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Planning Commission Minutes Pagc 4 august 12, 2008 BY EARL HOHLEN FOR PRELIMINARY PLAT APPROVAL FOR ZANE STREET COMMONS, WITH THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS: 1. THE DEVELOPMENT SHALL MEET ALL APPLICABLE FIRE CODES. 2. PARK DEDICATION SHALL BE PROVIDED IN THE FOLLOWING MANNER: A. IN THE FORM OF CASH FOR 1 LOT AT THE COMMERCIAL RATE APPLICABLE AT THE TIME OF RECORDING OF THE FINAL PLAT ($6,950.00/LOT AT THE 2008 RATE). 3. ALL REQUIRED SUBDIVISION/PARK INFORMATION SHALL BE PROVIDED IN AN ELECTRONIC FORMAT (.DWG FILE) AS REQUIRED BY THE CITY ORDINANCE AND LAND USE APPLICATION PRIOR TO RECORDING OF THE PLAT. 4. THIS APPROVAL OF THE PRELIMINARY PLAT SHALL EXPIRE AFTER 1 YEAR, UNLESS THE PROPERTY OWNER OR OWNERS AGENT HAS RECEIVED FINAL PLAT APPROVAL OR LETTER OF REQUEST FOR EXTENSION. 5. THE FINAL PLAT SHOULD ILLUSTRATE RESTRICTED ACCESS ONTO HWY 169. MOTION CARRIED 6-0. 5.3. Request by City of Elk River for Ordinance Amendment Regarding Placement of Black Dirt Public Hearing -Case No. OA 08-06 Mr. Leeseberg introduced Bryan Adams, General Manager for Elk River Municipal Utilities. Mr. Adams stated that the Elk River Utilities Commission supports the proposed ordinance amendment. In response to the Commission's request at the July meeting, he explained that approximately 60 percent of water usage is by residential and 40 percent commercial. Mr. Adams stated that in his attempt to obtain data to support actual water reduction by placing black dirt, he spoke with several consultants. He explained that soil samples would need to be obtained, and since the soils vary from area to area within the city, it would be very expensive and difficult to provide the information they were looking for. Mr. Adams stated that he also checked with other communities that have a "black dirt" ordinance, and found that they agreed that it is difficult to provide actual numbers. Mr. Adams stated that it is obvious that any amount of black dirt will help to retain moisture. He stated that he feels that requiring a certificate of compliance would require minimal staff time for enforcement. Commissioner Staul stated that the Commission was looking for general data which compares water usage before and after a similar ordinance. Mr. Adams stated that they can't control variables such as the amount of rainfall, humidity and wind which make water savings difficult to measure. Chair Westgaard stated that the city needs to determine if adopting the proposed ordinance will meet their objective of reducing water consumption. Mr. Adams stated that adopting the ordinance will help to satisfy the DNR by showing that the city has done due diligence. He noted that the DNR would like to see usage of less than 75 gallons per person per day, and that Elk River is currently at 73 - 80 gallons per day. Mr. Adams felt that they could do better and get the numbers down even further.