Adopt Resolution #25-234, Approving a Site Plan Review for a Mixed-Use Building at 7979 Sunwood Drive NW (Roers)

Roers (the "Applicant") has submitted a Land Use Application for development of a 3.88-acre parcel in the COR, located at 7979 Sunwood Drive NW and legally described as Lot 1, Block 7, Waterfront Village (the "Subject Property"). The Applicant submitted architectural plans from JLG and civil plans from Loucks. The project will consist of 191 apartment units distributed across 5 floors, a sunken parking garage, and approximately 5,000 square feet of retail space on the ground floor, situated at the southwest corner of the site. The site is zoned COR-4c and guided for Mixed Use in the City's 2040 Comprehensive Plan. The Applicant is working with the City's EDA to purchase the site for the proposed development. To accommodate the proposed development, the Applicant is requesting a Site Plan Review.

A similar proposal by Norhart was approved for this same site. At that time, the site was platted, rezoned, and received a Variance to Height Regulations in the COR, allowing for a fifth story and a sunken parking garage that is partially exposed above-grade. Norhart withdrew their Purchase Agreement with the EDA earlier this year, which reopened the site for development. Roers came forward with their own development proposal that has a similar residential density and commercial space, but it has several distinct architectural changes and improvements that warrant a new Site Plan Review.

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 October 2nd. A notice of the Public Hearing was published in the Anoka County UnionHerald, the City's official newspaper. The following "proposed development" signs were placed on the property: a double-sided sign along Sunwood Drive facing westbound and eastbound traffic, and a single-sided sign facing the intersection of Ramsey Parkway and Zeolite Street.

Subject Property
The Subject Property is located in the COR, bounded by Sunwood Drive to the west, Zeolite Street to the east, Ramsey Parkway to the north, and Home2 Suites to the south. The Subject Property was platted with Waterfront Village, which is the detached townhome development north of the site across Ramsey Parkway. The Subject Property is zoned COR-4c, which allows for several commercial uses and high-density residential between 15 and 75 units per acre. It is guided for Mixed Use in the City's 2040 Comprehensive Plan, as are other surrounding properties in the COR. The proposed building will contain 191 residential units and approximately 5,000 square feet of retail space.  The proposed density is 49.35 units per acre which is in conformance with the Comprehensive Plan.  This building will only be the third instance of vertical mixed-use development in the COR, with the first two instances being The Residence at the COR Apartment Homes (7700 Sunwood Drive NW) and Skyline on Sunwood (7545 Sunwood Drive NW).  

Site Plan
The proposed building has a footprint of 44,155 square feet (26.2% lot coverage). The building is roughly L-shaped along Sunwood Drive and Ramsey Parkway. 61.5% of the building facade is located within 20 feet of the right-of-way of Sunwood Drive and Ramsey Parkway, which satisfies the minimum requirement of 60% as stated in the COR Framework. The proposed development has 79.3% impervious area, including the building footprint, parking lot, and shared driveway with Home2 Suites. Other developments of this scale in the COR have similar lot coverage.

The building is designed to have two secure main entrances at the northwest corner of the building. One main entrance will face southeast toward the parking lot, while the other will face northwest toward the roundabout. This space will be bookended by the resident amenities of co-working space, parcel room, mailboxes, lobby, and leasing office. Additional secure residential entrances will be located along the west, south, and southeast ends of the building. The retail space is located at the southwest corner of the building, with primary entrances facing Sunwood Drive. This retail space will be accompanied by a wide sidewalk at grade level to encourage activity to activate the storefront, such as outdoor dining. The pool is elevated slightly above grade along the south side of the building along the fitness and community rooms. There will be four walk-up units along Ramsey Parkway and three walk-up units along Sunwood Drive, accenting the streetscape and providing an additional option for residents. 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 Subject Property will come from two driveways: an existing shared driveway with Home2 Suites 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. The building placement and ramp to the parking garage provide visual screening of the parking lot from all adjacent streets.

In addition to the proposed mixed-use building, the Applicant is proposing two trash enclosures: one near the retail space at the southwest corner of the building to serve the retail user(s), and one near the southeast entrance to the site. The residential part of the building will have trash chutes that discharge into a designated room for dumpsters in the underground parking garage. It is Staff's understanding that when trash is scheduled for pickup, the Applicant's building maintenance staff will move the full dumpsters out to the trash enclosure along Zeolite Street. Both trash enclosures will be architecturally compatible with the building.

Minimum parking requirements for the 191 apartment units are 1.5 stalls per unit, which results in 287 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 in area. 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 312 parking stalls. The Applicant is proposing to construct 313 parking stalls (117 internal parking stalls for residents, and 196 surface parking stalls to be shared by residents, employees, and retail customers). It is anticipated by both City Staff and the Applicant that some of the external parking stalls will be shared throughout the day, as is common in mixed-use developments. If general parking requirements exceed supply, there are several on-street parking spaces along Ramsey Parkway to accommodate any overflow of retail customers or visitors. The parking areas will have spaces for electric vehicles. 

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. The building's overall height (as measured from the retail storefront grade to the top of the building's parapet) is 60 feet. The building facade will consist of brick masonry, three colors of fiber cement board, two styles of refinished metal, glass, and prefabricated metal balconies. Due to the building's size and scale, the Applicant is using different combinations of the building materials to break up the facade and provide visual interest. Additionally, a rooftop terrace will be located on the fifth floor facing north, providing another amenity to residents while breaking up the building's north facade. The proposed building materials are consistent with the spirit and intent of the COR Framework while providing an elevated and contemporary design.

Signage
As noted during the development and adoption of Chapter 108, Ramsey's Sign Code, signage in the COR will be reviewed and approved administratively. Staff will work with the Applicant as construction commences to review proposed signage for the residential and commercial components of the building.

Landscape Plan
The Landscape Plan includes street trees along Ramsey Parkway (Sienna Glen Maple) and Zeolite Street (Boulevard Linden) and a mix of trees, shrubs, and ornamental grasses internal to the site.  There are also numerous trees either adjacent to the surface parking stalls or in the raised islands within the parking lot.  The existing street trees in the boulevard along Sunwood Drive will be protected and preserved throughout the construction process.  The Landscape Plan does a good job of not only addressing the streetscape requirements of The COR, but also ensuring the interior of the Subject Property is well landscaped.  Staff has identified a few corrections that are necessary and has also included some recommendations for the Applicant to consider, but there are no major concerns with what is proposed. 

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 20-foot mounting for light poles in the parking lot, which match those for Home2 Suites to the south, as well as several 12-foot pedestrian-oriented light poles and various wall-mounted light fixtures to provide visual interest.

Utilities
The building will be connected to municipal water via a stub at the northwest corner of the property. There will be two other municipal water connections (one to the south, and the other to the east) to serve fire hydrants in the parking lot. Additionally, the building will be connected to sanitary sewer via a stub to the north along Ramsey Parkway, which was constructed as part of the COR Infrastructure Project.

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. In lieu of constructing a storm water basin on-site, the Applicant will contribute the cost of constructing a storm water basin on-site into a fund to maintain the regional basin.  

Alternatives
Alternative 1: Approve the Site Plan, as requested by the Applicant and recommended by the Planning Commission.
Alternative 2: Approve the Site Plan with modifications based on discussion.
Alternative 3: Deny of the Site Plan based on supporting 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 Development Agreement.

At their regular meeting on October 2nd, the Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend approval of the Site Plan.

Motion to adopt Resolution #25-234, Approving a Site Plan for a Mixed-Use Building at 7979 Sunwood Drive NW.