Adopt Resolution #25-048 Approving the Final Plat for Emerald Estates (Project No. 24-123); Case of Landform Professional Services, LLC

The City has received a Land Use Application from Landform Professional Services, LLC (the "Applicant") for Final Plat approval of a single-family residential subdivision consisting of thirteen (13) lots located on 181st Avenue, west of Xenolith Street (the "Subject Property"). 

Staff attempted to notify property owners within 700 feet of the Subject Property, as reflected in the Anoka County Property Records, of the request for Preliminary Plat review by the Planning Commission on December 19, 2024.  A "proposed development" sign was placed on the Subject Property and a notice was also published in the Anoka County Union Herald Newspaper.  Additional notice is not required when considering action on a Final Plat.

General Project Overview
The Subject Property is approximately 35.93 acres in size.  The owners of the Subject Property, Alan and Joni Greenwaldt (the "Property Owners"), also own the forty (40) acre parcel west of the Subject Property.  However, that parcel is not subject to this Land Use Application.  The Applicant is proposing to plat the Subject Property into thirteen (13), single family residential lots along the south side of 181st Avenue.  Each lot will be served by a private well and septic system and each lot will have direct access to 181st Avenue.  There are no roads proposed to be constructed.  The Applicant has provided a memorandum, which is attached to this case, outlining why they have opted not to incorporate a service road or cul-de-sac into the project in an attempt to reduce the number of direct accesses to 181st Avenue (as had been requested by the Planning Commission as part of their review of the Sketch Plan).  Individual stormwater basins are proposed for each lot, rather than a single, larger pond for the overall development (this results in less land disturbance, but will require individual Stormwater Maintenance Agreements to be recorded against each of the lots).

Zoning and Guidance
The Subject Property is zoned Rural Residential and is guided as Rural Developing in the 2040 Comprehensive Plan.  The Rural Residential zoning district requires a minimum lot size of 2.5 acres and a minimum lot width of 200 feet.  Each of the proposed lots meets or exceeds these standards.  The Applicant did submit exhibits for Lots 12 & 13 verifying that they both meet the buildability standard (a 60-foot by 100-foot area that excludes wetland, wetland setback, Floodway, and/or steep slopes). 

The surrounding parcels to the east, west, and south are all zoned Rural Residential and are all guided as Rural Developing in the Comprehensive Plan as well.  181st Avenue represents the border between Ramsey and Nowthen, so the parcels north of the Subject Property are located in the city of Nowthen.  Surrounding parcels range in size from about 4.8 acres to about 40 acres (this parcel is also owned by the Property Owners, but is not a part of this application).

Streets and Access
The Final Plat mirrors the Preliminary Plat (and the Sketch Plan), including no new proposed roads.  Each lot would have a driveway directly to 181st Avenue.  The Applicant has included a driveway bump-out or turn-around for each driveway, so that rather than backing out on to 181st Avenue, one can easily turn their vehicle around and pull forward on to 181st Avenue.  The Applicant has provided a narrative/memorandum supporting the layout as proposed rather than incorporating a service road or cul-de-sac to reduce the number of direct points of access onto 181st Avenue.  The narrative states, among other things, that a covenant will be filed against each lot requiring a driveway turn-around.  Furthermore, while the City of Ramsey and Anoka County do not have driveway spacing standards, the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) does have an Access Management Manual, which includes driveway spacing recommendations based on the type of roadway and speed limit.  181st Avenue, also known as County Road 64, is categorized as a Type 2 Rural Road and has a posted speed limit of 55 miles per hour.  Based on this data, the MnDOT Access Management Manual recommends a minimum spacing of 100 feet between driveways, which this plan meets and, in some cases, even exceeds.

The Applicant has modified the driveway configuration for Lot 7 after the review of the Sketch Plan. It was noted that this driveway curved on to Lot 8 to avoid the wetland and wetland setback area.  However, the configuration has been modified now so that it stays outside the wetland and wetland setback to the west and provides a five (5) foot driveway setback along the eastern boundary.

Staff forwarded the Final Plat, including the memorandum/narrative addressing the driveways, to the Anoka County Highway Department (ACHD) for review and comment.  Their review comments, from both the Sketch Plan and Preliminary Plat, have been attached to this case for reference.  Anoka County's only comment on the Final Plat was that they'd still prefer to see the driveways grouped along shared lot lines, where possible.  Please note that at the time of building permit submittal, copies of the requisite permits from Anoka County (for work occurring in their right-of-way, such as for driveway and culvert installation) will need to be provided.  This condition will be incorporated into the Development Agreement.

The existing conditions, from Armstrong Boulevard to just west of the Subject Property, are similar to what is proposed.  There are presently thirteen (13) homes having driveways directly onto 181st Avenue (between Xenolith Street and Armstrong Boulevard).  Staff looked at the existing MnDOT crash data and the Average Daily Trips (ADT) for this stretch of 181st Avenue to see if there was any sort of pattern of safety concerns.  The most current ADT information for 181st Avenue is from 2022, and is 3,096 vehicles per day, which is fairly low for a county highway (for comparison, the ADT of Nowthen Boulevard, at the intersection with 181st Avenue, is 7,302).  The available crash data from MnDOT's Crash Mapping Analysis Tool shows that there have been six (6) accidents on 181st Avenue, between Armstrong Boulevard and Xenolith Street, dating back to 2017.  Five (5) of those were single-car accidents resulting from either hitting an animal or sliding off the road due to wet/slippery conditions.  In the past seven years, there's only been one accident that involved multiple vehicles on 181st Avenue.  

Natural Resources
The Subject Property is heavily wooded and nearly half of it consists of wetland.  There are some areas designated as floodplain as well (although the vast majority of floodplain is contained within wetlands, and there are no proposed impacts to wetlands).  The submittal includes both a Tree Inventory and a Landscape Plan.  As proposed, the plans do comply with the tree preservation standards.  However, since these lots are intended to be custom design/build, which could result in the homes being located elsewhere on a lot than shown, as part of the building permit submittal for each lot, the builder will need to provide a detailed tree inventory for the lot to verify continued compliance with the tree preservation standards.  

Existing vegetation may satisfy the planting requirement for most, if not all, lots.  But, since the Tree Inventory lacks certain information at this time (since each lot is to be custom graded to accommodate a selected house-style, specifically which trees are slated for removal and preservation are not known at this time), Staff requested a Landscape Plan be submitted.  The Landscape Plan meets the minimum standards for this project.

The Environmental Policy Board reviewed the natural resources aspects of this project at their December 16, 2024, meeting and recommended approval, contingent upon compliance with Staff's review comments.

The Planning Commission held a Public Hearing at their December 19, 2024, meeting.  One resident spoke on the project, and his comments focused primarily on concerns about potential degradation of the natural features (wetlands) resulting from development.  By a 4-1 vote, the Planning Commission recommended approval of the Preliminary Plat, contingent upon compliance with Staff's review comments.  The opposing vote was cast due to safety concerns about adding thirteen (13) driveways directly on to 181st Avenue.

The City Council reviewed and approved the Preliminary Plat at their January 14, 2025 meeting.

Alternatives

Alternative 1: Approve the Final Plat.  The Final Plat mirrors the Preliminary Plat.  All lots meet the bulk standards for the Rural Residential zoning district.  The custom design/build approach should provide an opportunity to minimize impacts to natural resources on site.  Staff supports this alternative.

Alternative 2: Approve the Final Plat with modifications.  This action would be based on City Council discussion.

Alternative 3: Do not approve the Final Plat, based on certain findings.  As noted, the Final Plat matches the Preliminary Plat and thus, Staff does not support this alternative.

The Applicant is responsible for all costs associated with this application.

Staff recommends approving the final plat of Emerald Estates.

Motion to adopt Resolution #25-048 approving the Final Plat for Emerald Estates.