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City trying to work out final issues with county’s CCS office complex
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By Charlie Warner
Argus News Editor
It appears as if Houston County staff will have to jump through a few more hoops before the County Community Services (CCS) parking lot, located just south of Tru-Gas Propane becomes a reality.
During a June 22 public hearing called by the Caledonia City Council, residents living near the proposed parking lot expressed concerns over the grading plan.
The county purchased a vacant lot, approximately 1.5 acres in size, which is located just north of Sunset Boulevard, from Midwest Bottle and Gas. The county planned to put a three percent slope to the lot, forcing stormwater run-off to the south onto Sunset Boulevard and then onto both Sunset and McPhail avenues.
According to residents living in that neighborhood, a stormwater issue already exists. They contended if the grassy vacant lot was converted into a gravel parking lot, it would force more water onto Sunset Boulevard and worsen an already bad run-off situation.
After listening to more than an hour of testimony, the city council indicated they would not approve the county’s current plans. City Zoning Administrator Mike Gerardy suggested the lot be sloped to the north, have a small water retention structure (such as a grassy ponding area) collect the water and have any excess water run-off routed along the west side of the parking lot in a grassy ditch.
“That plan might work for now, but I’m sure the county is planning on surfacing the parking lot some time in the future. Won’t that impact the problem even more?” asked Chuck Schulte.
County Financial Director Casey Bradley replied that a conditional use permit the county had to acquire from Mn/DOT forbids a hard surfaced parking lot.
Bradley and County Highway Superintendent Tom Molling quickly reviewed Gerardy’s suggestions and indicated they might be feasible. They would have County Highway Engineer Brian Pogodzinski review the suggestions and have a revised drainage plan ready for the July 13 city council meeting.
Temporary lot for now
Now the county had to move to “Plan B”.
Because the County Extension Office, Veterans Services and Public Health Nursing have all moved into the CCS, the county was required to have at least 36 off-street parking stalls available within 800 feet of the entrance to the building.
The county originally planned to have the land purchased from Midwest Bottle and Gas developed into a parking lot before the third week in June. But due to purchase agreement snafus and drainage issues, that parking lot is still in limbo.
According to Bradley, the county still has the lease agreement with the owners of the former Extension/NRCS building on North Sprague Street. That complex has 40 parking stalls and is less than 800 feet from the CCS building.
After reviewing that information supplied by Bradley, the council approved that parking lot on a temporary basis.
CUP is approved
The city council approved the conditional use permit (CUP) the county requested for the CCS (office space in a B-2 Highway Business District). The motion to approve was made by Mayor Bob Burns and seconded by Councilwoman Randi Vick.
The motion included a stipulation that the county had to be working on the new drainage flow plan for the permanent CCS parking lot, that the new plans would be presented at the July 13 council meeting and completion of the new parking lot had to be within five months.
The motion passed unanimously.
You can contact Charlie Warner at
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