05-19-2020 EDC Meeting Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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EDC Minutes May 19, 2020 Page 2 of 8 ----------------------------- 13,000 square feet with a secure service yard. He said the property would be about four acres and they are looking to include sustainable landscaping at this site. Mr. Mauseth stated that it would not be a customer service location, it would be just a site for operations to work out of and also office personnel and the management supporting the operations in that territory. He said the property that they are looking at is directly adjacent to the Public Works Department facility and they think it is a really good location as far as access to the roads and also access to existing utilities. He stated from a zoning perspective they are pretty similar use to the Public Works Department. He presented the design of the building to the EDC and explained it would be a drive in, drive out type of layout. He said the service vehicles would enter the property on these southwesterly part of the property through a gate that is inset from the road therefore they can pull into the property and not impact traffic on the road. Mr. Mauseth stated as they leave the property they would be exiting on the north side of the property off of Thurston road and the employee lot would be accessed on the southwesterly parts. He stated the service area would be secure and fenced in. He stated that they do have a lot of landscaping and they plan to meet or exceed the zoning requirements. He explained the floor plan of the service center and stated that their service centers are built for long-term functionality and ease of maintenance. He stated that they use durable materials and high quality mechanical electrical systems. He explained that the exterior materials would typically be a combination of color, precast, metal accent panels, daylight panels and metal sunscreens. He added that once they get to the design part of the project they would be working with the City on aesthetics and the certain material types that the zoning code would require. Mr. Mauseth informed the EDC that they have 14 full-time employees that work at the site and that could increase depending on this time of year. He said this will be self-financed by Xcel and their purchase price offer is $42,000 per acre and presented the timeline for the project if the property is acquired this summer. He stated that they have already started the preliminary design and they could possibly start permitting at the end of the year or early in 2021 they start construction in the spring of 2021 with hopes of moving into the building in December of next year. Commissioners Rieck confirmed with Ms. Malecha that the original asking price per acre is $65,000. Discussion ensued about the Industrial Park as a location and that the City did not have enough land available for their use in that space. Chair Lindholm asked if this a replacement facility for Xcel or if it is a growth kind of facility. Mr. Mauseth explained that it is a replacement and they have been leasing a facility by Crow Wing Power on Highway 371 for quite a long time and the have been planning to relocate for a while now. He also stated that their current 14 employees do live in the Brainerd Lakes area. Discussion ensued about the size of the trucks that would be used at the facility and Mr. Mauseth