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City Council Minutes February 18, 2025 --------- Page 5 of 7 Matt Barker, Director of Land Development for Capstone Homes, reviewed the landscaping and beaming, home product types, and trail connections. He discussed their proposal for narrower roads (29 feet) which they have installed in other communities. He stated it could be a safety measure to help traffic-calming through the neighborhoods. He also stated there would be a cost savings on asphalt for his company and the city because there are five feet less of asphalt along the road system to maintain. He further mentioned parkland and believes a disc golf course could be installed along with other structures in working with the DNR. David Kelliher, Vice President of Public Policy and Government Relations for the Minnesota Historical Society, which manages the Oliver Kelly Farm, stated he appreciates the city considering the farm's concerns. He would like to be a partner if there were a coalition to work on any Highway 10 safety initiatives. He further stated they will work with Capstone to determine appropriate boundary screening between the development and the visitor experience, Mayor Dietz closed the public hearing. Mayor Dietz discussed the following concerns: 1. Fifty-foot lot widths are too narrow, and he'd rather see a minimum of 55 feet. These smaller lot sizes are 34% of the whole project. Mr. Bona noted the density of the development is about 2.4 acres per home. 2. Street width should be the city standard of 34 feet, as he would not want to set a bad precedent. He stated the streets could remain privately owned if the developer couldn't meet the city road standards. 3. The proposed lower park land being dedicated to the city is worthless and unusable to the developer and should not be counted as park dedication. He doesn't believe the state would allow the city to have an active park on this land, and he'd like to see a similar park like Trott Brook with amenities. He likes the recommendation made by the Parks and Recreation Commission, but would consider other proposed locations. He said the park dedication cash could be used to pay for the amenities in the park. He noted a lot of families residing in this development will need a large active park. Councilmember Grupa concurred on points one and two but didn't have issues with the location of the park land as long as it can support park amenities. He agreed with using the park dedication cash collected to pay for this park's amenities. Councilmember Beyer also concurred with points one and two, noting the larger street widths are needed for safety, such as having emergency vehicles and public safety trucks on them. He also agreed with the Parks and Recreation Commission regarding the park land. Dave Anderson, Parks and Recreation Chair, stated some of the trails are not exactly where planned in the Trail Master Plan, but they do satisfy the need to get through the development. He stated the city doesn't give park dedication credit for areas with water issues. He noted this is being dubbed a showcase development, and feels the city should also include a showcase park with river views, noting the lower area, while very nice, does not have any views of the river. Steve Bona, Vice President of Land for Capstone, Inc., at 14015 Sunfish Lake Blvd, Ramsey, expressed