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Elk River City Council Meeting February 17,1994 Page 6 e commercial, concentrating it in one area. Mr. Colby also indicated that the project addresses the Focus Area Study in the following areas: - Parking lot will face Highway 10, not the residential area, - Building presents a pleasant facade to the highway; - Menards is a high visibility use; should be next to the highway; - Use would provide adequate buffering; - Upscale landscaping plan would be provided under the City's PUD agreement. A 14- foot high screening structure would be used which has pallet racking (used for storage) on the inside, and the outside would be an attractive natural brown treated lumber. A short discussion followed regarding the uses proposed for the remaining commercial space. Shari Patterson, resident in Sandpiper Estates, expressed her feeling that the development would be too close to their residential neighborhood and is not a good choice for the proposed site. Tim Johnson, resident of Sandpiper Estates, stated he felt the development would cause problems such as stray carts at the edge of the lot, flyers blowing into their neighborhood, and noise from fork lifts at night. e Lynn Elger stated that this is not a "Menards" issue but whether or not the site is the best place for this type of use. She further stated that she feels the City has a responsibility to its citizens for consistency in planning. Lynn Elger indicated that she looked at the land use plan for the area when making the decision to buy their home. Mayor Duitsman noted that the area in question was designated in the past for a business park, not residential. Pat Dwyer, representative of the Business Park Task Force, reviewed his concerns regarding the need to set aside space for a business park and light industrial uses. Jerry Eldorf, resident, expressed his concern that the City Council reserves the area for business park use, not commercial. Jay Johnson, representative of Country Ridge Partnership, stated that the plan for the business park does allow for 26 acres of commercial development. He explained that Menards is a "here and now" user; that the business would help Elk River's tax base, and also would help extend sewer and water to the Courthouse. Rita Dahlheimer, resident, expressed her concern that the use would affect her property value. e Mayor Duitsman questioned the developers whether or not the 109,000 square feet of additional commercial space could be taken out of the project. Gary Colby stated that the project has already been scaled down from 44 acres to 24 acres and at this point, the 109,000 square feet could not be deleted.