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<br /> <br />3 <br /> <br />Public Safety Department had reviewed the Planning Case and because the school was proposed to have only <br />300 students a School Resource Officer was not being requested. She explained if Police calls to the school <br />were to become an issue this would be addressed by school staff and the Public Safety Department. <br /> <br />Commissioner Murphy questioned if the two buildings within the seminary proposed for school use were <br />currently vacant. Planning Director Gundlach recommended this question be addressed by the applicant. Peter <br />Beck, United Theological Seminary, explained the library was currently a library and the McMillan building <br />had classrooms. He reported these buildings had an abundance of space available. <br /> <br />Chairperson Nichols-Matkaiti asked if the cafeteria space would be shared by the K-8 students and the <br />seminary. Mr. Beck stated this was the case. <br /> <br />Commissioner Danger inquired if this would be considered a private school. Mr. Beck stated it could be a <br />private or magnet/charter school. <br /> <br />Commissioner Danger questioned if there were any specifications that would require the school offer special <br />education classes. Mr. Beck commented he had no tenant at this time, but had real estate agents looking for a <br />tenant. He stated he had no restrictions on the classes offered except for the potential school size must remain <br />around 300 students or less. <br /> <br />Commissioner Danger asked if the seminary enrollment was down and this had led to the Special Use Permit <br />request. Mr. Beck reported this was the case. He discussed how the dynamics of higher education were <br />changing which was leading to the downsizing of the seminary campus. He believed the additional space on <br />campus would be best utilized by a K-8 school. <br /> <br />Commissioner Fynewever inquired if these two communities could cohesively coexist, and if there were any <br />other instances in the State or nation where a college and elementary school shared the same campus. Planning <br />Director Gundlach reported she was not aware of any instances in the State or nation. Mr. Beck commented <br />50+ years ago he attended a college where a K-9 school was located on the same campus in St. Cloud, <br />Minnesota. <br /> <br />Commissioner Danger questioned the demographics of the seminary school. Lew Zeidner, President of United <br />Theological Seminary, discussed the demographics of his students noting the ages ranged from 25 to 60, with <br />the majority of students being mid-career. He stated he had 80 students on-campus at this time. <br /> <br />Chairperson Nichols-Matkaiti requested further comment on the outdoor playground. Mr. Beck reviewed the <br />proposed and location of for the playground and commented on feedback received from the neighborhood <br />meeting. For safety purposes, he recommended the playground location remain as is. He stated if the <br />playground were to locate to the southwest this would require the prairie area to be destroyed. He believed that <br />the potential should not be restricted to using the campus only five nights per year. He suggested this number <br />be increased to 12. In addition, he requested the school be allowed to function from 7 am to 7 pm on a daily <br />basis. <br /> <br />Chairperson Nichols-Matkaiti asked if the playground area would be fenced. Mr. Beck stated he was not <br />requesting a fence at this time, but was uncertain if the tenant would want to make this request. <br /> <br />Chairperson Nichols-Matkaiti questioned what times of day the playground would be used. Mr. Beck <br />anticipated the playground area would be primary used for recess time after lunch. However, he stated he