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CITY OF ORR

Council rejects Dollar General store proposal

Lack of information to support stormwater variance request

David Colburn
Posted 7/14/21

ORR - Developers of a proposed Dollar General store in Orr experienced a setback on Monday as the Orr City Council denied two requests for zoning permits and a building permit, but they remained …

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CITY OF ORR

Council rejects Dollar General store proposal

Lack of information to support stormwater variance request

Posted

ORR - Developers of a proposed Dollar General store in Orr experienced a setback on Monday as the Orr City Council denied two requests for zoning permits and a building permit, but they remained committed to finding a way to move forward with the store.
The action came after a roughly 45-minute public comment session punctuated by terse and sometimes contentious exchanges between those in favor of the development and those opposed. Council members scheduled the public meeting after choosing at their June 14 meeting to postpone acting on the requests presented at that time, and about 20 people were present at the Monday meeting, although only a few chose to speak.
Public meeting
The proposed store, to be built on the former site of Wally’s Auto Service, is surrounded by property owned by Tony Norman. Norman weighed in with his concerns at the June 14 meeting, and was front and center at Monday’s public meeting as SEH engineer Dan Hinzmann described the project and requested variances to those assembled.
The most significant variance requested was to be able to cover 50 percent of the property with the building and parking lot, which are considered impervious surfaces for rain and create possible issues for water runoff that could potentially affect adjacent landowners and Pelican Lake.
“It is important to note that we will actually be reducing the site imperviousness from where it exists today,” Hinzman said, noting later in the public meeting that Wally’s Auto Service had 61 percent of the property covered by impervious surface while the Dollar General installation would have only 46 percent covered.
Hinzmann was joined at the podium by Westwind Vice-President of Construction Peter Oleszczuk as Norman handed a two-page list of questions to them, noting that he was most interested in their responses to the section related to impervious surface variance request.
“Do we have all that information in front of our face today so they can make a sound decision,” Norman asked. “Yes or no? Did you bring any of that stuff with you?”
“We’re asking for variances on imperviousness,” Hinzmann began, but Norman interrupted.
“Yep, and there’s a whole page on that,” he said.
“We can provide information as needed to confirm compliance with …” Hinzmann said, but Norman cut him off again.
“Do you have all the information on the impervious part of it for the meeting so they can make a decision?” he asked. “From what you said in your speech there I didn’t feel you answered any of my questions.”
After reviewing Norman’s written questions and another brief exchange between the two, Hinzmann addressed the stormwater drainage plan.
“The stormwater is fully contained on site,” he said. “There will be new drainage ways established surrounding the site to collect parking lots, roof drains, snow melt, and all of that will be conveyed to the backside of the site and not off to the neighboring property owners.”
That answer was insufficient for Norman.
“I’ve heard you say you’re going to contain the water, you’re going to funnel it to the back of the building, and you’re going to dump it in Pelican Lake. Not once did I hear anything of trying to protect Pelican Lake from any antifreeze, battery acid, whatever (comes off of) your parking lot,” Norman said. “You have no form of protection for Pelican Lake. This is an impervious meeting and you come here and you expect them to make a decision and you did not do one thing to protect our lake.”
Hinzmann countered by describing a grass swale system for runoff that is intended to allow sediments to settle, but was again interrupted by Norman. Hinzmann went on to conclude, “We are in compliance with all listed regulations with the (Minnesota Pollution Control Agency) stormwater rules, any City of Orr stormwater rules, and we do feel that we are improving the water quality to Pelican Lake through this,” a clear reference to the current condition of the unimproved Wally’s Auto lot.
“We have to follow the same rules and regulations as anybody who has to do development work,” Oleszczuk added. “We’re not a special exception.”
After additional back and forth, Oleszczuk took on Norman over the issue of how the Dollar General development would be an improvement over the current conditions of the lot.
“Just so I understand, as the site currently exists, and what we’re proposing, are you, in fact, a supporter of the kind of the impervious surface as it exists today?” he asked. “We are identifying a significant improvement throughout, not only to fall in compliance with state and local regulations compared to what exists, but I also think, with the surroundings in regards to how everything’s paved, all of that water has to go someplace. I’m going to guess it’s all currently going to the lake as it is, without the consideration that we would be proposing with stormwater management. So, I hear you, however, to speak plainly, we have to follow the rules and regulations.”
Norman responded with complaints that Westwind hadn’t done anything to improve the property in the nine months since they signed an intent to purchase agreement with the current property owners. Oleszczuk countered by reaffirming that Westwind doesn’t own the property and hasn’t had either the responsibility or legal right to make any such improvements.
“Until we have legal title to a piece of real estate there’s no right that I have to do anything,” he said. “We’re here before you now to come up with a resolution with regards to how that property is and how it exists today.”
The exchange among the trio went on for several more minutes without any resolution, and the public meeting moved on for comments from others, including Russ Holman, owner of Lumber Orr Hardware.
“I think the community is too small for a store that size,” he said. “We make a living here in the summer. The winter’s horrible. I own the hardware store and lumberyard here, and we do four, five or six transactions through the till in a day. Tony Norman’s One Stop has a tough time in the winter, we all have a tough time in the winter, and now this would bring more competition in. It isn’t going to hurt us too much, but I think overall the town’s going to suffer.”
Shannon Woodworth, manager of the Cook Dollar General, spoke about how her store operates, the jobs it provides, and the ways in which they try to give back to the community. She noted that many of the products offered by Dollar General aren’t available in Orr.
Keith Wallin started peppering Woodworth with questions about employee hours, compensation, and benefits, and when the questioning and comments became contentious, Mayor Joel Astleford stepped in.
“She doesn’t represent Dollar General,” he said to Wallin. “She’s giving her opinion, but you’re asking her questions like she does.”
Woodworth continued with a few final remarks about community and charitable activities done by her staff as the public meeting ended.
Requests rejected
When the council took up the agenda item of the variance applications and building permit in their regular meeting, there was a lengthy, awkward silence. No comments were made or questions asked of Hinzmann or Oleszczuk before council member Bruce Black finally made the motion to deny the variances, saying he didn’t have enough information about the stormwater plans to approve the one for the impervious surface exception. With no additional discussion, Astleford moved to a voice vote, with only council member Tom Kennebeck voting against.
Oleszczuk immediately asked about an appeals process, and apparently there isn’t one, as Astleford remarked that they would be free to reapply for reconsideration of their requests.
Black expressed reservations at the June 14 meeting about having insufficient information from the developers, and he elaborated on his concern after the meeting.
“None of us are engineers,” he said. “But there’s no elevation drawing, OK? There’s not. I didn’t think there was enough information provided to us to be able to make an informed decision.”
As Oleszczuk left the meeting he declined to make any additional comments, but he did affirm that his company would be investigating the options available to them to proceed with the project.