Title
RESOLUTION AFFIRMING THE PLANNING COMMISSION'S DECISION TO DENY PARK POINT MARINA INN AND SUITES, LLC A VARIANCE FROM THE MIXED USE WATERFRONT DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS AT 1003 MINNESOTA AVENUE.
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CITY PROPOSAL:
RESOLVED, that the city council finds as follows:
(a) On October 16, 2015, Globe Duluth Enterprises, Inc. and Park Point Marina Inn and Suites, LLC, submitted a complete application for a variance from the Mixed Use Waterfront development standards;
(b) In April 2012, the city council approved rezoning 1003 Minnesota Avenue from Industrial Waterfront (I-W) to Mixed Use Waterfront (WU-W). The planning commission approved a plan for a 55 room, 3 story hotel in April 2012. An amended plan was reviewed, and approved, by the planning commission in May 2012 that allowed 12 additional guest rooms and 13 off-street parking spaces. The planning commission also approved a variance from the MU-W development standards related to transparency (50-15.6.E.4) in May 2012. The certificate of occupancy for the 68 room hotel was issued May 30, 2014;
(c) The property is zoned Mixed Use Waterfront (MU-W); this zone district has several development standards that impact development and redevelopment. Section 50-15.6.E.2 states that "to protect public views to the waterfront from the closest landward public street running approximately parallel to the water, all primary structures shall have a maximum width of 200 feet measured along the shoreline and shall be separated from other primary structures by a minimum of 50 feet. These requirements shall not apply to portions of buildings that do not block public views of Lake Superior, the harbor and the St. Louis River from the closest landward public street running approximately parallel to the water due to topography or the location";
(d) The applicant is seeking a variance from Section 50-16.5.E.2 to allow an addition on the southeast corner of the existing hotel. The proposed addition would ex...
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