Posted: 5/12/04
By Barbara Brown
More than 40 acres near the Rush City Airport are now part of the city of Rush City.
During its regular meeting Monday night, the Rush City council voted unanimously to annex 44.3 acres owned by the Mold family into the city limits.
A sale of the land to Forest Lake developers was dependent upon its annexation into the city.
The developers want to build some kind of residential housing on the land and are considering the possibility of building a high-end residential hangar community.
That type of development would allow airplane owners to keep their planes on their own property in hangars similar to personal garages.
Developer Dan Birdsall said he and his partners are investigating the option and will work with the city to see what kind of development will best suit the area.
Prior to the annexation agreement, the council heard from pilots and other concerned citizens about whether the land should be annexed.
Most of those in attendance did not dispute whether the city should annex the land, but warned that the city needs to be careful about the kind of development it allows there.
The eastern edge of the property is about 500 feet from the south approach of the runway.
City Attorney Joe Anderson reminded the speakers that the council was only making a decision on whether the land should be annexed and not how it should be zoned. A zoning change request would be filed with the planning commission which would then hold a public hearing on the matter before recommending a change to the council.
Currently the property is zoned agricultural.
At the suggestion of attorney Anderson, the council is considering contacting WSB Associates, the engineering firm that has worked with North Branch on determining the best use of a large plot of land on the west side of CR 30, to determine what would be the best use of the 44.3 acres near the airport.
In other business May 10:
ï the council approved a request to extend the Sunday alcohol sales hours in Rush City to 10 a.m. after no one spoke against the measure during a public hearing;
ï the council voted to accept responsibility for water and sewer lines that cross the Main Street Market Mall property. The lines need to be under city control and part of the municipal water system so they can be extended by developers to serve a proposed bowling alley and repair shop to be built behind the mall; and
ï the council extended the burning season to June 15 due to the Department of Natural Resources burning restriction being lifted after the traditional burning season ended.
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