2021.06.22 CC Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

V. Report from City Council Liaison Councilmember Abdulle provided the Commission with an update from the City Council. He stated the Council discussed Commission optimization and work plans at a recent worksession meeting, along with the role of student commissioners. He reported the Council had a robust discussion regarding manufactured home parks and received an update from Ramsey County regarding their HRA efforts. VI. Public Hearing (A) Ordinance 884: An Ordinance to rezone properties from R-3B and R-2 (the Lakeside and Oak Grove Manufactured Home Parks) to MHC (Manufactured Home Community), and to update regulations relating to manufactured homes in Chapter 16 of City Code and Chapter 4 of the Zoning Code. Assistant Director of Community Assets and Development Gozola reported in April, the Planning Commission and City Council were introduced to a host of problems in the City Ordinance relating to existing and future manufactured home parks. Existing codes had guided the City's manufactured home parks for decades without issue, but a recent complaint prompted an in-depth examination of our regulations, and staff agreed that historic practices could not continue given how code was written. Without immediate action, this discovery was poised to have a significant impact on ALL manufactured home owners (over 360 homes) in the form of increased permit costs ($350+) and permit review times (+40 days). To protect these residents and to maintain past practices, staff immediately published notice for Ordinance 881 to update the City Code and Zoning Code as needed to eliminate the newly identified problems. On April 27, 2021, Ordinance 881 was approved, but will not be effective until the City's Manufactured Home Parks are rezoned to the newly created Manufactured Home Community (MHC) zoning district. Ordinance 884 will complete the rezonings, and will make minor amendments to the language approved in Ordinance 881 in response to feedback from the Planning Commission and Council last month. It was noted the Lakeside Manufactured Home Park will be rezoned from R-3B to MHC. The Oak Grove Manufactured Home Park will be rezoned from R-2 to MHC. Chapter 16 is being further updated to ensure development of new parks or expansion areas of existing parks results in overall densities consistent with historic expectations. Staff provided further comment on the request and recommended approval of Ordinance 884 based on the following rationale: • Ordinance 884 will implement the changes approved by Ordinance 881, and will ensure our oversight of manufactured homes remains unchanged from previous decades. • Failure to approve this ordinance essentially ends activity within our manufactured home parks unless variances are both applied for and granted, thereby increasing both cost and review time to complete projects within the existing parks. • Resident requests to create new standards for manufactured home parks can be considered as part of the upcoming zoning code rewrite project. Adding new regulations is not the intent of Ordinance 884. 2