Laserfiche WebLink
<br />Plarming Commission W otkshop Notes <br />January 28, 2003 <br />Page 2 <br /> <br />e <br /> <br />Option A - Phase 2 included the Emporium, the Ron's Foods site, and the two apartment buildings <br />adjacent to Main Street. The same 45,500 square foot mixed use was included in the proposal, and a <br />24,500 square foot mixed use was added to the comer of Main Street and Line Avenue. The same <br />comments that were provided under Option A - Phase 1 apply to Option A - Phase 2. <br /> <br />Option B included the Ron's Foods site, the Emporium, the two Main Street apartment buildings, <br />and a small portion of the single-family area. This option proposed two office buildings, 26,500 and <br />10,000 square feet respectively, a strip mall retail facility of 23,000 square feet, and a 10,000 square <br />foot restaurant space. The Commission felt that this option proposed a good restaurant site. It did <br />not go far enough in acquiring and removing the single-family homes. It began to anchor a <br />commercial/mixed use comer. The Commission also liked that the plan was more open and that <br />travelers would be able to see a variety of buildings and uses. <br /> <br />Option C was a continuation of Option B and increased the amount of single-family dwellings to be <br />acquired. Option C proposed 26,500 square feet of office, a 10,500 square foot restaurant space at <br />the comer of Main Street and Highway 169, and two retail strip malls 23,000 square feet and 30,000 <br />square feet, respectively. The option also included a realignment of Baldwin Avenue from 5th Street <br />to County Road 13, north of 3rd Street. The Commission noted that they had concerns with access. <br />The access still requires traffic to travel through a predominantly residential neighborhood to get to <br />the redeveloped Commercial area. It also removed a number of single-family homes and increased <br />the loss of affordable housing; there is no addition to the number of Multi-Family units. The <br />Commission felt that the rest of the single-family might as well be acquired, based on Option C. <br /> <br />e <br /> <br />Option D proposed acquisition of the entire study area. All of the existing structures would be <br />removed and replaced with two large box retailers at 128,000 and 100,000 square feet, each. The <br />Commission noted that the park had disappeared. There was much discussion regarding the viability <br />and the marketability of big box retailers. Commissioner Offerman noted that there could be one <br />big box retailer anchoring the comer with smaller retail and office uses. Option D, in the <br />Commission's opinion, did not appear to be very exciting. <br /> <br />Option E as proposed, included an entire acquisition and redevelopment project. Two mixed-use <br />buildings at 30,000 and 35,000 square feet would anchor the redevelopment at Main Street and <br />Highway 169 and Main and County Road 13. Two retail buildings, 23,000 square feet each, would be <br />adjacent to Highway 169, and the remainder of the site would be used for apartments and <br />townhomes, and a relocated park. The Commission suggested that the southern part of Option B <br />could be mixed with Option E as an alternative. The Commission liked the additional housing and <br />the mix of uses. <br /> <br />Option F is similar to Option C in the amount of area to be redeveloped, however, the proposal <br />includes only a 90,000 square foot retail site and a 10,000 square foot restaurant site. It was noted <br />that there was a lot of impact for very little benefit. <br /> <br />It was the consensus of the Commission that the whole area needs to be guided for redevelopment <br />and that if the entire site was not identified as Commercial, then Commercial should be identified <br />along Highway 169 and Main Street, and that the single-family area should be guided for High <br />Density Multi-Family housing. <br /> <br />e <br /> <br />The Commission expressed throughout the meeting concerns with the impacts of the MN/DOT <br />Highway 169 corridor plan and felt that the traffic issues and transportation support system needed <br />to be resolved in order to make positive change at the Highway 169/Main Street intersection. They <br />