Review Updated Alternative Urbanwide Area Review (AUAR) for The COR (Project No. 18-112)

In 2003, the City Council adopted Resolution #03-01-012 ordering an Alternative Urbanwide Area Review (AUAR) for The COR (formerly known as Ramsey Town Center). An AUAR is an environmental review process that can be used in lieu of more traditional environmental reviews such as Environmental Assessment Worksheets (EAW) and Environmental Impact Statements (EIS), as long as the geographic area is covered by an acceptable Comprehensive Plan. When considering The COR as a whole, it is likely that a series of individual projects in short sequence could trigger the need for an EAW. For example, the recent project known as Affinity at Ramsey likely would have triggered the need for an EAW based on the number of projects approved in the past number of years.

The benefit of an AUAR is that it looks at the cumulative impacts of planned or anticipated development within a specific geographic area, whereas an EAW and/or EIS are project specific and typically can add significant time and cost to a proposed development. This can assist with reviewing cumulative potential effects to the environment, which may result from multiple developments within the specified geographic area, and can be done in advance of those developments to eliminate potential project delays. However, an AUAR does need to be updated every five (5) years until the geographic area is fully developed.

In 2013, the City ordered an updated AUAR. which expires this year.  Earlier this year, the City Council authorized engaging the services of WSB to complete an update to The COR AUAR.  Since this is an update to an existing AUAR, it really focuses on what's been developed since the last update, whether there have been any significant changes to the envisioned development plan, and looks at whether there have been any new findings related to threatened or endangered species.

WSB has completed a draft update of The COR AUAR (attached).  There have been no new findings of threatened or endangered species (based on the Natural Heritage Information System).  There have been no significant deviations or changes to the overall vision or development plan for The COR since the last update.  The document has been updated with all development within The COR since the last update and the Mitigation Plan has also been updated as well.

Ultimately, Staff will be bringing forward this planning document for City Council authorization to distribute the updated AUAR to the requisite agencies.  The updated AUAR also needs to be submitted to the Environmental Quatlity Board (state agency) for a ten (10) day comment period.  Upon completion of the comment period, the City will need to develop responses to any comments received and add them as an apendix to the document.  It then must go back to City Council for final adoption.

 

The cost of updating The COR AUAR is being funded through TIF DIstrict 14.

Motion to recommend City Council authorize Staff to distribute The COR AUAR update for comments.