Title
RESOLUTION FOR A PARTIAL VACATION OF A DRAINAGE EASEMENT IN LOT 1, BLOCK 2 OF THE ATLAS INDUSTRIAL PARK PLAT.
Body
CITY PROPOSAL:
RESOLVED, that:
(a) The city council finds a sufficient petition was filed with the city requesting the vacation described in (e) below; and
(b) Pursuant to Section 100 of the City Charter and Section 50-37.6 of Chapter 50 of the Duluth City Code, as amended, such petition was duly referred to the city planning commission and such commission gave due notice of public hearing and did consider same in a public hearing and the city planning commission found that the petitioned easement section is not needed for drainage purposes; and
(c) The city planning commission, at its Wednesday, October 15, 2025 regular meeting, recommended approval of the vacation petition (PLVAC-2509-0009); and
(d) The city council finds that the petitioned easement section proposed to be vacated:
1. is not and will not be needed for future drainage purposes; and
2. is not otherwise needed to promote the public health, safety or welfare of the citizens of Duluth.
(e) The city council of the city of Duluth approves the vacation of that portion of the drainage easement legally described and depicted on the attached Vacation Exhibit; and
(f) That the city clerk is, pursuant to Section 100 (b)(7) of the Home Rule Charter of the city of Duluth, 1912, as amended, authorized to record, with the register of deeds and/or the registrar of titles of Saint Louis County, Minnesota, a certified copy of this resolution showing the easement section to be vacated; and
(g) That the vacation shall lapse if this resolution is not recorded within 90 days of city council approval.
Statement of Purpose
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE: This resolution vacates a section of an existing drainage easement along the east side of Lot 1, Block 2 in the Atlas Industrial Park. This property is currently owned by the Duluth Economic Development Authority (DEDA). There is a purchase agreement between DEDA and Fitwel Investments Limited Partnership for future development of the site as a multi-tenant commercial/industrial use. Fitwel Investments Limited Partnership initiated this vacation process to provide more developable land to support completion of their project. DEDA is listed as the applicant for this request since it is the current owner of the property.
On October 16, 2025, the Duluth city planning commission held a public hearing on the proposal, as shown in the staff report in Attachment 2, and voted 6 yeas, 0 nays, and 0 abstention to recommend the city council approve the vacation petition.
The motion to approve the vacation by the city council must prevail with at least six affirmative votes.