A new single-family residential subdivision was approved by the Cottage Grove City Council at the April 17 regular meeting. Just south of the Woodbury border with Cottage Grove, the planned 24.5-acre development is at Jeffrey Avenue South and 63rd Street South, east of the Northwick Park neighborhood, north of the Parkview Pointe neighborhood, and west of the in-progress Rolling Meadows neighborhood. About 71 homes are planned to be built in “Summer Valley” by Summergate Development following the council’s approval to rezone the land from AG-2 (Agriculture) to R-3 (Single-Family Residential), along with approving the preliminary plat.
“The applicant is requesting to rezone the property from AG-2 to R-3, which would be in accordance with the long-term growth plan for the parcel,” said Cottage Grove Associate Planner Connor Jakes. “The low-density residential does allow for 2-4 units per acre, and the applicant is proposing a density of 2.9 units per acre.”
Transportation access for the proposed construction is being discussed, as there is currently no accessible roadway on the north end of the parcel. Therefore, surrounding residential roads would be required to shoulder the majority of the construction traffic during the development process. A neighborhood meeting took place on March 12, with 26 people in attendance. Construction traffic, development process, and project buildout were the main concerns raised by residents at the meeting. Jeffrey Avenue South, Jensen Avenue South, and 63rd Street South, surrounding the parcel except on the north side, will need to be used as conduits for construction vehicles during the project.
Referring to the construction traffic issue, Jakes noted, “Due to the limited access to the site, the residents at the neighborhood meeting did ask whether the applicant could work with the property owner to the north, along the Woodbury border, to utilize the existing driveway and farm field on site.” He continued, “The applicant did investigate this, but the property owners weren’t interested, due to concerns related to liability, tree removal, and other various factors. Thus, the only remaining access options are through the existing residential neighborhoods.”
New sidewalks and trails will be constructed to mesh with those in the surrounding neighborhoods. A northward roadway extension is planned at the top of the parcel, awaiting future approval from the Woodbury landowner to the north. A proposed smaller dry pond and a larger wet pond, bonded with the current Rolling Meadows wet pond, would serve both developments.
The current landscaping plan includes 77 boulevard trees, as well as four trees and 10 shrubs per lot. After updated zoning codes in 2022, the tree requirement for lots greater than 60 feet in width was lowered to three per lot, which the development company will take into account going forward.
Councilmember Dave Thiede checked with Jakes to make sure the city had been in touch with Woodbury regarding the planned northward roadway expansion.
“I assume we’ve talked with Woodbury and kind of coordinated with Woodbury on that road going north,” Thiede said. “Do they already have some different proposals in place, and it all platted out?”
“At this point we haven’t gotten any information that they have any proposals,” replied Jakes. “At such time that they would, they would notify us and we could provide comment at that time.”
Councilmember Justin Olsen expressed concern about the city and developer communicating with area residents through the process, as well as making sure that construction traffic in the residential neighborhoods is conducted safely and with concern for the residents and their families.
“As I’m sure you’re keenly aware, that seems to be an area of heartburn for residents throughout the city when situations like this arise where they have construction traffic and it comes through their residential neighborhood,” said Olsen. “What I’m curious about is what can we do from a communications perspective to ensure that folks in the neighborhood are keenly aware of the activity that’s going to take place, and the times in which the activity will take place, so that we can hopefully put people’s minds at ease to some degree.”
Olsen also asked whether construction vehicles would adversely affect the structure of existing roads for neighboring residents.
“We tend to see a little bit of wear and tear on some of those roads that aren’t generally used for that purpose,” said Olsen. “They’re not made for that purpose. Are we concerned at all about what this traffic through the neighborhood may do to the existing roadways and/or have we thought that through and tried to figure out what we can do to mitigate that?”
Jakes responded that the city has been in touch with the area residents via email and phone and will continue to keep them informed throughout the project. Cottage Grove City Engineer Amanda Meyer added that community update websites can be set up to keep people in the area informed, and are being considered, but she noted that the current issue at hand is to approve the preliminary plat, and those issues can be dealt with in the future.
Councilmember Tony Khambata motioned to pass the zoning amendment, which was seconded by Thiede, and passed 5-0. Councilmember Monique Garza motioned to pass the preliminary plat, which was seconded by Olsen, and also passed unanimously.
