Consider a Zoning Map Amendment and Site Plan for Norhart Ramsey at 7975 and 7979 Sunwood Drive NW

Norhart (the "Applicant") has submitted a Land Use Application for development of a 3.88-acre parcel in the COR, bounded by Sunwood Drive to the west, Zeolite Street to the east, future Ramsey Parkway to the north, and the Home2Suites site (currently under construction) to the south. The project will consist of 218 apartment units distributed through 5 floors, a sunken parking garage, and 5,000 square feet of retail space on the ground floor, situated at the southwest corner of the site. The site is currently zoned COR-4b and guided for Mixed-Use in the City's Comprehensive Plan. The site will be platted as part of Waterfront Village. In order to accommodate the proposed development, the Applicant is requesting a Zoning Map Amendment, a Site Plan Review, and a Variance to Height Regulations in the COR Zoning District.

The Planning Commission approved the Variance to Height Regulations in the COR Zoning District at their regular meeting on April 25th, 2024. During that same meeting, the Planning Commission also voted to recommend the City Council approve the Zoning Map Amendment and Site Plan.

Subject Property
The Subject Property is located in the COR, bounded by Sunwood Drive to the west, Zeolite Street to the east, future Ramsey Parkway to the north, and the Home2Suites development to the south. The proposed addresses are 7975 Sunwood Drive for the retail space and 7979 Sunwood Drive for the apartments. 

The Subject Property is currently zoned COR-4b, which was part of the Waterfront Village lot when the City adopted a new city-wide zoning map in November 2023. It is guided for Mixed-Use in the City's 2040 Comprehensive Plan, and is approximately 3.88 acres in size. Surrounding properties are also guided for Mixed-Use, though this will only be the second instance of vertical mixed-use development in the COR, with the first instance being The Residence at the COR Apartment Homes at 7700 Sunwood Drive.

Site Plan
The proposed building has a footprint of 43,866 square feet, and is roughly L-shaped along Sunwood Drive and Ramsey Parkway, with the amenities corner situated at the northwest corner along the roundabout. The north leg of the building is designed to follow the contour of Ramsey Parkway as it curves along the site. Sixty-four (64) percent of the building frontage is located within 20 feet of the right-of-way of Sunwood Drive and Ramsey Parkway, which satisfies the minimum requirement of 60 percent as stated in the COR Framework. The proposed development has 26.3 percent building coverage and 54 percent hard surfacing coverage (including pavement, sidewalks, outdoor patios, and the pool deck) on the lot, resulting in 81.1 percent impervious surfacing coverage on the lot. Other developments of this scale in the COR have similar percentages.

The building is designed to have the main residential entrance in the northwest corner of the building, facing southeast toward the parking lot. Additional secure entrances for residents will be located at the northwest corner of the building (facing the roundabout and aligning with the entrance to ALDI across the street), the southwest corner of the building (along Sunwood Drive), and the southeast corner of the building (to align with the pool house and sidewalk along Zeolite Street). Additional entrances to the retail space will come from both the west (along an outdoor patio fronting along Sunwood Drive) and east (along the parking lot). In addition to the pedestrian entrances to the building, there is a vehicular entrance along the east end of the building to access the sunken parking garage. It should be noted that this is the first instance of underground or sunken parking in the COR. Vehicular access to the lot will come from two driveways: a shared driveway with Home2Suites onto Sunwood Drive, located at the southwest corner of the lot, and a standalone driveway onto Zeolite Street at the southeast corner of the lot. 

In addition to the proposed mixed-use building, the Applicant is proposing a 580-square foot pool house with restrooms and equipment space for an outdoor pool and patio space situated along Zeolite Street between the parking garage entrance ramp and the southeast driveway onto Zeolite Street. There will be a privacy fence and a vegetation buffer between the pool deck and Zeolite Street which will serve as a visual buffer for both residents of the Norhart site and multi-modal traffic along Zeolite Street. The Applicant is also proposing a trash enclosure southeast of the proposed building, with the gates facing northward, away from Home2Suites and all adjacent streets. Both the pool house and the trash enclosure will be designed with similar building materials to the principal building. 

Minimum parking requirements for the 218 apartment units are 1.5 stalls per unit, which results in 327 required parking stalls. Additionally, retail shopping uses require one parking stall for each 200 square feet of floor space for retail uses under 20,000 square feet. While the retail tenant has not yet been determined, which also means the retail build-out of the space has not yet been designed, 25 parking stalls would be required for the full 5,000 square feet of retail space. This results in a total requirement of 352 parking stalls. 344 parking stalls are provided on-site (120 internal parking stalls for residents, and 224 external parking stalls to be shared by residents, employees, and retail customers). It is anticipated by both City Staff and the developer that some of the external parking stalls will be shared throughout the day, as is common in mixed-use developments. There will be on-street parking along Ramsey Parkway to accommodate any overflow of retail customers or visitors. Staff recommends approval of the proposed parking count.

Architecture and Building Elevations
The building will have five stories above-ground, with an additional story of sunken parking that extends up to five feet above grade along portions of the building facade. More information on the building's height can be found under the "Variance" section of this staff report. The building facade will consist of curtain walls (glass with aluminum framing), white EIFS, black EIFS, Magic Pak air conditioners for each residential unit, and a "black Class I material."  Since the Applicant is not anticipating to break ground on this project until Spring 2025, it was requested to approve two material options for the "black Class I material" to account for availability and pricing of materials at the time of construction. The two proposed options include Flextile Eco-Stone (which consists of inorganic material, clay, and ore) and Rear Ventilated Rainscreen (which consists of an aluminum composite material). The City's Building Inspection staff have reviewed all proposed materials, which all appear to comply with Minnesota Building Code. It should be noted that the Applicant has used these same materials on other projects in Oakdale and Cottage Grove. 

It should be noted that the COR Framework does not discuss Class-I and Class-II materials as the Zoning Code does for business districts.  Instead, it discusses the "Use of high quality materials, suggesting a preference towards native materials and masonry elements, with respect for local techniques" (page 27).  Furthermore, the metals and the Flextile would be considered Class-II materials for business buildings in Zoning.  The proposed building materials are more contemporary in nature than discussed by the COR Framework.  The Planning Commission has expressed openness to these designs.  

Signage
The following signs are proposed to be installed on the building and site:

• Channel-letter signage for the future retail tenant on the ground floor, along the west, south, and east sides of the building, each measuring approximately 27.5 square feet in area.
• Channel-letter "Norhart" signage on the roof parapet along the south side of the building, measuring approximately 51 square feet in area.
• Channel-letter "Norhart" signage on the fifth floor along the northwest side of the building, measuring approximately 51 square feet in area.
• Channel-letter "n" (Norhart's logo) on the ground floor along the west side of the building, measuring approximately 100 square feet in area.
• The generic "Retail" sign noted on the south and west elevations will be the location of the retail tenant's signs.    
• Two freestanding monument signs, each measuring 10 feet tall, with a base of 6 feet in width and 1.5 feet in length. Each sign face will measure approximately 60 square feet in area.
  • One sign will be located at the southwest corner of the site, at the intersection of Sunwood Drive and the shared driveway with Home2Suites;
  • The other sign will be located at the northeast corner of the site, at the intersection of Ramsey Parkway and Zeolite Street.

The total proposed signage is 316 square feet for wall signage, divided between 8 total signs, and 240 square feet of display area on the two freestanding monument signs.  It is recommended that the proposed sign package be approved.  

Landscape Plan
As noted in the Environmental Policy Board's (EPB) recommendation from March 18, there are no significant trees on the Subject Property and therefore, there was no need for an inventory or preservation plan.  The Environmental Policy Board may recall that much of the remaining vacant land in The COR was cleared and grubbed last fall.  The proposed landscaping for this project includes forty-five (45) new trees.  The combination of plantings for the hotel project, this project, and the Waterfront Village detached townhome project (north of the Subject Property), along with the City's improvements to The Waterfront, which also includes plantings, will ultimately exceed the reforestation requirements from the clearing and grubbing activities last fall. 

The landscape plan includes a combination of deciduous trees and both evergreen and deciduous shrubs.  The perimeter of the site (all views from public roads and entrances) is well landscaped.  Staff had recommended enlarging the parking lot islands to accommodate trees, which would not only provide some shade but also break up the parking lot with some visual relief.  However, this would result in the loss of parking spaces, which would drop below the minimum number of stalls required.  In lieu of installing trees, Staff has recommended increasing the number of shrubs in these islands.  Staff provided a few other minor comments regarding the Landscape Plan, most specifically limiting plantings in the boulevard along Zeolite Street to include only trees (no shrubs) and to utilize a species from the Connector Street pool of species outlined in The COR Design Framework.

Lighting Plan
Section 106-310 of City Code provides lighting regulations for all developments in the City. All photometric readings will measure less than 0.5 footcandles at the property line and will measure at least 1.0 footcandle throughout the parking lot in compliance with City Code.  All lighting must be downcast and shielded.  The proposed lighting plan shows a 27-foot mounting.  It is recommended that the plans be modified to use a 20-foot mounting to match Home2Suites to the south.  Additional light poles are likely required to meet the light levels.   

Utilities
The building will be connected to municipal water via a stub along the south edge of the property, and connected to sanitary sewer via a stub to the north along Ramsey Parkway, which will be constructed as part of COR Infrastructure Project currently underway.

Stormwater Management
All stormwater from the site will be directed into a network of pipes that flow into the large regional retention basin in Waterfront Park then into the regional infiltration basin at the southeast portion of the COR.  A separate system of pipes will collect stormwater from a trench drain at the bottom of the parking garage ramp. This will help prevent back-up and overflow of stormwater pipes during high-precipitation weather events.  The Applicant will contribute the cost of constructing a storm water basin on-site into the regional basin.  

Zoning Map Amendment
The Subject Property was rezoned to COR-4b back in November 2023 to accommodate the Waterfront Village development to the north, since the Subject Property was included as part of that larger parcel at that time. However, the COR-4b zoning district allows mutli-family residential uses, but only to a density of 4 to 15 units per acre. The COR-4c zoning district allows 15 or more units per acre, with a theoretical maximum density of 75 units per acre, as defined by the City's 2040 Comprehensive Plan. The only other instance of the COR-4c zoning district in the City is Greenway Terrace Apartments, which was approved in 2017 for a residential density of 26.7 units per acre. The Applicant's proposed density is 56.2 units per acre, which is comparable to Affinity at Ramsey (51.8) and The Residence at the COR (75.9), though both of those developments are zoned COR-1.

To accommodate the proposed density of 56.2 residential units per acre, the Applicant is requesting a Zoning Map Amendment from COR-4b to COR-4c. This was presented to the Planning Commission in February 2024 go receive direction on how to handle the density (via a text amendment or a map amendment).  

Variance
As noted above, the Applicant is requesting a Variance to the Height Regulations in the COR Framework to allow for a fifth story in the COR-4c zoning district. The Applicant has stated that the development cannot work without a fifth story, and has stated their practical difficulty through the following items:

• The development needs at least 200 residential units to be economically feasible and to comply with the terms of the Purchase Agreement with the City. Eliminating the fifth story would result in a loss of 46 residential units, leaving only 172 available, which would be insufficient for both the Applicant's pro forma and the City's Purchase Agreement.
• The Applicant is working to maximize the green space on the site while minimizing the building footprint. If the fifth story is eliminated, the building footprint will have to increase, resulting in a loss of green space, landscaped areas, and residential amenities.

The building's proposed height is as follows:

• 54.5 feet from the 1st Floor/Highest Grade to the Roof Line
• 56.5 feet from the 1st Floor/Highest Grade to the Top of the Parapet
• 59.5 feet from the Lowest Grade to the Roof Line
• 61.5 feet from the Lowest Grade to the Top of the Parapet

The COR zoning districts specify height regulations by the number of stories instead of the height in feet. Specifially, the COR-4b and COR-4c zoning districts allow buildings up to 4 stories in height, and the COR-1 zoning district allows buildings between 2 and 5 stories in height. For context, building regulations in the R-3 zoning district allow for a 60-foot-tall building by-right. The proposed building will be 5 stories above-ground, with an additional story of sunken parking that extends up to five feet above grade along portions of the building facade. Since the sunken parking's above-ground exposure does not exceed 6 feet above grade, it does not meet the definition of a "story" in City Code and, thus, does not count towards the height of the building in the COR Framework. 

When comparing the proposed building to other similar residential and mixed-use buildings in the COR, the Norhart building is within one foot of the height of Affinity at Ramsey (54 feet) and The Residence at the COR (53.5 feet), and the same height at Parkview East (54.5 feet), as measured from the highest grade to the roof peak. All of these other buildings are 4 stories tall, and two of these buildings have gabled roofs. The Residence at the COR has a flat roof, but its first floor is taller than the other floors to accommodate the retail space and walk-up townhomes along Sunwood Drive.

Three Factor Test
Per State Statute, a variance can be issued if zoning provisions result in practical difficulties for a property owner. This includes reasonableness, uniqueness, and essential character.

• Reasonableness: Impervious surfacing and buildings are essential components of land development. The subject property has been vacant since the establishment of the COR Framework, and is set aside for mixed-use development. Several other developments in the COR have included buildings of similar size and impervious surfacing of similar scale to the proposed development.
• Uniqueness: The proposed development is unique in that it will be the first in the COR district to include sunken or underground parking, which lessens the impervious surfacing but increases the building height. Additionally, there is a paved driveway that encroaches onto the Subject Property's southern edge to provide shared access to Home2Suites. This driveway increases the impervious surfacing coverage of the lot and decreases the available land to build upon, thus necessitating the fifth story to accommodate the development.
• Essential Character: The Subject Property and neighboring properties are zoned and guided for a mix of commercial and residential land uses. Thus, a mixed-use development on the Subject Property meets the essential character of the neighborhood.

City Code Section 106-220 discusses the practical difficulties that are allowed to be used for justifying variances.  Among them, "the variance, if granted, will not alter the essential character of the locality" is used to show that the structure in question will blend in.  The proposed height is consistent with other multi-family in the COR plus the adjacent Hilton Home2 Suites building.  Additionally, the requested variance meets all conditions in the three-factor test. Staff recommends approval of the variance.

Alternatives
Alternative 1: Approve the Site Plan, and introduce the Ordinance for the Zoning Map Amendment, as recommended by Planning Commission and Staff.
Alternative 2: Approve the Site Plan with modifications based on discussion, and introduce the Ordinance for the Zoning Map Amendment.
Alternative 3: Deny the Site Plan based on supported findings of fact.
 

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

The property is City-owned and the Applicant would be purchasing the property.  Development fees will be calculated at the time of writing the Development Agreement.

At its meeting on April 25, 2024, the Planning Commission voted 4-1 to approve the Variance to Height Regulations in the COR Zoning District. During that same meeting, the Planning Commission also voted 4-1 to recommend the City Council approve the Site Plan and Zoning Map Amendment from COR-4b to COR-4c.

The motion to approve the site plan contingent upon rezoning is provided.  If the Council chooses to introduce the rezoning ordinance and adopt this resolution, only the adoption of ordinance will be brought back on May 28.  Or, the Council could not take action tonight on the site plan resolution and consider it after adoption of the rezoning ordinance.  

Motion to waive the City Charter provision to read the ordinance aloud and introduce Ordinance #24-07, rezoning a portion of the COR from COR-4b to COR-4c for Norhart Ramsey.

Roll call vote
Councilmember Olson
Councilmember Woestehoff
Councilmember Specht
Councilmember Musgrove
Councilmember Howell
Councilmember Riley
Mayor Kuzma

-and-

Motion to adopt Resolution #24-114, Approving a Site Plan for Norhart Ramsey at 7975 and 7979 Sunwood Drive NW, contingent upon rezoning the property.