Based on the context provided for the City of Rosemount, here is the transcribed meeting with speaker names assigned. **Note:** The transcript includes a "Commissioner Whitman" and a staff member named "Liz" who were not in the provided list but are clearly identified in the dialogue. [0:00] [Music] [0:57] **Melissa Kenninger:** Call to order the Rosemount Planning Commission meeting for Monday, December 16th. Please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Are there any additions to tonight's agenda? [1:23] **Anthony Nemcek:** There are no additions, Madam Chair. [1:26] **Melissa Kenninger:** Thank you. Is there any input from the audience on items that are not on tonight's agenda? Seeing none, we'll move forward to the consent agenda. The consent agenda is our minutes from our November 26th, 2024, regular meeting. Are there any comments or questions on the consent agenda? [1:42] **Melissa Kenninger:** I'll make a motion to approve the consent agenda. [1:46] **Michael Reed:** Second. [1:47] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Kenninger, seconded by Commissioner Reed. All those in favor please say aye. [1:53] **Commissioners:** Aye. [1:55] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Motion carries. We will move forward to our public hearing section this evening. First up on our public hearing section is a request by Jason Lob for approval of a site plan review to allow for the construction of a 572-square-foot addition to an existing office building at 3450 151st Street West. Julia, the floor is yours. [2:19] **Julia Hogan:** All right, so a little bit of a summary of the project in front of the commission today. So the Planning Commission is being asked to consider a request for approval of a site plan for a 572-foot addition onto an existing 1,456-foot office building at 3450 151st Street West. Site plan reviews are required for minor revisions or additions to existing principal structures that exceed 30% of the floor area of a structure. Due to the existing size of the building, the proposed addition does meet that threshold that triggers a site plan review. The proposed addition will be 22 feet by 26 feet in size and will be located on the east side of the existing building on site. Overview of where the property is located: the property is located east of Chippendale Avenue and south of 151st Street West. The property is part of the South Rose Park addition replat and it was developed in 1988. [3:12] **Julia Hogan:** So a little overview of the site: the site is 1.11 acres in size. The current zoning is B1 General Business District and the compliant land use designation is Community Commercial. So the building on site is currently being used as office space for an insurance company. The applicant is seeking the site plan approval for the proposed addition to add additional office space for current and future employees on site. So a little overview of the dimensions and setbacks are shown within this table. You can see that the front yard setback does meet that 30-foot minimum, approximately 90 feet back from that front property line. The west side is about 97 feet away from the west property line, and the east property line is where that addition is going to be located off the east. So currently it's approximately 72 feet from the east property line; with the proposed addition it'll be 50 feet back. The rear yard setback will not change with the addition as it's going directly off the east side of the existing building, that will be 85 feet off. And then also the lot coverage is way below the 75% maximum. [4:30] **Julia Hogan:** Overview of the access and parking: the site is accessed by a circular driveway that has two access points off of 151st Street West. The off-street parking requirement for businesses or professional offices is one stall per 300 feet of gross floor area. The size of the building in addition puts the parking stall requirement to seven stalls on site. The applicant has indicated that there are space for 12 stalls on site and there's also additional space if additional stalls are needed. So here are additional site photos that were submitted by the applicant. You can see the additions off the east side of the building, as well as here is a view looking north to the building—you can see that that addition will be off that east side again. The applicant did also submit a couple project plans of the proposed addition. You can see that on the right-hand side there's the proposed framing of the proposed addition and then also the proposed foundation plan on the left side. [5:32] **Julia Hogan:** A little overview of the building material: the existing building's material consists of lap siding, which the proposed addition will continue with that look to be cohesive with the existing building. The building on site again was constructed in 1988 prior to updated requirements of architectural standards with the zoning code. So the proposed addition does meet the setback and size requirements for today's zoning code and the lap siding that is proposed for the addition is consistent with the existing building materials. So overview of the landscaping on site: there are currently nine trees on site with a majority of them located along the property boundaries along Chippendale Avenue and then also the eastern property boundary, and then a few additional trees on the rear property boundary. Additional trees are not required for the site as the zoning code allows for the continuance of non-conformities as the site was developed in 1988. If any trees were to be removed with the addition they would need to be replaced, but the proposed addition does not change any of the existing landscaping on site. [6:28] **Julia Hogan:** So the recommendation in front of the commission today is a motion to approve the site plan for a 572-foot addition to an existing office building at 3450 151st Street West subject to the applicant and property owner applying for and receiving all required building permits. I do know the applicant is here as well so he can speak to any questions that the commission may have, but I can also answer some questions that the commission may have as well. [6:52] **Melissa Kenninger:** Thank you, Julia. Are there any questions from the commission? [6:55] **Commissioner:** No, I think we're good. [6:56] **Melissa Kenninger:** This item is a public hearing item this evening, so at this time we will open up the public hearing. Anyone in the audience that would like to speak on this item may do so at this time coming to the podium, stating your name and address for the record. Seeing none, I'll make a motion to close the public hearing. [7:18] **Michael Reed:** Second. [7:19] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Kenninger, seconded by Commissioner Reed to close the public hearing. All those in favor please say aye. [7:26] **Commissioners:** Aye. [7:28] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Motion carries. Any further comments or questions on this item this evening? [7:34] **Michael Reed:** I just—very clear plans. It's a great place to expand there, it's a great space for it, so makes perfect sense. [7:42] **Melissa Kenninger:** Yeah, I agree with that. And I do just want to call out that our decision this evening on this item is a final decision. It will not go forward to City Council unless somebody does appeal the decision this evening, so just for anyone in the audience or watching at home knows that. And with that, I will make a motion to approve the site plan for a 572-foot addition to an existing office building at 3450 151st Street West subject to the condition one listed in the staff report. [8:15] **Aaron Beadner:** Second. [8:16] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Kenninger, seconded by Commissioner Beadner. All those in favor please say aye. [8:21] **Commissioners:** Aye. [8:22] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Motion carries. The next item on our agenda this evening is a request by Danner Inc. for renewal of a small-scale mineral extraction permit for 2025. And Julia, we are going to continue this item to the next meeting, correct? [8:36] **Julia Hogan:** Correct. [8:37] **Melissa Kenninger:** Okay, so at this time we will open up the public hearing for this item. Anyone that would like to speak on this item may do so at this time. We will be continuing this item to our January 28th, 2025, meeting of which the public hearing will be open again as well. Is there anyone in the audience who would like to speak on the Danner application this evening? Okay, seeing none, I'll make a motion to continue the Danner public hearing to the January 28th, 2025 meeting. [9:06] **Brenda Rivera:** Second. [9:07] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Kenninger, seconded by Commissioner Rivera to continue the public hearing for the Danner application to January 28th, 2025. All those in favor please say aye. [9:17] **Commissioners:** Aye. [9:18] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Motion carries. The third public hearing item this evening on our agenda is a request by Vesta LLC and Stonex LLC for renewal of its small-scale mineral extraction permit for 2025. And Julia, I'll turn it over to you. [9:36] **Julia Hogan:** All right. Anthony, could you—perfect. All right, so a little overview of the requests today. The Planning Commission is being asked to consider a request for renewal of a small-scale mineral extraction permit for Vesta and Stonex for 2025. There are three operators currently that are working within the mining area which are Soberg Aggregates, Bolander and Sons, and then Frattalone Companies. This permit renewal will be the fifth time that all three operators are listed as part of the application materials. So a little overview of the site update: mining activity did increase in 2024 with a total of 120,000 cubic yards of material that was removed from the site. Approximately 60,000 yards of material removed from the Bolander operation, about 10,000 yards from the Soberg operation, and 50,000 from the Frattalone operation. No fill was brought into the site, which is consistent with prior years. [10:35] **Julia Hogan:** Mining will continue to advance to the west in the northern portion of the site and then will continue south in the southern portion of the site, which I will go over in the next couple slides. Reclamation has proceeded on the east side of the Vesta pit floor and the applicant did indicate that an additional two to three acres of reclamation is planned to occur in the spring of 2025. So, location of the site: you can see that it's located south of Bonaire Path and is located west of Blaine Avenue. The properties are owned by Flint Hills Resources but they do lease it to the applicant for mineral extraction. So here are a couple overviews of aerials. You can see on the left-hand side it's August 2023 and on the right-hand side October 2024. Like I had mentioned earlier, you can see that that mineral extraction continues to occur west in the northern portion of the site, and then you can see in the southern portion that Frattalone Companies is extending that south, which was described by the applicant in their narrative. [11:51] **Julia Hogan:** Then an overview, kind of a panoramic image: you can see on the left-hand side April 2023 and then to the right April 2024. Again, you can see them expanding to the west and the northern portion and then also to the south and the southern portion with reclamation happening on the east side of that northern portion. So here was the updated site plan that was submitted by the applicant. Again, you can see that they are mining into that Phase 1 and Phase 2 on the northern portion for Bolander and then as well as into Phase 1 up in the northern portion with Soberg. And then also down south with Frattalone, they were working into Phase 1 and Phase 2 and working their way south with reclamation occurring again in that eastern portion of the northern portion—about 10.1 acres reclaimed in total. Here are a couple site photos that are shown looking south and west onto the site, kind of panoram around, and as well looking east on the site as well. [12:55] **Julia Hogan:** So, I do want to also mention that as part of the annual review, staff does go out to the site and does talk with the Police Department. There were no reports indicated from the Police Department and then also staff did see that the applicants were meeting their expectations with their permit as well. But in front of the commission today there is one motion to recommend the City Council approve the renewal of the Vesta and Stonex LLC small-scale mineral extraction permit for 2025 subject to the terms and conditions in the attached 2025 conditions for mineral extraction. I do know that the applicant is in the audience if there are additional questions for them. I can try and answer if there are any by the commission as well. [13:42] **Melissa Kenninger:** Thank you, Julia. Are there any comments or questions from the commission at this time? No? Thank you. This item is a public hearing item this evening, so at this time we will open up the public hearing. Anyone in the audience would like to speak on this item may do so at this time coming to the podium, stating your name and address for the record. Seeing none, I'll make a motion to close the public hearing. [14:10] **Michael Reed:** Second. [14:11] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Kenninger, seconded by Commissioner Reed to close the public hearing. All those in favor please say aye. [14:18] **Commissioners:** Aye. [14:19] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Public hearing is now closed. Any further comments or questions for staff on this? [14:24] **Michael Reed:** Yeah, I'll just say one thing and it kind of applies to a lot of these when we see these plans. It's an operation that's been in effect for some time, it's performing well, it's a good partner for the city. There's no significant changes happening within that operation or around it because we kind of look at what's happening in the general vicinity and it seems pretty stable and not much change here. So pretty easy to approve these when it's a good city partner. I'll make a motion to recommend the City Council approve the renewal of the Vesta LLC and Stonex LLC small-scale mineral extraction permit for 2025 subject to the terms and conditions in the attached 2025 conditions for mineral extraction. [15:08] **Commissioner Whitman:** Second. [15:10] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Reed, seconded by Commissioner Whitman. All those in favor please say aye. [15:15] **Commissioners:** Aye. [15:16] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Motion carries. We will go to our next item this evening which is a request by Carl Bolander and Sons LLC for renewal of a small-scale mineral extraction permit for 2025 and 2026. And we will turn this one over to Liz. [15:35] **Liz [Staff Member]:** Okay, so the Planning Commission is being asked to consider an application to renew the small-scale mineral extraction permit for the Carl Bolander and Sons LLC for the years 2025 and 2026. As far as the site update, they had 9,800 cubic yards of sand that was extracted from the site in 2024 and 10,748 cubic yards of soil that had been imported in 2024. Mining is going to continue on the eastern portion of the site with Phase 4 as shown in the site plan which I'll be pulling up in a minute. And in 2025, the applicant is expecting to haul between 75,000 and 150,000 cubic yards of sand out of the site. So this is the site location shown in red here. It is located to the south of 145th Street East and to the west of Emery Avenue and it is 8.76 acres. [16:44] **Liz [Staff Member]:** These are some aerial photos from August 2023 and October 2024. It's cut off a little bit but the main access is a joint road with the Danner mine to the west and their mining phases have been moving west to east over the years. So this is the site plan; they're currently in Phase 4 which you can see here, and then this is the reclamation plan. Phases 1 and 2 are fully restored and most of Phase 3 as well. So here's a couple of site photos for you. As part of the annual review for an extraction permit, staff performs an inspection of the site and also consults with the Police Department. Staff found that there were no violations of the permit on the site and there were no records of any incidents from the Police Department. Just a couple more site photos, and the recommended action in front of the commission: there is a motion to recommend the City Council approve the Carl Bolander and Sons LLC small-scale mineral extraction permit for 2025 and 2026 subject to the terms and conditions in the attached draft conditions for mineral extraction. [18:03] **Melissa Kenninger:** Thank you, Liz. Are there any comments or questions for Liz at this time? Thank you. This item is a public hearing item so at this time we will open up the public hearing. Anyone in the audience would like to speak may come to the podium. I bet you guys are going to know to state your name and address for the record now, I'm going to stop saying it. Okay, seeing none, I will make a motion to close the public hearing. [18:29] **Michael Reed:** Second. [18:30] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Kenninger, seconded by Commissioner Reed to close the public hearing. All those in favor please say aye. [18:37] **Commissioners:** Aye. [18:38] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Public hearing is now closed. Again, to echo your comments last time, Commissioner Reed, I feel like these partners are good partners, they've been doing this for a while, and the area that it's going is an area we don't have a lot going on right now, so it helps make the job easy for these renewals. Any other comments or questions before we move forward? [19:01] **Aaron Beadner:** I can make the motion. Perfect. Motion to recommend the City Council approve the Carl Bolander and Sons LLC small-scale mineral extraction permit for 2025 and 2026 subject to the terms and conditions in the attached 2025 conditions for mineral extraction. [19:20] **Commissioner Whitman:** Second. [19:21] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Beadner, seconded by Commissioner Whitman. All those in favor please say aye. [19:26] **Commissioners:** Aye. [19:27] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Motion carries. And this item as well as our previous item with Vesta and Stonex will move forward to City Council on January 21st. And now I will turn it over to Anthony for renewal of the Schaefer Contracting Company small-scale mineral extraction permit for 2025 and 2026. [19:48] **Anthony Nemcek:** Thank you, Madam Chair. The Schaefer pit is located in the northeast portion of the city, west of Highway 52, just west of Blaine Avenue which turns into Rich Valley Boulevard. The closest property is one single-family dwelling; otherwise, the other large neighbor is the Flint Hills Resources Pine Bend Refinery just east of the site. For 2024, 22,226 cubic yards were removed from the site. No haul-back was brought in. Typically we would get compaction testing from mines that have a haul-back brought in; there was none, so staff is not recommending any compaction testing for this year. Mining in the site occurs for the most part in the northwestern portion. Phase 4 and 5 are the two active phases here, but this is where the bulk of the activity on the site happens. [20:47] **Anthony Nemcek:** As you could see compared to other mines in the area, this isn't one of the most active. Schaefer Contracting uses the material in here for their own projects, so the amount of material taken out of the site ebbs and flows as their different jobs come onto their schedule. Just a couple other notes on the site as well: the central portion there in the yellow is their haul-back area, there's some stockpiling kind of in the eastern portion of the site, and then a significant amount of reclaimed areas that have been graded to an appropriate angle and seeded. So here's just a couple aerial images. On the left is 2023 and then on the right is 2024. It's really hard to see just due to the fact that there has not been a ton of material removed from the site, but here's where the significant changes have occurred on the site. The remainder of the site remains relatively stable. And just a quick picture here showing that active area in the far backside of the mine. Staff is recommending approval. Also note that in addition to visiting the site, we did check with the Police Department; no calls or complaints were logged for this operation. [22:04] **Melissa Kenninger:** Thank you, Anthony. Are there any comments or questions from the commission at this time? Okay, thank you. Item is a public hearing item, so at this time we will open up the public hearing. Anyone in the audience can come forward at this time—boy, that takes practice not to say what I usually do. It's harder to do it that way. Seeing none, I'll make a motion to close the public hearing. [22:33] **Michael Reed:** Second. [22:34] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Kenninger, seconded by Commissioner Reed to close the public hearing. All those in favor please say aye. [22:40] **Commissioners:** Aye. [22:41] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Motion carries. Any further comments or questions on this renewal, or a motion? [22:47] **Brenda Rivera:** I'll make a motion to recommend the City Council renew the Schaefer Contracting Company Incorporated small-scale mineral extraction permit for 2025 and 2026 subject to the terms and conditions in the attached draft conditions for mineral extraction. [23:05] **Michael Reed:** Second. [23:06] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Rivera, seconded by Commissioner Reed. All those in favor please say aye. [23:11] **Commissioners:** Aye. [23:12] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Motion carries. This item will move forward to City Council on January 21st, 2025. Next up, we have our renewal for Dakota Aggregates' large-scale mineral extraction permit through 2026 and its interim use permit for aggregate processing. And Anthony, I'll turn the floor back to you. [23:36] **Anthony Nemcek:** Well, thank you, Madam Chair. This is Dakota Aggregates' large-scale mineral extraction permit renewal. Additionally, they are requesting renewal of their interim use permit for the aggregate processing which is in their southern portion of the site. Basically, it's the screening and crushing and divvying out the different materials to stockpiles to be picked up and brought out by haulers and operators. So in 2024, a total of 91 acres have been returned to the University for agricultural use. An additional 6 acres will be returned in the spring of 2025; that will bring the total up to 97 acres returned. And this is primarily in the northern mining area closest to where development patterns are leading future development in the city. In the southern portion of the site, 35 acres have been reclaimed as open water. Mining is still occurring in the lake that is down there below the surface, but because the end state of that part of the site is open water, it is considered reclaimed. [24:50] **Anthony Nemcek:** Also, no aggregate was sold or hauled out of the North mining area. All the aggregate that's mined up there is put on conveyors and brought to the Southern mining area from where it is sold. This is a change from when the North Hall Road was closed. The commission may recall a significant number of complaints related to the trucks being loaded and backing up and whatnot in that North mine area when they were bringing material directly out of there. As far as mineral extraction activity goes, there was about a 20% decrease in the overall material sold from the site. Just for reference, there was 1,418,000 tons of material sold out of the site compared to 1.7 million in 2023. Stockpiles have been reduced. Most notably, the stockpile in the northern mining area had been kind of sitting there for a while; that is down to 8,600 tons of sand—that was brought down by 46,000 tons over the past year. Recycled materials—that was also down from the site slightly, and the stockpiles have increased a little bit with that. [26:10] **Anthony Nemcek:** And then lastly, as I had mentioned, their interim use permit for the aggregate processing is expiring and the applicant has requested renewal. Staff does find that there have been no concerns with that portion of the operation and is recommending renewal of that for another 5 years. Also note with regards to that aggregate processing IUP, one of the standards is that the processing of recycled materials can't exceed 30% of the total on the site. Recycled materials are 17% of the materials that are sold and 9% of the materials stockpiled in 2024. So this is just an aerial showing that aggregate processing operation within the mine. You can see the various conveyors that are sending sand and gravel to the different stockpiles. This is where the conveyor belts all run from the northern mining area as well as the barge that's digging from the bottom of the lake there. I have some more site photos to share as well. [27:18] **Anthony Nemcek:** So here's the North mine plan for 2025 and 2026. The northern mining area here was recently approved for mining to help finish off the site reclamation. When the time comes for that berm to be removed, it's being done in conjunction with the Rosemount Middle School project, which is essentially 70 acres in this western portion of the site. Part of the reason was that it will allow that berm to be brought down; the impacts will be less so because it will be concurrently with that earthwork for the school project. Also note that the operation itself is much more highly regulated compared to a development project; they have standards for dust control and things like that, and of which I can share some examples further on here. So the active mining area will be in this northern portion of the site as well as this eastern portion of the site here. The areas that are undergoing reclamation in 2025 are this hexagonal pattern, and then the hatched area here is what has been turned over to the University of Minnesota already. This is the conveyor corridor; the applicant is digging kind of a valley through the berm where material from the north is going to be sent south and processed and sold from the South mining area. [28:55] **Anthony Nemcek:** So here's two aerials. Unfortunately, we don't have one so up-to-date to see where the mining has started up here, but I can describe a little bit how that will proceed on the next slide showing the reclamation plan. But you can really see how mining has progressed in this eastern portion of the site. The applicant is working on getting this mined and reclaimed first so that it can move away from the developed and developing areas of Amber Fields. So the new plan, which is actually in the right picture, shows the reclamation happening up here. It'll start being reclaimed in 2025. Mining will occur in this site right around this yellow area, proceed west, and then in a clockwise manner, finally reclaiming up here. And then down in the south, this area in red is currently being reclaimed; it'll continue moving to the east through 2025 and reclaiming that area as well as the southeastern portion of the site as that finishes up mining. [30:08] **Anthony Nemcek:** So the applicant's mining lease is done in 2028. They are hoping to have all the reclamation work done by 2030, with this central area being the final stage. In the south, mining will continue within the lake area. It is shown as reclaimed, as I said, because it is open water. The land immediately west and to the north is being mined; if it's not currently being dug up, it has been prepped for mining to expand that lake further. Just to let the commission know, when the lake is all said and done and finished, it'll be about 150 acres in size. And here are two aerials showing the lake from 2023 to 2024. The biggest changes being on the western portion of the lake. The commission may notice that the conveyor from the barge itself has been shifted westward to allow that continued expansion. There's also some mining that was done in the northeastern portion of the site—essentially the barge is connected there and then it moves around and extracts material from the bottom of the lake. [31:26] **Anthony Nemcek:** Here's a photo of that barge floating out there. It has some big buckets shown kind of in the front of this image here that go down, scoop up the sand, bring it to these conveyors where it's brought to the shore. And then in the background, you can see that the conveyor is heading over to the main aggregate processing area. And then this is just showing where that conveyor meets the shore. So there's just a section here on community impacts. As with all our mining operations, we did talk to the Police Department; they reported no calls in regards to the mining operation itself. As I said, mining will finish in '28, reclamation should be done by 2030, although Dakota Aggregates is trying to go as quickly as possible and be done sooner than that, with the focus on reclaiming the areas north and immediately adjacent to Amber Fields first. [32:32] **Anthony Nemcek:** Reclamation is ongoing; it kind of happens concurrently with mining. I've got some photos to show that they have—the applicant does use water to help minimize dust leaving the site in that process. So here's just a very zoomed-in aerial of the reclamation in process in that North mining area. Sand and gravel are brought to a hopper that puts the material on a conveyor—I've got a better picture than this coming up here—where it goes to the west, it's screened out, the sand is put on another conveyor brought back up here, and it is spread over an even uniform area. In this photo, you can see the water being applied to mitigate the dust. This water is pumped out of this pond down here, east of that reclamation part. What you don't see in what I have photos of are of a bulldozer tamping down the soil to make sure that it is suitable and stable for future development to occur on the site once reclamation is complete. [33:49] **Anthony Nemcek:** Here's the hopper showing where the materials are dropped and then conveyed to the west over here. They are screened out, and then there's the other conveyor that brings it up for reclamation which is occurring in this photo here—you can see the bulldozer I just mentioned with the sand that will eventually fill this area. Also note, a fence has been constructed to separate the applicant's operation from the residential development on the site. That was something that has been ongoing and negotiated between the home builders, the developer, and the applicant. And then this is just a photo of an area that had been reclaimed and turned back over to the University of Minnesota. It's currently being, in the background there, used for agriculture; in the foreground is just some grass vegetation cover on there. Let me see if there's anything else. I think that covers about all of it. Staff is recommending approval of the renewal of the Dakota Aggregates mineral extraction permit through 2026 as well as renewal of their interim use permit through the end of 2034. [35:05] **Anthony Nemcek:** Staff would just also note, since this is kind of the first year we're starting to go through the two-year cycle for a lot of our mines, we are planning to provide administrative updates with no action required by the commission, just sharing the amount of material removed from the different mines as well as site photos and aerials that staff collects. We anticipate that being probably January of '26. [35:36] **Anthony Nemcek:** One last thing, sorry Madam Chair. Staff did receive one letter prior to the meeting after the publication of the packet; I would like to read it into the record. "Dear Planning Commission, I hope as many neighbors I have spoken to about this issue will also be sending in letters. The negative impact of the expansion of the Gravel Pit: main concern is the increase in dust in the air; many have family members with respiratory sensitivities; impact and concern with decreasing home value; impact of increasing business consumption of resources, specifically water use and quality. Thank you for considering the concerns of residents." And this letter is from Christina Hayes at 14944 Athlone Place. That is an address within Amber Fields, and that is all I have. [36:45] **Melissa Kenninger:** Okay. Two questions. One, just in regards to the letter: while there's different phases, nothing is—we're not increasing Dakota Aggregates' mining here, it's—this is always what's been planned, right? [36:58] **Anthony Nemcek:** Correct, Madam Chair. Perhaps the resident is referring to the expansion into the northern area north of the berm that was approved earlier this year, but generally, nothing is being expanded from what their mine plan has always been with the exception of that one amendment that was approved. [37:21] **Melissa Kenninger:** Just to clarify, expansion means at the best where it is moving to the next phase, really, right? [37:27] **Anthony Nemcek:** If there's any mining activity that is expanded, it is followed up with reclamation. So the actual mining itself doesn't expand. [37:37] **Melissa Kenninger:** Yeah, right. Okay. And then my other question for you was related to the every two years and we'll do the administrative review, but just if there are noise concerns or anything like that, we don't have to wait two years to address them? I think you guys typically—if the police get notified, you guys work with Dakota Aggregates. They've always been a great partner to address any noise, dust, any of those type of concerns quickly. [38:13] **Anthony Nemcek:** Yeah, Madam Chair. When it was a much bigger concern with the noise, you may recall that the applicant did work extensively with the city doing noise monitoring and things like that. Since that North Hall Road has been closed, the complaints related to the mining operation have significantly decreased. There have been, in the past several years, one or two complaints related to squeaky wheels on a conveyor, but those are always addressed quickly by the applicant to ensure that their operation isn't creating noise impacts on the adjacent residential areas. And certainly, the applicant is present who can speak to their efforts as well. [39:03] **Melissa Kenninger:** Okay, thank you. Are there any other comments or questions? [39:07] **Commissioner:** So am I hearing right—in 2030, like, all mining in that whole area is done? [39:13] **Anthony Nemcek:** Yeah, the mining should be complete in the northern portion of the site. The southern portion of the site has a much longer duration, but the northern portion of the site that's closest to Amber Fields and future development within U-More Park, the mining will be completed in '28. Final reclamation may take up to 2030, but likely earlier than that. [39:35] **Commissioner:** So that whole site will not have any mining as of 2030 then? [39:38] **Anthony Nemcek:** In the northern portion. [39:40] **Commissioner:** In the northern, but then the—that will continue ongoing? [39:43] **Anthony Nemcek:** Yep. [39:44] **Commissioner:** And there's no phase-out on that one? [39:46] **Anthony Nemcek:** That one has a lease that goes until 2040. [39:50] **Commissioner:** 2040. Okay. And then for residents of Amber Fields, was that the duration—like, when that development was in place as well, or did that change? [40:02] **Anthony Nemcek:** This has been consistent since the start of the mining operation. [40:05] **Commissioner:** Okay, so they would have known when they had developed there that this was in effect? [40:10] **Anthony Nemcek:** Yeah, it was ongoing before Amber Fields started developing. Correct. [40:16] **Michael Reed:** There was—Anthony, there was a comment in the resident's letter about water use. I think you had stated earlier in your presentation—I don't know if that's all the water use, but it's basically recycled right from a pond to prevent the dust, right? Is that correct? [40:34] **Anthony Nemcek:** Commissioner Reed, it is taken from the site and then recirculated back essentially into the soil as part of the dust mitigation measures, yes. [40:45] **Melissa Kenninger:** Thank you. Are there any other comments or questions from the commission? Okay, thank you Anthony. This item is a public hearing item so at this time we will open up the public hearing. Anyone in the audience who would like to speak may do so at this time coming to the podium, stating your name and address for the record. [41:16] **Ruth Simon:** My name is Ruth Simon and I live at 14642 Bloomfield Path, which is on the back—my property abuts the north side of 42 and I'm about a block and a half off of Biscayne. I don't know if this is relevant at this time but I'm curious as to in the area of the Middle School building there and Dakota Aggregates, what are the hours of operation and how much impact will that corner of Biscayne and 42 be impacted by traffic? I don't know if this is relevant for right now or if it should be answered at another time. [41:59] **Melissa Kenninger:** Ruth, I just want to make sure I understand your question. You're asking how much impact the traffic will be from the mining operation? [42:07] **Ruth Simon:** Yeah, and also the—and I'm also curious about the hours of operation because I moved from a different city where that became a problem. [42:18] **Melissa Kenninger:** Yep, got it. Okay, thank you. Is there anyone else in the audience that would like to speak on this item? Seeing none, I'll make a motion to close the public hearing. [42:43] **Michael Reed:** Second. [42:44] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Kenninger, seconded by Commissioner Reed to close the public hearing. All those in favor please say aye. [42:51] **Commissioners:** Aye. [42:53] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Public hearing is now closed. Anthony, can I ask you just to take a minute and address Ruth's question? [43:03] **Anthony Nemcek:** So, the mining operation is allowed 24/7 operation. They were not allowed 24-hour operation when there were trucks hauling except for certain situations in certain projects. They don't operate during the winter. I know the applicant could probably speak a little bit more to the specifics of those, but they are allowed that kind of around-the-clock operation. With regards to traffic, Biscayne since it was—since the mine had originally opened, Biscayne was paved. It is an urban-designed road that could handle the truck traffic. From my understanding and conversations with the applicant, the majority of trucks come and go from the site onto 46 heading to 52; that's the quickest way to get to their projects. [44:00] **Anthony Nemcek:** With the completion of the Akron Avenue improvements and with Meta's data center site, they have been granted permission by the City's engineering department and the University of Minnesota to use those routes just to make it shorter and not go all the way around in a circuitous route and avoid having trucks on the rest of the local and county roads. So, you know, traffic at Biscayne is an issue. Staff is aware of it. It is not staff's understanding that the trucks are the main problem; it's just the general amount of traffic at Biscayne and 42. The school will be opening in the fall of 2027, so by then a lot of the mining will be winding down in that northern portion of the site. A light will be installed at that intersection prior to the opening of the school. The county is working with the city on interim measures. I can't really speak to what exactly those would look like short of closing that intersection to all traffic, which would come with its own consequences or results. So it's still an active conversation happening between city staff and the county on what best to do in the near term and then obviously the long term being a permanent signalization of that site and potential realignment to improve sightlines as well. [45:30] **Melissa Kenninger:** Thank you. And so just to clarify, the trucks from the mining operation don't go down Biscayne to 42 typically? [45:39] **Anthony Nemcek:** I can't say that they don't ever. I think they try to avoid it; they want to go with the easiest routes, and an unsignalized busy intersection is not where they find to be the easiest way to make maneuvers. [45:51] **Melissa Kenninger:** Okay, sounds good. And if there's further questions, if Ruth has further questions she can call the planning department. [45:58] **Anthony Nemcek:** Yep. Always happy to take calls, questions, and comments and concerns. [46:04] **Brenda Rivera:** Any other comments or questions from the commission? Just one more question for Anthony. Like, there was the in the letter comment about kind of the dust in the area. I know you had commented that they do have some mitigation in process. Has there ever been any sort of air quality test in the neighboring residential area? [46:25] **Anthony Nemcek:** I can't speak to the—I'm unaware of any. The applicant maybe can speak to any sort of air quality testing. I do know that, you know, the mine is required to have water applied to minimize dust. The developments that are occurring where there's significant houses and homes and neighborhoods being built—they don't have those same regulations, so oftentimes that's really the source of dust in the areas around these newly growing and rapidly changing parts of the city. [46:58] **Melissa Kenninger:** Okay. Any other comments or questions? Seeing none, we could entertain a motion. [47:05] **Michael Reed:** Let's see here. I can do this. Motion to recommend the City Council renew the Dakota Aggregates large-scale mineral extraction permit through 2026 subject to the terms and conditions in the attached draft conditions for the mineral extraction permit. [47:24] **Commissioner Whitman:** Second. [47:25] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Reed, seconded by Commissioner Whitman. All those in favor please say aye. [47:31] **Commissioners:** Aye. [47:32] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Motion carries. So we have a second motion on this item for the interim use permit. Commissioner Reed, do you want to? [47:39] **Michael Reed:** One motion to recommend City Council renew the interim use permit for Dakota Aggregates to operate aggregate processing and recycled aggregate products processing. [47:50] **Commissioner Whitman:** Second. [47:51] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Reed, seconded by Commissioner Whitman. All those in favor please say aye. [47:56] **Commissioners:** Aye. [47:57] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Motion carries. This item will move forward to the City Council on January 21st. Our last public hearing item this evening is a renewal of Semstone interim use permits for both its primary and seasonal concrete facilities. [48:15] **Anthony Nemcek:** Thank you, Madam Chair. This is similar to a recent item at the last Planning Commission meeting, which was a renewal of an interim use permit for an asphalt plant that also was located in the ancillary use facility area of Dakota Aggregates' large-scale mineral extraction permit area. This is east of Dakota Aggregates' mining area, south of the Wells Concrete wall plant that is on the north side of 158th Street. The city code requires each of these ancillary uses to have their own interim use permit, and in the case of Semstone, they have two uses that require each their own individual interim use permit. The purpose of the interim use permit is to give the city and the commission a chance to kind of have a pulse check and make sure that development isn't encroaching too much, that the conditions of approval are still valid, and that the use is still appropriate for its site. [49:17] **Anthony Nemcek:** Staff does find that the conditions remain met by the applicant and is recommending approval of both of those primary and seasonal ready-mixed concrete plants. The site itself is located, as I said, east of Dakota Aggregates mine in the south portion of the site. Immediately east of the star here is the Minnesota Paving and Materials plant that was recently reviewed by the commission, and then here is the wall plant just north of the concrete plants here. Main access into the site comes from the Akron Avenue area here as well as the Station Trail access as well. Trucks enter the site from this 158th East, which is not a public road but is the road name given to this roadway. [50:11] **Anthony Nemcek:** So the site itself is made up of three or four primary components. The primary asphalt plant is located central to the site. The main machinery is located in this northern piece of the building that is taller and contains silos and mixing equipment for the concrete. There's also room for an office and parking for a bulldozer as well. South of that is the seasonal asphalt plant—I'm sorry, seasonal concrete plant. This is temporary in nature and is actually movable and can be removed from the site. Over on the western portion of the site are some hoppers that the concrete material is put into where it's conveyed into the main plant itself. And then east of the main primary building is a wash weir, and this is where trucks come in, they back into it and they're washed off before being refilled. [51:14] **Anthony Nemcek:** Concrete delivery is a messy process, so they get washed off, concrete sediment is decanted or let to filter to the bottom of that pool. The water and the materials are then recycled into more concrete. Here's a more oblique view from the north showing where trucks would enter, back up in here, wash off, come around, and then get their product. The same process is for the temporary seasonal plant up here in the north as well. One of the conditions of approval was that over time that the site be paved. You can see here that it has been paved in conformance with the requirements of that permit. And then this is just another angle from the west looking to the east just to give you an idea of the height of the building—the shorter section here in comparison to the seasonal plant as well. [52:16] **Anthony Nemcek:** So, there are conditions for these uses that are laid out in the staff report and rather than go through each one of those individually, I just wanted to touch on some of the standards. The maximum height for such a use is 105 feet; the primary building is 73 feet, the seasonal building is shorter than that. Truck traffic had been prohibited from using Akron Avenue and Biscayne due to the fact that they were designed with a rural design—gravel essentially. Those have been updated, upgraded. The City's engineering department has reviewed the potential use of Akron Avenue to reach developments happening in Amber Fields and around Akron and 42 and has approved that use. Other than that, staff is recommending approval, re-approval of these interim use permits for another 10 years, expiring on December 31st, 2034, subject to the conditions listed before you. [53:23] **Melissa Kenninger:** Thank you, Anthony. Just to clarify, so the engineer has lifted the restriction on Akron, but what about Biscayne? [53:31] **Anthony Nemcek:** It's a public road; they could use it. Again, speaking with the applicant, they generally are going on 46 right to 52. If they are going north, it's going to the development that's occurring within Rosemount. They aren't using Biscayne unless they just happen to have to. [53:49] **Melissa Kenninger:** Okay, thank you. Are there any comments or questions from the commission? This item is a public hearing item this evening, so at this time we will open up the public hearing. Anyone in the audience that would like to speak may do so at this time coming to the podium, stating your name and address for the record. Seeing none, I'll make a motion to close the public hearing. [54:19] **Michael Reed:** Second. [54:20] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Kenninger, seconded by Commissioner Reed to close the public hearing. All those in favor please say aye. [54:27] **Commissioners:** Aye. [54:28] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Motion carries. We have two motions before us this evening on this item. Anthony, you want to bring those back up? Sorry, I got confused, take them away too quick. And would someone like to make a motion? [54:44] **Michael Reed:** Okay, I'll make a motion to recommend that City Council approve an interim use permit for Semstone Products Company to operate a primary ready-mixed concrete plant with the following conditions numbered 1 through 5. [55:00] **Aaron Beadner:** Second. [55:01] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Reed, seconded by Commissioner Beadner. All those in favor please say aye. [55:06] **Commissioners:** Aye. [55:08] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Motion carries. We've got one more. [55:11] **Michael Reed:** I'll continue. Motion to recommend that City Council approve an interim use permit for Semstone Products Company to operate a seasonal ready-mix concrete plant with the following conditions numbered 1 through 5. [55:23] **Aaron Beadner:** Second. [55:24] **Melissa Kenninger:** It's been moved by Commissioner Reed, seconded by Commissioner Beadner. All those in favor please say aye. [55:29] **Commissioners:** Aye. [55:30] **Melissa Kenninger:** Opposed? Motion carries. That item will also move forward to City Council on January 21st, 2025. That concludes our public hearing section this evening. Is there any new business? [55:42] **Anthony Nemcek:** Madam Chair, the only thing—just the commission should be aware of the upcoming 2025 meeting schedule. Liz sent that out to everybody, and just a note for the public as well that that is posted on the city's website and we do follow our normal fourth Tuesday every month except for March and December. So just—those are the only two special months. [56:06] **Melissa Kenninger:** Okay, and then our next meeting is January 28th, February 25th, and then March 17th. Any other discussion items? [56:15] **Commissioner:** Just one quick thing. If there's ever an opportunity to do a tour at Semstone—Semstone, sorry, Semstone... I thought it was like—but anyways, I would love to... I'm sure other commissioners might do that too. I know Dakota Aggregates has done it, and so Semstone, that'd be great too. [56:32] **Anthony Nemcek:** Staff can follow up. [56:34] **Melissa Kenninger:** Yeah. Any other discussion items? Okay, with that, meeting adjourned. [56:40] [Music]