Developers attempt to resolve issues on 24-unit neighborhood

By Danielle Strenke
Developers were in front of the Harris City Council once again at its regular meeting Sept. 4, attempting to resolve issues revolving around a proposed 24-unit development.
Harry Behling and Jerry Triden told the council they had cooperated with all of the recommendations from the council, city engineer and the planning commission thus far.
ìWe went through the preliminary plat approval and thought the issues that were brought up were resolved,î Behling said. ìThen the same issues were brought up again at the last planning commission meeting.î
The Highland Villas development is planned as a multi-unit neighborhood, located just east of CR 30 on CR 9 in Harris. The original proposal was that the development may be strictly senior housing, approval of the development is not contingent on it being sold strictly for senior inhabitants.
At previous meetings with Behling and Triden, council members had voiced concerns over the width of the streets within the development, proximity to neighboring homes and wetlands, and fire safety concerns with the multi-unit structures.
At last Thursdayís meetings, some of those same concerns were still brought up by council members and Fire Chief John Pelant.
ìI donít like it, itís as tight as it can be,î Pelant said. ìWe talked about sprinkler systems at one time but I havenít heard where that is at.î
Behling and Triden told Pelant and the council that as far as they know, there are no state codes that mandate sprinkler systems in multi-unit developments of two or three homes as in their proposal.
ìWe think weíve been accommodating throughout this in the design process, weíve made changes asked of us and in a lot of ways the city hasnít been forthright,î Triden said.
Both developers voiced particular frustration over the process involving the planning commission. At the last meeting, they said, the commission members allowed public comment throughout the meeting, despite the fact that the public hearing portion had ended.
Mayor Richard Hanson said because of the ongoing concerns, the planning commission had tabled a decision to approve or deny a final plat on the project.
Council members said they simply wanted to ensure that the issues regarding the width of the streets and items such as sprinkler systems were hammered out for the safety of future residents of the development.
ìThis is consistent with other developments of this nature in the metro area, in fact the streets are wider than most,î Behling said.
ìThen build it there then, thatís other places not Harris,î Councilor Wayne Buisman said.
City Engineer Chuck Schwartz said there was still an issue with the setbacks on the property, which was missed in his first engineering recommendations on the project. ìThat still needs to be addressed, and I apologize for not seeing that in the ordinances the first time,î Schwartz said.
Behling and Triden will go back before the planning commission at its September meeting to iron out the issues surrounding the development. Final plat approval could be on the agenda for the city council as early as its Oct. 2 meeting.

No more free minutes
Following recommendations from city staff, the council approved a charge for mailing and electronic mailing of minutes to Harris residents requesting them.
ìWe are spending almost $3 on each mailing and there is getting to be quite a few requests,î Councilor Don Cardinal said.
The council discussed charging $36 a year, or $3 per council meeting minutes, to residents requesting the minutes via regular mail.
The charge for e-mailing notices was discussed as well, but neither fee was approved. City staff will come back with fee recommendations at the October meeting.
The council meeting was recessed to Thursday, Sept. 11 for a special budget workshop. That meeting will begin at 6 p.m. at City Hall.

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