Planning Commission - Regular Meeting

Thank you everyone for joining. Um we will get started with our meeting. Can I get a motion to approve the agenda? Second. All in favor? I. And those opposed? Motion carries. And I get a motion to approve the September 18th planning commission minutes. So moved. Second. Thank you. Um any further discussion? All in favor? I. And opposed.

So next up we have a public hearing uh for United Properties, a preliminary and final plat for Taco Bell. We'll get there for sure. Is this your third one? Yeah. Okay.

I have an HP. It works better than this. Okay, let's hope it doesn't take that long to open. You all are going to see my the way that I It's going to stress you all out. Kind of is already. I know. Bleak. I know. I'm gonna try my computer one more time. It's It's gonna be fine. It worked for a second. Do we all remember that? Okay, it's downloading on this one now at least. You don't have the memories.

Parts of it for sure. Chris, another option would be if anyone wants to do communications while we do this, if folks have any announcements. Okay, jump down to number six. Um, anyone have any updates or communication you want to provide? Come on, somebody have something. I need at least two minutes. Give me two minutes. December 6. We're going to have the start of the ceremony for lighting the Christmas tree in Gazebo Park.

3 p.m. 3 p.m. And it will start six o'clock. We'll we'll do the lighting and we will have horserawn carriage rides from 4 to 6. Any other updates, announcements, communication? I think a good time was at the open house. Open house, but not by the Thomas. Yeah, next year. Good turn. Lots of fun.

I plugged back into your computer. There we go. Not going to touch anything. Holy smokes. Did you already do the agenda in the minutes? Yeah. Yes. While I was switching computers.

We're on the public hearing where Erin will present. Excellent. Thank you all for your patience. That was a little crazy, but we're here. Okay, so like uh everything you've probably mentioned while I was switching computers. Tonight we are reviewing Taco Bell and United Properties who are in for preliminary plat and final plat. So quick overview of how this meeting is going to go now. So I'm going to give a presentation. I'm going to ask the members of the development team to come up, share some information. Uh you can have a discussion, ask questions to them, too. We'll have the public hearing and then we will have a discussion and then we're looking for two motions to the city council tonight. One preliminary plat, one final plat. So, some details. Uh there's a lot of people involved with this one. Not in a bad way. There's just two different groups. So, United Properties is one that you'll hear throughout this process. They're in the building tonight. They are the property owner and they're the applicant for the platting. So what that means is that they own the property right now in Carver Commons that has not developed. They are the group that is marketing it, working through end users for the site. So what they are doing is that they're they are creating that lot that then can be developed as Taco Bell. So tonight the request is to create that lot which is a United Properties request since they are the property owner. So Border Foods and Taco Bell is the other piece of this equation. So they're the developer that's proposed on the lot. They're a per permitted use based on our zoning code. So, it's zoned freeway commercial. We're not contemplating reszoning tonight. It is a permitted use. And then I want to speak a little bit to the design of the building since it changed who probably have some questions about that. So, the first version did meet the intent of the city code, but uh Border Foods the Taco Bell team took feedback from the planning commission and city council and said, "Hey, I think we can address most of the things you're thinking about with an updated design that they're rolling out right now nationally." So there are a couple across the US. This would be the first

in Minnesota. So I um shared that article with you that Rochester and Lakeville are also contemplating this project, but based on timeline, should this project continue to move forward, uh we would be the first location in Minnesota with that design. So piece of information that might be important. So we understand that the way that a project looks is an important part of the discussion. It's something that's uh like it's important. It's important to think about, but it's not reviewable as part of this application since it meets the intent of the city code. So, if they were coming in and it was a building material that did not, they'd be looking for a variation from the city code, which would require a review. So, that would be an additional step. But in this case, both the previous and the current version, the building materials do meet the intent of the city code. So again, the planning commission request tonight is preliminary and final plat. We move through these concurrently fairly often. uh usually with commercial and industrial projects since it's one building going on one site we typically know the details uh pretty quickly in those two just to know how the site is going to lay out what utilities look like etc. So, some additional details. The property is zoned for you by commercial. Again, Taco Bell is a permitted use. The city does not choose the business, but we just zone the property for the type of user. And a drive-thru is also permitted here. Since we last met in September when you reviewed the concept plan, it feels like the United uh United Properties Carver Commons changes all the time because there's so much construction happening there. But, it's really starting to uh you're able to picture what the site will look out look like at full buildout. So the site is directly south of that slip right off Jonathan Carver Parkway which is now installed. So um slipping into that space it will be a oneway once you get to the Taco Bell Lewab split it becomes a two-way street. So just some general layout things we are directly north of Hometown Bank and Mocha Monkey south of Leashwab which is currently under construction.

So on the screen now um even Google Maps was pretty updated which was nice. So you can start to see what that slip right looks like along with other improvements that have been made by United Properties for development of the site. And then on the right I superimposed the site plan into it. So you can just get a feel of how it lays out adjacent to the Mocha Monkey hometown bank enters into the full site there. So you can see the plan is consistent with that slip right where it's a oneway and then transitions near that property line into a two-way street for the Lushwab Taco Bell and then the adjust adjacent outlot that will be created with this application. Uh Commissioner Goodell had a question today about the site in general. How big are the other sites? What's left? What's going on with the rest of them? So everything in green are sites that have developed or are developing and the blue are remaining sites or remaining outs. So, first was Quick Trip, which is uh just over two acres. Next steps came next. That was cute. At 1.6 acres, Hometown Bank on roughly 1.4. Lewab jumped one site up to roughly 1.8. And then the Taco Bell site as proposed in the preliminary plot and final plat. The three remaining are 11.8 acres, 1.78 acres, and 1.05 acres. There is the large space in the northeast corner which is ponding only. So there's nothing will develop on that corner site. It's a regional pond for Jonathan Carver Parkway and the site. So it's a lot of water moving into that space. But in general those three uh three sites continue to be marketed, developable, etc. So the feedback from the planning commission which was also echoed by the city council is that the previous version of the plan had several garage doors and then being directly adjacent to Lehwab it felt like a little bit of an industrial stretch because Lehwab obviously has several garage doors. Adding them here too made it feel less

commercial, more industrial. We had some comments about the steel that was used on kind of the beacon Taco Bell side and then the presence of purple on the building was feedback shared by the planning commission and city council. Again, I just want to let you know that this version did meet the city code, but we worked with the development team and in good faith they were able to present us a second option for development of the kitchen X model. Oh dear, that was fast. All righty. So, the updated version is on the screen now. So the ver the picture on the left would be if you had next steps behind you. So Jonathan Carver Parkway is on the other side of the building. So the vestibial is on the far north corner there. And then on the right is the drive-through side. So Jonathan Carver Parkway would be directly behind you here looking into the site looking kind of diagonally towards Quick Trip and then uh Taco Bell and Quick Trip directly behind it. The site plan looks pretty consistent. There are a couple changes. So, it chose a 2,862 foot building. There are 32 seats in the dining area. A trail was added as part of this plan. So, it's along the west side. You can see where the crosswalks track across the entrances into the site connects up to Lewab. So, if you drop off your car to get some tires and you need a crunch wrap or a coffee, you can take the crosswalk and trail system south to access into the remainder of the site. Um, queuing of the cars in the drive-thru is nine. So, there's space for nine vehicles in there. And then any overflows goes directly into the parking lot for Taco Bell, which is favorable instead of going into a street. And then just a reminder, not super specific to this project, but all streets in Carver Commons are private. So, just a piece of this development that the streets are private in there. So, here's the layout of the building. The arrow shows the drive-thru. So, um, and on the bottom is Jonathan Carver Parkway. Uh, north would be on the right

side. So, the vestib is over on that side with the drive-thru on the south. Um, something that the planning commission and city council were really favorable to was the full trash enclosure. So, that continues on this plan. That trash will be fully enclosed in the building on the far south side. I'm going to save this one and give Zach a heads up that he's going to come talk about it in a minute, but just a general layout of the interior of the building. And then something else that we often think about is the landscape plan. So there was some feedback at the city council thinking about moving through that drive-thru and what headlights might do to residents on Spring Creek Drive across Jonathan Carver Parkway. Uh the bottom picture where it's the screenshot of what Jonathan Carver Parkway looks like moving south, the Taco Bell site is significantly higher than the other side of the road. So yes, um street lights will probably shine across the county road, but it's not likely to be impactful into windows, especially on like uh first floor or second floor. I think it'll mostly hit roof lines. So anecdotal, um we can't totally say what something is going to show like how people are going to be impacted by it, but I don't think it's going to be an issue for people across Jonathan Carver Parkway. But in response, the landscape plan has been changed a little bit to uh include um some grasses and then smaller trees that will obviously mature quicker uh closer to the ground. So you can see that the two areas on both sides, the north and the south side of the site have some increased landscaping in those areas that will be closer to the ground. So if there is any light that travels off the site, will hopefully be a little bit blocked with some of that landscape material that will be installed. On the screen now is the preliminary plat. So you can see lot one block one which would be the creation of the Taco Bell that 1.27 acres and then outlot A which would be the remaining site which could be used for future development by United Properties with an end user and like the most boring looking

document is always the final plot because it just shows the two lots again. But lot one block one again on the right side would be the Taco Bell outlot A would be remaining. So that's my staff presentation. Zach, do you mind coming up sharing some info with us? Introducing yourself first though.

Perfect. Hello again. My name is Zach Zelixen with Marvin Development Border Foods for Taco Bell. And yeah, Erin wanted me to talk a little bit more about the Kitchen X. And I don't know if you want to go back to those photos. Um, we've been working again, we're a franchisee of Taco Bell local in Minnesota. We've been working with Taco Bell corporate for the last couple years with a few other select franchises to bring this new brand um across the nation. So right now there's approximately 10 that exist currently and there's different variations of it. So we've been working on kind of finite getting this to a final set that would roll out for all franchises. Um so I think Aaron shared that we were doing Lakeville and Rochester to bring next year and after talking with some of the comments and talking with ownership we decided that way we can do one more and we think that we'll do really great here. So, um, some cool features of the building is it's, uh, double the amount of glass. So, when you're inside for employees and for customers, there's a lot more light coming into the building. We rearranged everything on the inside. Bathrooms are farther away from the customer. You're able to look more into the kitchen. And if you kind of can visualize maybe more like a Chipotle in a way where food's going to be a little more visible. We're redesigning the food lines where it look, you know, it's cleaner and open and you're able to see more. You can see in the drive-through window as you look at the photos. That's all windows of watching the employees make the food as you go through the drive-through lane, which is kind of new for just QSR in general. So, super excited. Talk about corporate, super excited. And we'll yeah, see how it goes with these three builds for next year. So, here for any questions on the design or or layout

now. Yeah. Do we want to open the public hearing or We sure can do that. Yeah. Okay. So, can I get a motion to open the public hearing? a motion to open the public hearing.

Thank you. So, at this time, we will take comments from the public. When you come forward, please begin by stating your name and address for the record. Once all public comments have been received, the public hearing will be closed and no further comments on this item will be accepted during the meeting. Sherry, do you want to start? Do you want to introduce the public or have the public go first? If there are members of public, they can join us throughout the conversation. But we typically instead of opening the public hearing typically not hearing from folks and then closing so quickly, doing it this way allows it to be longer. So if someone feels compelled or hear something during the discussion, they can join us.

Um so one question, um in the materials that were provided, it provided a link to the new concept of the store, but it had cafe within the store. Yes. Yes. This was and I don't see that here.

So, this there was a little uh false news that was going spreading around like wildfire. I had a lot of calls with the Star Tribune and Business Journal about a month ago. Um the Live Moss Cafe is a is a separate concept that it does exist. There's there's two of them in California uh that another Taco Bell franchisee has been working on. Um It's still in a beta test mode, I'll say. And uh it is not Kitchen X. Um so they're they're separate things. And uh the easiest way to describe it, if if you think of like the McDonald's cafe where you kind of see some of the coffee that's in McDonald's, it it's kind of testing that concept of bringing different drinks and new products through Taco Bell. Uh but that is not This is still our same menu, Taco Bell. um just new design and and new feel for the customer and uh those kind of aspects. So no no different coffees or things like that.

Okay. And my next question is over the where the trash is stored the it looks like it should almost be a um patio up there. That sounds like an Can you like help just explain to me why why it's like that or I mean what's the intended use? Is it that's just the design?

So simply that's just the design and that's and again this is born from Taco Bell corporate and we're a franchisee so we have limited control on the choices of what we can make but yeah this was this is the design that was come up by the by Taco Bell corporate. Um those bars around the roof line actually light up at night as well. It's a so it's more trying to look at more of a modern kind of approach to the building. Um so yes, it's just it's architectural design brand design of Taco Bell. And then the m Eron, can you articulate what the materials are that are being used? Is this wood concrete that's painted black?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I it's hardy board on the bottom and then decorative metal on the top. So, our city code um allows for both of those things. In the freeway commercial district, you can't have flat metal, which I would say this is not. It's a decorative metal type that is permitted in the freeway commercial district. Did I Is that correct? Correct. Yeah, it's a corrugated pack metal. Aluminum metal. Is it painted? No. So, it's it's an architectural material that Yeah. So, it's it is black. Yeah. powder coated black aluminum.

So really the building itself is one story and that part we're seeing where it says Taco Bell is just kind of a facade, right?

Actually, no. So this So it is it's a one-story building, but when you walk into that glass entrance, that is a full vaulted entrance that you walk into. So it is it is quite when you when you walk in and maybe Aaron can go to the floor plan. Um you'll you can see there on the upper uh right hand screen when you walk in that'll be a full vaulted ceiling with the kiosk to have an entry and then also that would be glass windows looking into the kitchen where you can see uh employees working. So we're really trying to recreate the the QSR environment for the customer is what this concept is really testing. So same same size box just completely reorganizing how how it interacts with the customer. Yeah, we're excited about it. Been working on it for a couple years now with Taco Bell corporate.

So the ceilings are 16 ft high in the whole Nope. Just in this just in this entrance. Okay. Yep. Got it. And that's where you order your food. You can order your food there or walk up to the counter and order it like a typical Taco Bell with a with a menu board. A lot of this uh digital forward is getting more and more popular. I think before COVID we were around 4% digital orders and we're 50% now. So 50% of our orders are going through a kiosk or a mobile phone. Anything else?

Um I do have a couple questions. So our prelim preliminary and final plan include the lot split. The lot split is not separate. No. Okay. And then the sidewalk Since you said the streets are private, I'm assuming the city is not adding the sidewalk. That's United Properties, correct? Okay, those are my only questions. Eric, anything for you? That was easy. Um, anyone from the public have anything they would like to add? There's a lot of you. Everyone here is development team.

Okay, perfect. Um, can I get a motion to close the public hearing? Second. Thank you. So, we next would need a motion to approve Border Foods United Properties Preliminary Plats. Motion to approve. I will second. Um, any further discussion? Um, all in favor? I. And those opposed? Uh, motion carries. And then we also need a motion to recommend approval of Border Foods United Properties final plat to the city council motion to that.

It's official plug in the minutes and I will second. Um any further discussion? All those in favor? I and opposed. Uh motion carries. Thank you. Uh, new business.

You tell me if there is. There isn't. Okay. Okay. Are we already the communication? This is like the world's fastest meeting. Yeah. Bye, Keith. Good luck. Feel better. or like one of those knee push things.

Um, Taco Bell is slated to go to city council on December 1st. Um, I yeah, I'd say things are slowing down a little bit for this group. We're going to start comp plan soon. Starting to think some ideas about that. Uh, heavier lift this version will be the parks master plan. So, we'll talk about that probably a bunch this winter. So, I would say it's going to be less development review this winter, more like nitty-gritty planning information. So, buckle up. It's going to be fun. Will this December days hold?

Um, I have one application that's teetering between December and January right now, just depending on where they want to fall. So, I'll let you know ASAP. I was emailing with him today just saying let us know because it's kind of close to the holiday week. So cool. Okay. No other new business communications. So we can adjourn. Can I get a motion to adjurnn? Second. Second. Perfect. Meetings journed.