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City Council Minutes <br />February 18, 2025 <br />--------- <br />Page 5 of 7 <br />bluff line, located near the center of the property and adjacent to the bluff, along with park dedication <br />cash. <br />Mayor Dietz opened the public hearing. <br />Matt Barker, Director of Land Development for Capstone Homes, reviewed the landscaping and <br />beaming, home product types, and trail connections. He discussed their proposal for narrower roads <br />(29 feet) which they have installed in other communities. He stated it could be a safety measure to help <br />traffic-calming through the neighborhoods. He also stated there would be a cost savings on asphalt for <br />his company and the city because there are five feet less of asphalt along the road system to maintain. <br />He further mentioned parkland and believes a disc golf course could be installed along with other <br />structures in working with the DNR. <br />David Kelliher, Vice President of Public Policy and Government Relations for the Minnesota Historical <br />Society, which manages the Oliver Kelly Farm, stated he appreciates the city considering the farm's <br />concerns. He would like to be a partner if there were a coalition to work on any Highway 10 safety <br />initiatives. He further stated they will work with Capstone to determine appropriate boundary <br />screening between the development and the visitor experience, <br />Mayor Dietz closed the public hearing. <br />Mayor Dietz discussed the following concerns: <br />1. Fifty-foot lot widths are too narrow, and he'd rather see a minimum of 55 feet. These smaller <br />lot sizes are 34% of the whole project. Mr. Bona noted the density of the development is about <br />2.4 acres per home. <br />2. Street width should be the city standard of 34 feet, as he would not want to set a bad <br />precedent. He stated the streets could remain privately owned if the developer couldn't meet <br />the city road standards. <br />3. The proposed lower park land being dedicated to the city is worthless and unusable to the <br />developer and should not be counted as park dedication. He doesn't believe the state would <br />allow the city to have an active park on this land, and he'd like to see a similar park like Trott <br />Brook with amenities. He likes the recommendation made by the Parks and Recreation <br />Commission, but would consider other proposed locations. He said the park dedication cash <br />could be used to pay for the amenities in the park. He noted a lot of families residing in this <br />development will need a large active park. <br />Councilmember Grupa concurred on points one and two but didn't have issues with the location of the <br />park land as long as it can support park amenities. He agreed with using the park dedication cash <br />collected to pay for this park's amenities. <br />Councilmember Beyer also concurred with points one and two, noting the larger street widths are <br />needed for safety, such as having emergency vehicles and public safety trucks on them. He also agreed <br />with the Parks and Recreation Commission regarding the park land. <br />Dave Anderson, Parks and Recreation Chair, stated some of the trails are not exactly where planned in <br />the Trail Master Plan, but they do satisfy the need to get through the development. He stated the city <br />Page 8 of 117