Findings of Fact - Signed CITY OF CHANHASSEN
CARVER AND HENNEPIN COUNTIES, MINNESOTA
FINDINGS OF FACT
AND RECOMMENDATION
IN RE:
Application of Barry Stock on behalf of Lotus Holdings, LLC for an amendment to Conditional
Use Permit(CUP) 88-17 to expand the screened outdoor storage area at 7851 Park Drive.
On September 21, 2021, the Chanhassen Planning Commission met at its regularly scheduled
meeting to consider the application of Barry Stock to amend CUP 88-17 for the property located
at 7851 Park Drive preceded by published and mailed notice. The Planning Commission heard
testimony from all interested persons wishing to speak and now makes the following:
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. The property is currently zoned IOP—Industrial Office Park District.
2. The property is guided by the Land Use Plan for Office Industrial.
3. The legal description of the property is:
Lot 2, Block 3, Chanhassen Lakes Business Park
4. Sec 20-232 General Issuance Standards
The Planning Commission shall recommend a Conditional Use Permit and the City Council shall
issue such Conditional Use Permit only if it finds that such use at the proposed location:
1. Will not be detrimental to or endanger the public health, safety, comfort, convenience or
general welfare of the neighborhood or the city.
The property has maintained an outdoor storage area with minimal issues, aside from a dispute
over the fence height which was resolved in 1991, since 1988. There is no reason to believe that
expanding the outdoor storage area would negatively impact the neighborhood or the City.
2. Will be consistent with the objectives of the City's Comprehensive Plan and this chapter.
Broadly speaking, the purpose of Chapter 20,Zoning, is to ensure the compatibility of uses,
prevent the creation of nuisances and public health risks, conserve and enhance the City's tax
base,protect the environment(both natural and built), facilitate the provision of public services,
and provide for the equitable use of property. The proposed expansion of the parcel's outdoor
storage area is in line with these objectives.
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Similarly, the City's Comprehensive plan seeks to, amongst other things, retain and expand
existing businesses. The applicant's proposed expansion of their business corresponds with that
objective.
3. Will be designed, constructed, operated and maintained so to be compatible in
appearance with the existing or intended character of the general vicinity and will not
change the essential character of that area.
The subject site is located in a mostly built out Industrial Office Park district. The proposed
expansion to the existing outdoor storage area would not alter the existing or intended character
of the district, and the proposed 2"d driveway access would be consistent with what is present on
nearby parcels. The proposed landscaping would improve the curb appeal of the site and bring
the property into compliance with current buffer yard standards and practices.
4. Will not be hazardous or disturbing to existing or planned neighboring uses.
The locality is essentially fully developed and the existing outdoor storage area has not posed a
hazard to the existing neighboring uses, nor has it disturbed their operations. There is no reason
to believe that the proposed expansion would create a hazard or disturbance.
5. Will be served adequately by essential public facilities and services, including streets,
police and fire protection, drainage structures, refuse disposal, water and sewer systems
and schools; or will be served adequately by such facilities and services provided by the
persons or agencies responsible for the establishment of the proposed use.
Adequate public facilities and services are already present, and the proposed expansion to the
existing outdoor storage area is not anticipated to meaningfully increase the site's use of those
services. In the case of the City's stormwater system,the applicant will mitigate the impact of the
increased impervious surface through on-site systems, as required by the City and Watershed
District.
6. Will not create excessive requirements for public facilities and services and will not be
detrimental to the economic welfare of the community.
Expanding the existing outdoor storage areas will not create any new requirements for public
facilities and services, nor will it be detrimental to the economic welfare of the community.
7. Will not involve uses, activities, processes, materials, equipment and conditions of
operation that will be detrimental to any persons, property or the general welfare due to
excessive production of traffic, noise, smoke, fumes, glare, odors, rodents or trash.
The existing outdoor storage area does not involve or cause any of the aforementioned, and the
proposed expansion is not anticipated to alter this.
8. Will have vehicular approaches to the property which do not create traffic congestion or
interfere with traffic or surrounding public thoroughfares.
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The existing drive does not create traffic issues, and the proposed second access is expected to
improve access to the site and reduce the need for trucks to back into the site off of Park Drive.
9. Will not result in the destruction, loss or damage of solar access, natural, scenic or
historic features of major significance.
The proposed expansion of the existing outdoor storage area will not result in the loss or damage
of any of these features.
10. Will be aesthetically compatible with the area.
The proposed expansion of the existing outdoor storage area will be aesthetically compatible
with the surrounding Industrial Office Park.
11. Will not depreciate surrounding property values.
The expanded outdoor storage area is not anticipated to depreciate the property values of the
surrounding industrial/office uses.
12. Will meet standards prescribed for certain uses as provided in this article.
The expanded outdoor storage area will meet the standards required by Section 20-308 of the
City Code.
5. Sec 20-308 Screened Outdoor Storage
The following applies to screened outdoor storage:
1. All outdoor storage must be completely screened with 100 percent opaque fence or
landscaped screen.
The applicant is proposing to enclose the outdoor storage area with an eight foot high opaque
fence, similar to what is currently present on the property. Additional screening in the form of
landscaping is proposed to soften the visual impact of the fence and further screen the storage
areas from public view. The proposed fence and landscaping will provide sufficient screening to
meet this requirement. CUP 88-17's condition that this fence be present and that no stored items
shall project over the fence will be maintained as a condition on the amended and restated permit
and a new condition requiring that the proposed landscaping be installed and maintained will be
added to ensure the property maintains compliance with this requirement.
6. The planning report#2021-21, dated September, 2021, prepared by MacKenzie Young-
Walters, is incorporated herein.
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RECOMMENDATION
The Planning Commission recommends that the City Council approve the amendment to
Conditional Use Permit 88-17 subject to the following conditions:
1) A building permit must be obtained prior to constructing the fence.
2) A zoning permit must be obtained prior to expanding the outdoor storage area.
3) All items stored in the outdoor storage area must be totally screened by an opaque 8-foot
fence and no stored items shall project over the fence.
4) Trash containers must be stored in a fully screened location, i.e. within the outdoor
storage area or separate screened trash enclosure.
5) Landscaping must substantially conform to landscape plans submitted to the City on
August 19, 2021.
6) Expanded outdoor storage area must substantially conform to the plans submitted to the
City on August 19, 2021.
7) The Conditional Use Permit must meet any and all conditions of the site plan approval
for Site Plan 88-16.
8) The two existing trees proposed to be protected during construction shall have protection
fencing installed around the trees prior to any construction.
9) The applicant shall construct the proposed driveway in accordance with City Standards
for commercial driveways and apply for a Driveway Permit from the Engineering
Department.
10)The applicant shall obtain any and all Riley Purgatory Bluff Creek Watershed District
(RPBCWD) permits prior to construction activities.
11)The applicant shall confirm the increase of impervious surfaces as the numbers on the
plan are not consistent with the HydroCAD analysis.
12)The applicant shall provide a geotechnical analysis including soil borings.
13)Rate control requirements are shown to be met for the 2-, 10-, and 100-year runoff rates
per the HydroCAD modeling results provided. Rate control should be reconfirmed once
the updates to the modeling have been completed.
14)The MSE3 rainfall distribution shall be used for HydroCAD modeling rather than the
Type II distribution currently being used.
15)Rim of the 12" HDPE riser shall be modeled as a horizontal orifice rather than a vertical
orifice.
16)The applicant shall show the 10-day snowmelt rate for future submittals.
17)The applicant shall provide an operation and maintenance plan that identifies the
maintenance, inspection, and monitoring schedule and responsible party and shall be
recorded prior to construction activities.
18)The bottom contour of the drainage swale is shown at a 932 and the invert of the 6"
draintile below is at a 931.5 which would not provide any cover over the draintile. The
applicant shall confirm elevations within the swale.
19)A detail for the outlet structure (Note 17 on the construction plans) shall be provided to
confirm the HydroCAD modeling as it is not entirely clear how many pipes are coming
in/leaving based on the information provided.
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a. Based on the information provided, it appears the HydroCAD model should be
updated so Devices#2 (exfiltration), #4 (4" orifice), and#5 (12" rim) should be
routed to Device#3 (12" culvert) for the outlet of the drainage swale.
20)The applicant shall add erosion control measures such as inlet protection, sediment
control BMPs, and rock construction entrance to the plans to avoid migration of sediment
off the construction site.
21)The applicant shall provide elevation and location of the emergency overflow spillway
for the swale.
22)The drainage swale shall be reseeded with a wetland or stormwater pond seed mix rather
than turf grass.
23)The property may not be subdivided nor may the lot lines of the property be altered.
ADOPTED by the Chanhassen Planning Commission this 2151 day of September, 2021.
CHANHASSEN PLANNING COMMISSION
BY:
C airman
€A,-, Q.
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