PC Minutes 6-02-20CHANHASSEN PLANNING COMMISSION
REGULAR MEETING
JUNE 2, 2020
Chairman Weick called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT: Steven Weick, Mark Randall, Michael McGonagill, Doug Reeder,
Laura Skistad, Eric Noyes, and Mark Von Oven
STAFF PRESENT: Kate Aanenson, Community Development Director; MacKenzie Walters,
Associate Planner; Matt Unmacht, Water Resources Coordinator; Richard Rice, IT Manager;
Matt Kerr, IT Support Specialist; Erik Henricksen, Project Manager; and Charlie Howley, Public
Works Director/City Engineer
PUBLIC PRESENT:
Jeff Franz 8950 Sunset Trail
PUBLIC HEARING:
CONSIDER A REQUEST FOR SETBACK VARIANCES TO INSTALL A SEPTIC
SYSTEM IN THE NW CORNER OF PROPERTY LOCATED AT 565 LAKOTA LANE.
Walters: Alright, thank you. As was mentioned this is a request by Francisco and Heather Silva
to place a septic system, replace a septic system at 565 Lakota Lane. The item will also go
before the City Council on June 22nd for final approval and they are requesting to locate the
septic system within the 50 foot bluff setback, 20 foot bluff impact zone and 10 foot property
line setback. So a little overview of the area. The property is zoned Agricultural Estate. This
zoning district is designed for septic properties. Has a minimum lot size of 2.5 acres. Has
required 50 foot front and rear setbacks, 10 foot side yard setbacks, a maximum of 25 percent
impervious coverage. Properties with bluffs are also subject to a 30 foot bluff setback or they
must meet the existing principle structure setback. It was built before 1991 and then there’s a 20
foot impact zone from the bluff where vegetative removal is limited. Septic systems are subject
to a 50 foot bluff setback and a 10 foot property line setback as well. So this particular parcel is
2.57 acres. It has about 4.7 percent lot cover. The primary structure was built significantly
before the existing bluff ordinance was passed and so it has a non-conforming 6 foot bluff
setback. It has a non-conforming 34 foot front yard setback. It has a patio that has a non-
conforming 27 foot front yard setback. The existing septic system is actually located about right
here and is actually within the bluff and it has a non-conforming driveway with multiple
accesses. The applicant is requesting to install a new septic system in the northwest corner of the
property. To do that they would need to install the pump line, mound, dispersal area all within
the 50 foot bluff setback and mostly within the 20 foot bluff impact zone as well. The mound
and dispersal area would be located within the 10 foot property line setback and some of the
dispersal zone would be, dispersal area sorry would be within the city’s right-of-way. The
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applicant’s justification is the existing system when they do an evaluation when houses go for
sale and it was found to be in a state of non-imminent failure. This requires that the septic
system be replaced within a couple years. There’s no location on the property that’s outside the
50 foot bluff setback. They created a proposed location that creates as much separation as
possible between the proposed septic system and the top of the bluff. It’s not possible to install
in a down slope location because there’s no way to get equipment down there so essentially
they’re requesting this location because there isn’t another viable location on the property. This
graphic I created helps demonstrate the constraints they’re under in siting the property. There’s a
30 foot well setback where no septic system can be. The yellow line here is the 50 foot bluff
setback. This is the 20 foot impact zone and this is the approximate top of the bluff. This is the
topographical survey of an aerial of the property. As you can see there’s pretty steep slope back
here. It’d be over 500 feet to get down to where it begins to even out and the only access would
be through the Hennepin County Railroad Authority’s trail system. We don’t believe it would be
possible to get permission to bring in equipment through there. Given the site constraints it’s
staff’s opinion that this is the only viable location and for that reason staff is recommending
approval of the variance.
Weick: Great, thank you MacKenzie. At this time I’ll just go ahead and allow Planning
Commissioners to jump in if you would like to ask a question of MacKenzie.
McGonagill: MacKenzie this is Mike McGonagill. The question I had for it, I guess reading the
write up this was went into non-imminent failure in November of 2016.
Walters: Correct I believe.
McGonagill: And so since that time they’ve just been trying to come up with a solution. I guess
the term non-imminent failure, what that means from septic standpoint…like you said a couple
years so that it’s not, they haven’t been in violation of anything but just that this needs to get
fixed, is that correct?
Walters: My understanding of how it works is once it’s in that, it’s a non-compliant state it
means it’s not actively leaking but it needs to be repaired and brought up to code. I can’t
remember if it’s a, I honestly can’t remember the exact number of years they have but they have
an absolute threshold where it has to be updated and I know they’re approaching that.
McGonagill: Okay thank you, that was my question. There’s a time limit to this?
Walters: Yes.
Reeder: Mr. Chairman is there no way that you can fix the current system? I don’t know
anything about systems but is that not an option?
Walters: No, is my understanding.
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Weick: Because it was inspected correct?
Walters: Yeah they, again I’m not a septic designer but whenever houses are put for sale they do
an inspection and if it’s determined to be in this state you need a new septic system.
Reeder: You have to move it somewhere else is that the question?
Walters: That is my understanding because once the again I would defer that question to the
septic designer if they’re there but my understanding is once the soils are disturbed you can’t re-
use the site.
McGonagill: Yeah Commissioner Reeder I believe what happens is the soil gets saturated to the
point where there’s activity through it that septic systems have a certain life and after that life it’s
a natural decline. There’s a way to move produce out of the septic system you know. It just
reaches it’s limit of ability to infiltrate the water and do it’s job.
Reeder: Okay.
Weick: Commissioner Skistad?
Skistad: Yes. I think this is the one that we heard, didn’t we hear this one?
Aanenson: No there’s a couple other ones that are coming in. So this is an older subdivision and
these were put in a long time ago while they were 10 acre lots. As MacKenzie pointed out.
Skistad: I thought this was one that we had approved.
Aanenson: No I was just going to say these were put in with one septic. Any rural lot that would
go in now requires that they provide two drain field sites for that specific reason but because of
the slopes on all these lots you’ll probably see another one here soon so there’s letters out on
some other lots that are in the same situation and so obviously we try to work with them and we
did the one that was right by the golf course. Going into Bluff Creek Golf Course. That was the
most recent, I think I believe the last one.
McGonagill: Off of 101 or something and that came down the slope and we went through it.
Skistad: Okay. Well…I guess I don’t have any more questions. It makes sense to me when I
went through it.
Weick: Okay and I remember too Commissioner Skistad we had a very similar case to this one
relatively recently that I was confused as well.
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Skistad: Okay.
Weick: Any other comments from our commissioners? And hearing none I would invite the
applicant to make a presentation or comments if they are available. And there is no one in the
room and I don’t believe we have anyone on the telephone or on the Zoom call. That’s okay.
It’s certainly not required for the applicant to make a presentation. Staff has done an excellent
job. I will open the public hearing portion. Anyone wishing to comment on this item may come
forward and do so if they’re here in the chambers or speak up online. And I don’t know if I
should give it a few minutes with the phone number or we’re okay? I think we’re okay. I’m
going to go ahead and close the public hearing portion of this item and open it up again for
commissioner comment and/or motion. If we can get that up on the screen that would be great.
Yeah if there are no comments or questions I would certainly entertain a motion from one of the
commissioners.
Skistad: I’ll motion to approve it.
Weick: Thank you. Do you see it there in front of you? Can you read the motion?
Skistad: I do. I did it on my phone so it’s a little small so bear with me. The Chanhassen
Planning Commission recommends that the City Council approve a variance allowing the
placement of a pump line, tanks, mound and dispersal area within the 50 foot bluff setback and
the 20 foot bluff impact zone and the 10 foot property line setback variance for the mound and
dispersal area subject to the conditions of approval and adopt the attached Findings of Fact and
Recommendation.
Weick: Thank you Commissioner Skistad. We have a valid motion. Do we have a second?
Randall: Second.
Weick: We have a second from Commissioner Randall. I will open it up for any final comments
to the commissioners. And hearing none we’ll have a roll call vote.
Skistad moved, Randall seconded that the Chanhassen Planning Commission recommends
that the City Council approve a variance allowing the placement of a pump line, tanks,
mound and dispersal area within the 50 foot bluff setback and the 20 foot bluff impact zone
and the 10 foot property line setback variance for the mound and dispersal area subject to
the conditions of approval and adopt the attached Findings of Fact and Recommendation:
1. The applicant must apply for and receive all necessary permits from the relevant
agencies.
2. The applicant must show proposed erosion control on survey and install erosion control
as needed to prevent off-site erosion.
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3. The septic system must be located as proposed in the survey and design received buy the
City on May 1, 2020 as part of the variance request.
4. The property owner shall enter into an Encroachment Agreement with the City for the
area of the individual sewage treatment system (septic system) that encroaches into the
public easement. The final area of encroachment shall be determined by an as-built
survey of the septic system, and the Encroachment Agreement shall be recorded prior to
issuance of the Certificate of Compliance.
5. All underground components encroaching into the public easement and identified in the
Encroachment Agreement shall be detectable by customary locating equipment (i.e. the
installation of tracer wire). The tracer wire shall be tested and approved prior to issuance
of the Certificate of Compliance.
All voted in favor and the motion carried unanimously with a vote of 7 to 0.
Weick: Thank you MacKenzie.
PUBLIC HEARING:
CONSIDER AMENDING CHANHASSEN CITY CODE CHAPTER 20 TO REMOVE
RESIDENTIAL RESTRICTIONS FOR REGIONAL LIFESTYLE CENTER PLANNED
UNIT DEVELOPMENTS (PUD).
Aanenson: This is mine.
Weick: Kate.
Aanenson: Thank you Chairman. So this is an item that obviously affects the next item on the
agenda but when we wrote the city code in 2009 clearly this ordinance, it was based on the
Comprehensive Plan which we put in place with the PUD ordinance so if you recall in 2008 we
hadn’t really contemplated a regional lifestyle center but we had a market study brought to us
and the City contracted…to see if it was even something viable to move forward with would be a
lifestyle center and having put the lifestyle center on a survey and through the Comprehensive
Plan process we did on that the City adopted that the potential of the lifestyle center. In doing
that the thought was that we’d put it into the PUD and then put restrictions on it so it would not
become all, a residential. We wanted it to be a true lifestyle center which meant based on our
definition in drafting the PUD that the lifestyle center would be a mix of office, retail and the
like and at the time we put a cap of 20 percent on it and that was so if you look back 20 years
ago, or 10 years ago it’s a lot different today then what we thought so looking at it now we
recognize that really the housing is the genesis for some of the other stuff to come forward. The
offices. The retail. The things that we, the City desires to have as a part of that. So by
restricting the residential and also the PUD also said that the residential had to go, or I mean the