5.2. PCSR 05-11-2010 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Case File: CU 10-08 ERL CUP Page 3 City of Elk River ordinance implementing this zoning. A copy of the staff report and the Ordinance axe attached for the Planning Commission's reference. During the process of zoning the Landfill property into the SWF District, it came to the attention of staff that the Land Use Map element of the City's 2004 Comprehensive Plan did not designate the entire Landfill property as "Landfill". Therefore, the City initiated an amendment of the Land Use Map, which will be acted on by the City Council on May 17, 2010. A copy of the staff report and proposed City Council resolution adopting this amendment to the Comprehensive Plan are attached for the Planning Commission's reference. Solid Wlaste Facilities Ordinance Amendment In the course of the litigation, the Landfill took the position that the City's SWF Ordinance is ambiguous and that required buffer areas and buffer zones axe not required to be located in the SWF Overlay Zoning Districts, despite the fact that this is how the Ordinance has been interpreted and applied for 22 years. To address the intent of the SWF Ordinance, staff proposed and the City Council adopted amendments to Chapters 30 and 58 of the City Code to reaffirm that required buffer areas and buffer zones for Solid Waste Facilities must be located within the SWF Overlay Zoning District. A copy of the staff report and the ordinance adopted by the City Council on March 16, 2010 are attached for the Planning Commission's reference. The PresentAt~~lication to expand the L.and~ll into the Exzsting 200~ot Bu er Zone In the course of the litigation in District Court the Landfill has taken the position that it prior application to expand the Landfill by 109 acres entitled it to an amendment of its existing Conditional Use Permit allowing it to expand the area in which solid waste is deposited into the 200- foot buffer area on its southern boundary. This position was taken in the litigation notwithstanding the fact that the Landfill never applied to deposit fill in this area as part of a smaller expansion, nor did it submit any plans showing how this could be done. Judge Varco has yet to rule on this theory. In the meantime, the Landfill filed the present application to amend the existing Conditional Use Pernut and Solid Waste Facilities License to allow the deposit of solid waste in the existing 200-foot buffer area on the southern edge of its property. This is the application before the Planning Commission. Matt Ledvina, the City's Environmental Consultant, has reviewed the application materials and concluded that from an overall engineering standpoint the design of the proposed Cell 18 and the 200 foot expansion into the buffer area is feasible. However, he has identified several issues, including: (1) Engineering and Construction Details. The application materials lack a number of details, including engineering and construction details related to the leachate management system, a detailed storm water management plan, design details for the Landfill gas system, and others. If the City Council were to approve the requested amendment to the Conditional Use Permit, additional detail in several of these areas would be required as outlined in Mr. Ledvina's report, which is attached as an exhibit. (2) 200 Foot Buffer Zone. The state regulations governing the Landfill (Minn. Rules Part 7035.2815, subd. 5(C)), the Elk River City Code of Ordinances (Sections 58- S:\Community Development\Planning Main\Case Files\CUP\CU 10-08 Waste Management\Staff report to PC-CU 10-OS.doc