work with the Developer on final design with potential construction in 2021. Additional detail on the funding approach is included in the attached Policy Framework. 

Staff has been working with multiple residents on refining the final layout. Staff believes that the City, Developer and Property Owner are closer to a compromise with additional refinements to be made.

Access to Highway 10

Part of this project will result in the existing access from Bowers Drive to Highway 10/169 being closed. The new Riverdale Drive will be the new connection to Highway 10/169 as a right-in/right-out only. There will be no center median opening to access from westbound Highway 10. Bowers Drive residents will need to access westbound Highway 10/169 from Armstrong Boulevard.

Several residents have inquired about not allowing Riverdale Drive to connect to Highway 10. This would result in a long single access point to several hundred homes (Bowers Drive plus Riverstone South). This would not be consistent with City Code requirements and require a Variance. Staff is not supportive of this request due to public safety concerns. 

Second Bowers Drive Access

It has long been discussed providing a second access to Bowers Drive. Bowers Drive represents the longest dead end street in the community and exceeds current City Code requirements. First and foremost, the City acknowledges the unique neighborhood character of Bowers Drive and strives to protect this character. While the City feels strongly that a second connection is necessary and warranted, the City also believes that there is a way to accomplish this without traffic impacts. The connection point and road design can be accomplished in such a way that traffic modeling will demonstrate this this connection point will not result in additional traffic counts. In fact, Staff believes this may prove to be a benefit to Bowers Drive rather than a detriment. 

Staff acknowledges that some on Bowers Drive are opposed to this connection, including the two new homes on either side of this connection point (currently an Outlot preserved for future road connection).

There are two general options on the table.

1. Full Road Connection
2. Restricted Public Safety Access

The Planning Commission previously recommended a full road connection. The City Council left both options on the table for further analysis and discussion. Staff generally prefers a public road connection with reduced width, but is open to policy direction. 

Processing of this case is the responsibility of the Applicant. 

There is a Cost Share Agreement in place for the extension of Riverdale Drive that has the Developer, Property Owner and City contributing to the costs of this Collector Road serving multiple neighborhoods and areas and is part of the Ramsey Gateway Plan (US Highway 10/169). 

Based on discussion. The City has broad policy discretion as the request requires the approval of a Zoning Amendment (and possibly a Comprehensive Plan Amendment) due to lot sizes and densities. 

Based on discussion. Provide feedback to the Developer as part of the plan development for the next stage in the process known as Preliminary Plat. Preliminary Plat is the most crucial stage in the subdivision process.