St. Paul Planning Commission Meeting - August 16, 2024
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St. Paul Planning Commission Meeting – August 16, 2024
The Saint Paul Planning Commission met on Friday, August 16, 2024, starting at 8:43 AM and adjourning at 9:11 AM. The meeting included approval of the August 2, 2024 minutes, reports from the chair and planning director, zoning committee action on a conditional use permit, and updates from the comprehensive and transportation committees. Commissioners also discussed commission vacancies, a request for an anti-displacement study report, and upcoming events.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of Minutes: The minutes from the August 2, 2024 Planning Commission meeting were approved unanimously (motion by Commissioner Taghioff, second by Commissioner Reilly).
Discussion Items
- Chair’s Announcements: Chair Grill commented on the mayor’s budget overview, expressing support for permanent housing for unsheltered individuals, equitable development on the West Side, and increased tourism. She noted that property tax increases are necessary to fund services but hoped for future relief. Commissioner Risberg raised concerns about accessibility and design of new buildings near the Yacht event, questioning the definition of affordable housing.
- Planning Director’s Announcements: Director Robinson announced the promotion of Bill Dermody to Zoning Implementation Team Supervisor, which may improve zoning process efficiency. Commissioner Risberg noted that Dermody had been supporting the Transportation Committee and will be replaced by Emma Brown.
- Zoning Committee Report: Commissioner Taghioff reported that the committee unanimously approved a conditional use permit (CUP) for a farmers’ market at 1807 Field Avenue (District 15, Ward 3). The market has operated since 2015, and the CUP is needed to comply with code for selling non-fresh items like jams. The full commission approved the CUP without opposition.
- Comprehensive and Neighborhood Planning Committee Report: Commissioner Thomas summarized a presentation from Parks and Recreation (Brett Hassing) and PED on the Faye and Keller Regional Park amendment, specifically the daylighting of Phelan Creek. The project, spearheaded by a Native American nonprofit (Wakán Te), is a $4.8 million effort with $3.3 million raised. It will bring water to the park and eventually connect to Sweet Hollow. The resolution will come before the full Planning Commission on August 30, 2024. The committee’s next meeting is scheduled for September 11, 2024.
- Transportation Committee Report: Commissioner Risberg reported no agenda items due to the holiday; the next meeting will be September 16, 2024. He encouraged additional commissioners to join the committee.
- Communications-Nomination Committee: No meeting.
- Commission Vacancies: Commissioner Riley noted that the commission is short approximately four members, and he requested to switch his committee assignment from the Comprehensive and Neighborhood Planning Committee to the Transportation Committee. Director Robinson confirmed that the city has a rolling application but is seeking suitable candidates from under-represented districts. Chair Grill encouraged commissioners to recruit new members.
- Old Business: None.
- New Business:
- A commissioner (unidentified) requested that the anti-displacement study report be presented to the commission as soon as practical, citing frustration with delays. Chair Grill acknowledged the request and mentioned that the Reconnect Rondo project is also conducting its own anti-displacement study.
- Commissioner Thomas announced a national conference, "Reconnecting Communities," hosted by Reconnect Rondo and other organizations, taking place September 12-13, 2024, at the InterContinental Hotel in downtown St. Paul. He offered to forward information to commissioners.
- Commissioner Taghioff noted emails about December calendar dates and corrections.
- Chair Grill mentioned attending a reparations conference and praised the city's Reparations Commission, which is permanent and one of the few in the country. She noted that the commission has a report available on its website.
Key Outcomes
- Approved: Minutes of August 2, 2024 (unanimous).
- Approved: Conditional Use Permit #24-059-428 for a farmers’ market at 1807 Field Avenue (unanimous).
- Request: A commissioner’s request for the anti-displacement study report to be brought to the commission was noted; no formal action taken.
- Committee Assignment Change: Commissioner Riley’s request to switch to the Transportation Committee was accepted.
- Next Steps: The comprehensive planning committee’s resolution on the Phelan Creek daylighting project will be presented at the August 30, 2024 Planning Commission meeting.
Meeting Transcript
And for her because she's on vacation. But I'm calling the St. Paul Planning Commission meeting of Friday, August 16th to order. I guess it's 843 a.m. With that, I um like to hear the agenda. Um I'd like to um start off by having the approval motion to approve the minutes. Hopefully, every of August 2nd, hopefully everybody had a chance to read them. So moved second. It's been moved and seconded by Commissioner Tagioff and seconded by Commissioner Riley. All in favor? Any opposed abstentions hearing that? Is there any more um discussion? With that, the motion has been moved in and seconded and all approved for the minutes of August 2nd. Next on our agenda is the chair's announcements. I really didn't have um a lot, but I was just wanted to mention how many folk went to the mayor's budget um overview because we saw each other. Yes, of course. It counts. Um so I thought the budget represented um hopefully a lot of our community residents um input. I was impressed with um for the west side that he mentioned the rest of the west side getting some reconciliation for um you know the travesty that happened to them. It was not exactly like what happened to the Rondeau neighborhood, but in a sense, there was um inequitable um development done on them and uh things are done to that community without their input and not to their choice. I also was impressed with um the fact that the um you know really talked about housing, affordable housing and really looking at addressing some of the unsheltered housing people that are unsheltered. Although I don't um the answer for me personally is that you cannot um um temporary shelters are not the answer. So I would really like to see how we can uh our city can put more resources into creating permanent housing for our unhouse um people, but at least they're gonna broaden up the um supports. Don't know exactly what that means, but was impressed about that. I am a homeowner and although they raised the taxes. I have to admit, you know, we have to um raise property taxes to um support other community services that we need to um to help our city um survive, thrive and grow. Um so um, but I'm also hopeful that he also said they may try to look at in the future and taking um some other avenues without putting the sole burden on proper, you know, on homeowners and property owners uh around taxes. Um you know, I'm hopeful about that. And it looks like um, you know, the budget was raised and tried to allocate resources across all departments. Um so that was a plus two. It didn't the budget wasn't decreased. Um so we know that we need increased resources. And I'm also um excited because I'm involved in a lot of cultural restoration work and um legacy work, especially in the Rondeau neighborhood. Um I'm glad that he's thinking about this whole notion around cult creating and developing cultural destination areas and especially looking at increasing tourism and visitorship um to our city. So um because I don't know about y'all, but when I go someplace, um they don't seem to always know about Saint Paul or Minnesota or all they can think about, oh, it's cold. So um I'm really excited about looking at increasing um tourism. And although I did not know about that great event that we had the yacht. Yeah, I knew nothing about it, but I thought I think that it was highly successful. So that was uh that's awesome. Um as well. So I don't know if there's anybody that wanted that did look at it or not. Well, I simplified me. I mean, it's the word great. It's only if you look at the numbers that were there. Yeah. Accessibility was not so great. The issue of those buildings that are that have been put up there now and how that traffic is moved since those buildings have been put up, they didn't look so great to me. Yeah. Um so there's some issues with what we bring into town who it's dedicated for. Um, and so being that it's on my neck of the woods, I was quite aware of that.
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