DEVELOPMENT BUSINESS - Bryan K. Schafer, Planning and Community Development Director
Title
SECOND READING
GRANTING A REZONING FROM I-1 (LIGHT INDUSTRIAL) TO I-2A (HEAVY INDUSTRIAL) AT 9949 NAPLES STREET NE. CROWN ENTERPRISES, INC. (CASE FILE NO. 15-0051/BKS)
Schedule of Actions
|
Planning Commission (Public Hearing) |
10/13/15 |
|
City Council (1st Reading) |
11/19/15 |
|
City Council (2nd Reading) |
12/10/15 |
|
Action Deadline |
01/07/16 |
Planning Commission Action
The Planning Commission voted 4-1 (Commissioner York) to deny the rezoning, comprehensive plan and conditional use permit based on the rationale stated in the staff report. Public comment from the adjacent light industrial property to the south included support for denial of the request including concern with setting a precedence of this type of request in the future.
Background
Issue Summary: Crown Enterprises Inc wishes to purchase a 40 acre parcel of land located between Naples Street and 35W and construct a 67,000 sq foot cross dock transfer facility as well as a 12,000 sq foot truck maintenance building. The site in question is not zoned for this use as it is I-1 (Light Industrial). The applications therefore include a request by the applicant to reguide and rezone the property to I-2A (Heavy Industrial). This is not an action that is supported or recommended by staff as it believed to be detrimental to the City’s development goals for this area along 35W as well as possibly harming other developed light industrial/office uses in the neighborhood.
Project Details
Crown Enterprises is a national truck freight company with a facility located in the City of Mounds View. They have outgrown their space and have looked for alternative sites around the north metro including sites in Blaine. The use requires I-2A (Heavy Industrial) zoning and while there are several vacant I-2A sites in Blaine they are too small for this facility. Their decision to pursue the Naples Street site was made knowing that the site was not zoned or guided properly and that the City staff position was not favorable. Their proposal was also presented to the City Council at a workshop in June of this year and the council concurred that there was not support for the project. Regardless of that direction provided at the workshop, Crown chose to make formal applications and take it through the full process.
The site is just over 40 acres in size with significant wetland areas scattered around the site. As you can see from the site plan, they are proposing to build on the western portion of the site and utilize the eastern side for wetland mitigation. The site (hard surface area) is just over 10.5 acres in size. Wetland impacts are estimated at just under 3 acres. Approximately 27 acres of storm water improvements and wetland mitigation is proposed along the east half of the site. While applications have been made to the Rice Creek Watershed and the US Army Corp of Engineers, no agency concurrence or permits have been issued. Because of that, this application package should not be presented to the City Council until concurrence has been received from those two agencies.
The site utilizes one primary access point from Naples Street to access both the terminal as well as the areas used for vehicle maintenance and employee parking. The terminal building will contain a small office on the front of the building and a 112 door cross dock facility with 56 doors on each side. The 12,000 square foot maintenance building will be used to perform work on the truck and trailer fleet owned by Crown. The site is proposed to be landscaped to meet the City’s zoning standards. The buildings will be consistent with other masonry heavy industrial buildings with the front of the office designed at a higher standard with a nice mix of materials and architecture.
Crown would be expected to employ approximately 70-80 employees split between management, office staff, drivers (over 50%), dock personnel and vehicle maintenance. With 80 employees they would have an employment base of eight (8) employees per acre (based on their 10 acres of developed site) which is in the range of other heavy industrial uses but lower then typical light industrial uses.
There a number of City Goals that are stated in the City’s 2030 Comprehensive Plan that guide development and Economic Development for the City. Several of these are very pertinent to this issue:
“The City will continue to implement practices to improve the image along major roadway corridors relating to building design, architecture and materials, signage, land use and landscaping”.
“The City will encourage, through land use, development that creates access to sustainable jobs for the residents of Blaine. Development of corporate offices, professional and financial services, research, medical manufacturing and medical services, education and emerging industrial technology will be focal points in helping to create a well balanced and vital economy for the City and its residents.
The sites (including this parcel) between Naples Street and 35W are not without development challenges based on the heavy truck traffic generated by the existing heavy industrial uses that are located west of Naples. Almost all of these sites also contain scattered wetlands making larger scale development more difficult.
Moving forward the City should facilitate a discussion with the development community and property owners to explore more flexible zoning options for this area that could include a wider option of office/industrial/warehouse uses. Given these challenges, large scale office type development is unlikely but staff believes there are better options than the proposed rezoning and land use amendments to allow a heavy trucking use. As stated previously staff does not recommend approval of the proposed land use and zoning changes based on the rationale outlined below:
1. Naples Street has been used as a zoning and land use division for over 20 years by allowing the heavier industrial uses on those lots to the west that back onto other heavy industrial uses and large wetland buffers while retaining light industrial uses on those parcels east of Naples that back onto and are visible from 35W.
2. Changing the zoning on this parcel will result in an increase of heavy trucking use along Naples Street with an estimated 126 truck trips per day (63 in and 63 out). The site access (Naples Street) is the primary access point for commuters using the METC Park n Ride.
3. This site (developed portion) would be developed with a building coverage of just under 15%. Light industrial uses typically have building coverage rates in the 20-25% range which results in higher employment numbers. The CSM business park along 35W has five buildings on sites covering 36 developed acres. While employment numbers vary from month to month between the five buildings, generally over 500 employees are located on the 36 acres for an employment base of 14 employees per acre.
4. Lastly and most important, the rezoning and re-guiding of this parcel would be precedent setting and would likely lead to the rezoning of other parcels further south on Naples. There are other truck related companies that are actively looking for sites with freeway access and more space. The other sites remaining along 35W (from the Crown site to the METC Park n Ride) would, with this action, be opened up to the trucking industry and there would be little rationale available for the City to defend a denial on other requests.
The domino effect of rezoning and re-guiding this area to allow heavy truck uses will have a cumulative negative impact on the issues outlined above related to increased truck traffic, negative site views from 35W, lower employment numbers, lower tax values, etc. Changes to the City’s Comprehensive Plan, both in terms of land use as well as Economic Development, should be made carefully and as part of an effort to better the conditions of the City and its residents. This proposal would be detrimental to the stated goals of the City.
Recommendation
If the City Council is supportive of the rezoning from I-1 to I-2A, the attached ordinance, by motion, will need to be adopted.
Attachments
Zoning and Location Map
Crown Business Narrative
Site Plan
Landscape Plan
Grading Plans
Building Plans
Body
THE CITY OF BLAINE DOES ORDAIN: (Added portions are underscored and deleted portions are shown in brackets with overstrike.)
Section 1. The Official Zoning Map of the Zoning Code of the Municipal Code of the City of Blaine is hereby amended to change the zoning classification of the following described property:
THE N1/2 OF N1/2 OF NW1/4 OF SEC 26 T31 R23, EX N 330 FT THEREOF, ALSO EX RDS; SUBJ TO EASE OF REC
AND
THE N 330 FT OF N1/2 OF NW1/4 OF SEC 26 TWP 31 RGE 23, EX RD SUBJ TO EASE OF REC
Section 2. The above described property is hereby rezoned from:
[I-1 (Light Industrial)]
to
I-2A (Heavy Industrial)
Section 3. The City Manager is hereby directed to make the appropriate changes in the Official Zoning Map of the City of Blaine to reflect and show the changes in zoning classification as set forth above.
INTRODUCED and read in full this 19th day of November, 2015.
PASSED by the City Council of the City of Blaine this 10th day of December, 2015.