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PC Minutes 08-18-2015 Chanhassen Planning Commission – August 18, 2015 7.Walls taller than six feet shall not be constructed with boulder rock. All voted in favor and the motion carried unanimously with a vote of 6 to 0. PUBLIC HEARING: 1190 LYMAN BOULEVARD VARIANCE, PLANNING CASE 2015-15: REQUEST FOR VARIANCE TO WETLAND SETBACK TO RELOCATE SEPTIC SYSTEM ON PROPERTY ZONED AGRICULTURAL ESTATE (A2) AND LOCATED AT 1190 LYMAN BOULEVARD. APPLICANT/OWNER: DUANE SKLUZACEK. Ingvalson: This next case is for a wetland setback variance request. Location of the subject property is at 1190 Lyman Boulevard. If you look over here it is just off of Powers Boulevard and then off of Lyman also. The city sewer currently is not available to this property and also the subject property is not required to connect to city sewer due to it being over 150 feet from the city sanitary sewer. Here’s an image of the subject house. This house was constructed in 1984 with a septic system designed to handle 2 bedrooms. At some point in time after 1984 this house was remodeled and, for it to have another 2 bedrooms so now it is currently a 4 bedroom home. There’s not any city record in our city building files that show when this was completed or when this was done. So the request the applicant has is that they are requesting a variance from the 75 foot wetland setback to construct a new septic system with a 4 bedroom design. The existing system is failing so that’s why this is coming about. They need to get a new system in there. This new system will be an enlargement as I stated from a current 2 bedroom design to a 4 bedroom design. The applicant is proposing to do a Type 3 mound system which will be located on top of part of the current system partially. Here is an image of the property and all the setbacks that this structure is going to need to meet. Looking on here the dark green is the wetland. The light green is the 75 foot wetland setback. The reddish pink is the 20 foot structure setback. Here’s from the house. The blue circle is the 50 foot well setback. The purple is the 10 foot property line setback. Brown here is the 20 foot steep slope setbacks and there’s also some more structures in there that make it very difficult to put this new system in. This goldish color is gravel which is compacted soils which can’t be used for a septic system. Leaving only this white area as possible areas for a new septic system. The proposed location is right here, this orange rectangle for the new system. An alternative location is right here in this cross hatched area or this cross line area as an alternative spot. However the building, the City’s building department has gone out and looked on site. There is a drainage way that goes through to the wetland right here in this dark blueish area which also makes this a poor area for a new septic system. The main reason that the property owner is looking to have this septic system in another spot was to preserve some mature trees. Looking on the left side here the mature trees that they are looking to preserve for this project. To the right is some smaller trees that will need to be removed with the new septic mound system that they’re looking to locate it. Here is an elevation and drainage diagram. The low point on the property is located on the southwest area with it going down in elevation to the wetland area. Here is the location of the drainage ditch. You can see these contours that drainage flows through this area to the wetland. There’s also steep slopes behind the back side of the house which make it difficult for the, that makes it not able to meet the steep slope area there. The diagram shows the proposed septic site right here. It has to be located with the contours per building requirements for a new septic system. This report was 8 Chanhassen Planning Commission – August 18, 2015 also reviewed by our Water Resources Coordinator. It’s noted that the setback, the wetland setback is unique to Chanhassen City Code and is not in the Minnesota Rules Chapter 7080 so it’s strictly there from the City of Chanhassen. Also the wetland boundary was something that was a bit of concern looking through this report. The boundary is assumed based only upon general observations of the soils and topography. However our Water Resources Coordinator found it indeterminate if the proposed location is actually closer to the wetland than the other location in the drawing that you saw with those hatched lines so with that and with his review there is no compelling reason to deny the variance request as long as it complies with Minnesota Rules Chapter 7080 and accepted industry practices. Upon review of this property there were not any variances that have been requested or granted within 500 feet of the subject property so there isn’t really any standard to go off of. After review staff recommends that the Board of Appeals and Adjustments approve a 25 foot variance request from the 75 foot wetland setback based on the approximate wetland edge on the survey dated April 24, 2015 and adopt the attached Findings of Fact and Decision subject to the following condition. The applicant applies for an receives a building permit from the City. That ends the staff report. If you have any questions I would be open to them now. Aanenson: I just wanted to add one thing too. We did ask them to do, meet the criteria. Do the test to see if that would be an acceptable site. When they first came in you know we’re looking at all kinds of opportunities but we said we want to make sure if we’re giving a variance that that drain field will work so that was a proven, acceptable site by our building official and by their qualified tester so where we’re putting that it’s recommended that it would meet the City standards. Aller: And that’s the first site or both sites? Ingvalson: The proposed site that they have which would be the one that is in orange. Aller: Not hatched. Aanenson: Yeah, correct. Ingvalson: That would require the variance. Aller: And Mr. Jeffery looked at the proposed orange site. Ingvalson: Correct. Aller: And has no problem with that. Ingvalson: Correct. Aller: And my guess is that because it’s next to that drainage ditch he would not prefer to have it in the hatched. Ingvalson: Correct. 9 Chanhassen Planning Commission – August 18, 2015 Aanenson: So the applicant first came in and just wanted to get a variance. We say well we’re not going to give you a variance if we don’t even know it’s going to work so we first we have to go out and decide where the best place to put that so as Drew went through all the different you know restrictions it made it a little bit challenging so, but they did do a couple test sites and that was one that did pass and then we took our variance from there. Aller: And then a question for Alyson. With it sitting on top are there any indications that there might be problems in the future or is there anything we should know about that? Fauske: With respect to the location? Aller: Right. The planned proposed location is to be where the other one is located and I heard it’s going to be on top of the old one. Is it going to be tied in to the old one or is the old one going to be removed and what impact? Fauske: I’m not familiar with how the mound system is worked. I do know they’ve been working closely with the City’s IS, Independent Sewage Treatment System inspector and working through all the requirements with that. Ingvalson: It’s been reviewed by our building department and they have not found any concerns with that location. Aller: And we’re not in the near future planning on putting water and sewer where they could connect? Aanenson: No. Not in the immediate future so. Aller: Any additional questions? Yusuf: Just one just for my understanding. Is it standard practice to just size the septic system for the number of bedrooms and not over size it a little bit? Aanenson: Yeah today’s practice is you do 2 alternative sites. These are older. Our practice has changed. Somebody coming in today has to provide an alternative site. This has been a problem as we looked, as we kind of did our tour. As you go down to the southern part of the city where we, and if you look at how large this lot is really it just very compromises the ability to find alternative sites. We have that when you’re on the bluff too. You may have a 5 acre site but maybe you have less than a half acre that’s outside of the bluff and then you also have structures on there. Compacted soils. Driveways so today’s rule is you have to have 2 sites. So if you do add on those are times that we would check it. Also when there’s a sale of the property that’s a requirement that they test the system and so that’s some of the trigger points. We make sure that someone else coming into that house doesn’t have a failing system. 10 Chanhassen Planning Commission – August 18, 2015 Ingvalson: I’d also like to note our building department also looked for possibly separating the sites and having 2 separate locations that could be tied together to meet the 4 bedroom requirement and was unable to find a location that that would work. Aller: Okay. Based on that information any additional questions? Okay the applicant’s not present. We’ll open up the public hearing portion of the item. Now’s the time for any individual to come forward and speak either for or against the request. Seeing no one come forward I will close the public hearing and open it up for comment and discussion. I think it’s pretty straight forward. Hokkanen: Very challenging. Nice colors. Aller: For all the right reasons. Hokkanen: That was challenging based on the map. Measuring all that. Aller: Certainly meets the requirements in my view for a variance. The need is there. The special nature of the property. I’ll entertain a motion. Undestad: I’ll make the motion here. Aller: Commissioner Undestad. Undestad: Recommend that the Board of Appeals and Adjustments approve a 25 foot variance request from the 75 foot wetland setback based on the approximate wetland edge on the survey dated April 24, 2015 and adopt the attached Findings of Fact and Decision subject to the following conditions, that the applicant apply for and receives a building permit from the City. Aller: I have a motion, do I have a second? Yusuf: Second. Aller: I have a motion by Commissioner Undestad, a second by Commissioner Yusuf. Any further discussion? Undestad moved, Yusuf seconded that the Board of Appeals and Adjustments approve a 25 foot variance request from the 75 foot wetland setback based on the approximate wetland edge on the survey dated April 24, 2015 to construct a septic system and adopt the attached Findings of Fact and Decision subject to the following conditions: 1.The applicant applies for and receives a building permit from the City. All voted in favor and the motion carried unanimously with a vote of 6 to 0. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Commissioner Hokkanen noted the verbatim and summary Minutes of the Planning Commission meeting dated July 21, 2015 as presented. 11