5. Report on VMU B Zoning District 3 6 18
Memorandum
To: Scandia Planning
Commission
Reference: VMU B Zoning District
Copies To: Neil Soltis, City
Administrator
Brenda Eklund, City Clerk
Project No.: 16623.000
From: Sherri Buss, RLA AICP,
Planner
Routing:
Date: February 21, 2018
The City’s EDA and the City Council have requested that the Planning Commission review the
uses and lot standards in the VMU B Zoning District. The request was made based on the
concerns about the closing of Chikos Restaurant. Chikos was a tenant in a stand-alone building
located on a parcel with a separate multi-tenant building. Developers and potential restaurant
operators have expressed interest in the restaurant building but financing the business or
improvements to the exterior or interior of the building are difficulty since there is no security
interest in the building. The EDA and Council want the Planning Commission to consider
whether there are options that would allow businesses in the VMU B District to have an
ownership position that would give them more independence and site control.
Some options for discussion that could give businesses more options or flexibility include:
Commercial condominium ownership
PUDs
Changes to the VMU B District—change in district boundaries, uses, smaller lot sizes or
other changes to the standards for the VMU B
Commercial Condominiums
The condominium form of ownership could allow a building or property to have multiple
businesses, each owning their own portion of the site, and governed by an Association
that makes decisions about common areas, common systems (such as a septic system
or heating/cooling system), building usage, parking, and other common concerns.
Minnesota law permits condominiums as an ownership option. This option could be
implemented by building owners of multi-tenant buildings or sites, and would not require
changes in the City Code.
Commercial Uses and VMU B District Page 2 March 6, 2018
Scandia Planning Commission
PUDs
The Scandia Development Code permits PUDs (Section 7.0 of Chapter 2) and includes
standards for PUDs. PUDs are permitted to meet city goals by allowing flexibility from
city standards such as setbacks, lot sizes, etc PUDs may allow coordinated planning
for parking and other infrastructure. They are permitted in the VMU A, VMU B, Village
Neighborhood, Rural Commercial, and Industrial Park zoning districts. While Section
7.0 lists PUDs as conditional uses, Section 2 lists PUDs as conditional uses only in the
Village Neighborhood, Rural Commercial, and Industrial Park zoning districts.
PUDs require approval of a CUP (Section 7, item 7.3). All of the uses that are allowed
in a zoning district may potentially be allowed in a PUD in that district. (A minor change
should be made to the Code to list PUDs as a use that is permitted with a CUP in the
districts listed above.)
Section 7 permits the City to grant flexibility from the standard Zoning and Subdivision
requirements for PUDs when the flexibility would help to meet the City’s goals.
Developers can request flexibility from the required setbacks, minimum lot sizes,
minimum numbers of parking spaces, building height, lot coverage, and minimum
frontage on public streets in the zoning district where the PUD would be located if
granting the variations will meet the goals stated for PUDs in Section 7. Section 7 does
not place limits on the degree of variation that may be granted for parking, lot size, etc.
VMU B District
The VMU B District is described in the zoning ordinance as a mixed use are that was
established to provide a growth area for the village center, and to accommodate
business that need a larger land area and visibility from Highway 97. The district
includes a mix of commercial and residential uses, and a wide range in lot sizes, from
the very small commercial lots along Olinda north of Highway 97 to the 2.5-acre
commercial lots east of the village, and residential lots that vary from 0.35 to 2.5 acres
in size.
The VMU A District was created to sustain the historic village center by preserving and
protecting the long-term viability of historic properties and structures and permitting land
uses that support the historic uses.
The VMU A and B standards are compared on the table that follows:
Zoning Standards VMU A VMU B
Lot size 2,500 square feet (No new
subdivision
of land permitted
2.5 acres
Minimum Buildable
Area
None 1 acre
Commercial Uses and VMU B District Page 3 March 6, 2018
Scandia Planning Commission
Minimum frontage None 160 feet
Maximum lot
coverage
80% 65%
Building setbacks None (Design guidelines
apply)
Front: 40 feet
Side: 20 feet
Rear: 50 feet
(Wider on arterial and collector
roadways)
Max Bldg Height 45 feet 45 feet
If there is interest in growing the commercial area in Scandia, this may be a good time
to review the VMU A and B Districts, discuss the purposes and standards of the
districts, and consider some questions:
If the VMU B District is an expansion area for the Village area, should the lot
sizes and other standards in the VMU B District be more similar to those in the
VMU A District to encourage more businesses similar to those in the Village?
This may require some new standards in VMU B for permitting community septic
systems and shared parking to serve several properties if smaller lot sizes are
permitted. While PUDs could be used to achieve some flexibility from the VMU B
standards, PUDs are applicable for multiple uses and larger sites, but not a
practical option for a single business seeking to locate or expand in the VMU B.
Or could the VMU A area be expanded to include the small parcels north of
Highway 97 along Olinda, such as the Creamery parcel? Some or all of the
commercial area east of the Village along Highway 97 and north of the Industrial
District to permit/encourage additional businesses in this area on parcels with
smaller lot sizes?
Is it likely that the residential properties and school property within the VMU B
District west and south of the Village will be an expansion area for the Village? If
the VMU A is expanded to include more of the commercial areas in VMU B,
could the residential areas in VMU B be moved to the Village Neighborhood
district? The standards for the VN District are very similar to VMU B.
The Planning Commission will discuss the VMU B district and options to address the
EDA and Council questions at the meeting on March 6.