By Forrest Adams

Responding to pressure from property owners in Chanhassen who allow recreational slug hunting on their property, councilors Monday night voted not to restrict it.

A proposal before them would have eliminated slug hunting in the community. However, after listening to testimony from hunters who said that using slugs for deer hunting does not threaten public safety, councilors decided to hold back.

A shotgun slug is a single large projectile that’s fired rather than a large number of smaller ones. It is used for hunting large game, including deer. There is land in the Minnesota River Valley where property owners allow such hunting for recreational purposes.

 In defense of those in the community who would prefer that the council pass an ordinance restricting this type of hunting, Todd Hoffman, director of Chanhassen Parks and Recreation, told councilors: “We have people in the community who see people in orange with guns, and they wonder what is going on and why we allow this in our community,”

Councilors decided it would be better to allow the slug hunting to continue, they said, in the interests of controlling the deer population. Mayor Tom Furlong added it’s up to individual hunters to practice the necessary precautions.

Last year there were more than 50 car vs. deer accidents in the city, said Sgt. Peter Anderley at a city meeting this spring.

“I think we should revisit this and look at it on a year-to-year basis,” said Councilor Bethany Tjornhom.

At the same time, the ordinance was amended to allow for more bow and arrow hunting to take place within the city; and the permit fee to discharge a firearm or bow and arrow within the city increased from $10 to $20.

New business coming

A new business is coming into the Market Street Station space that was formerly occupied by C.J.’s Coffee and Wine Bar and Maggie Moo’s Ice Cream Shop.

The council approved the request for an on-sale liquor license for School of the Wise-Chan. The restaurant is approximately 3,300 square feet and has a seating capacity of approximately 100 people with seating for another 24 people on an outside patio area. 

“I love Chanhassen,” said the owner, Ann Clifford, who noted that she thinks her competitive advantage will come from the wine she sells. “How I price my wines and the wine education that will come with it. I have access to wine makers. People in the business will be able to come in and give information and teach people about the wine.”

She and a silent partner currently operate the School of the Wise in Victoria. Food items at the Chanhassen location will include quiche and breakfast bakery items, soups, salads, hot and cold sandwiches and gourmet pizzas.

Pending minor construction, she said the restaurant would be ready to open by sometime in September. Hours of operation are planned to be from Monday through Thursday, 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., Fridays from 6:30 a.m. to midnight, Saturdays from 7 a.m. to midnight and Sundays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

New public works facility

Councilors agreed that now is the best time to move forward with plans to construct a new $8.8 million public works building.

The building would be located at the end of Park Place. City Engineer and Director of Public Works Paul Oehme said a new public works building is long overdue.

Agreeing with him, councilors grilled Oehme on the price tag.

“Is there a way to lessen the dollar amount?” Bethany Tjornhom asked.

He said the high cost for the building is the result of specifications to which it must be constructed. He mentioned special lifts for pickups and other vehicles, a fuel station for diesel and unleaded fuel, upgraded air movement in the storage area and other accessories.

“In terms of the building itself, the exterior is very similar to what you’d see in a warehouse district. It’s what’s inside that drives up the cost,” said Oehme. “It’s basically a glorified warehouse that is approximately 80,000 square feet in area.”

The projected cost of $8.8 million, about $106 per square foot, is a $10 increase over what it would have cost in 2007, due to inflation and the increased cost of steel and copper and “everything else,” he said. The cost in 2007 was about $8 million. Arriving at an estimated $8.8 million for 2009, officials inflated the cost in 2007 by 10 percent.

Oehme assured councilors that he is proposing a building that will last the city for many years.

“The building that we’re talking about is the building that we project we’ll need for the future build out of the city,” said Oehme.

He said it would be similar to Richfield’s facility. Richfield has a population of about 35,000 residents. Construction on the new city of Richfield Public Works Maintenance Facility began in May 2007. The facility officially opened in June 2008. The cost to build the facility was approximately $12.5 million, according to the city of Richfield Web site.

 The next step is for city staff to send out a proposal, select an architect, put the proposal into a project scope and take it to the Planning Commission and City Council for approval. City Manager Todd Gerhardt expects this to take place sometime in October.

Park and Ride facility

City Manager Todd Gerhardt laid out plans Monday night for a future $7 million SouthWest Transit Park and Ride facility in downtown near Chanhassen Dinner Theatres.

In 2006, SouthWest Transit secured $7 million in federal funds to be used for the construction of a new park and ride in this location.

Gerhardt said he has been developing these plans in cooperation with Bloomberg Companies during the past four months. The ramp would have four levels. It would have the capacity to accommodate up to 450 vehicles and be located southwest of the dinner theater parking lot. This would require relocation of the dinner theater scene shop, the elimination of the eastern portion of the Market Boulevard SouthWest Transit Park and Ride and the construction of a new road with access to the ramp from both the east and west.

City officials estimate that to acquire the land from Bloomberg and then construct a road on it would cost more than $1.1 million. The total cost, including utility improvements, would likely be around $1.5 million, but only $1,126,000 would be assessed, said Gerhardt. The city would bond for the money up front and then repay it with funds from the assessed properties.

According to Gerhardt, both SouthWest Transit and Bloomberg Companies have agreed to be assessed for all the roadway costs including the land acquisitions. The exception is that the city would pick up the outstanding assessments for Bloomberg if new developments enhance the tax base for parcels owned by Bloomberg Companies.

Gerhardt said the city and Bloomberg Companies would enter into a Master Redevelopment Agreement and create a new tax-increment financing district that would be used to write-down the special assessments for the new roadway.

The TIF district is a public financing method that is used for redevelopment and community improvement projects. Gerhardt called it one of the only tools to help cities engage in development projects like this. He referred to it in this situation as an incentive to Bloomberg Companies to redevelop their site. If Bloomberg Companies would not enhance the tax base with new developments, they would be responsible for 100 percent of the assessments.

The next step in this project is for the city to hire an engineer to do a feasibility study and then bring the findings to the City Council, said Gerhardt. He guessed the city would get the feasibility study done by September and bring it to the council sometime in October. He also expects SouthWest Transit to bring a site plan for the facility to the city sometime in November.

 Readers can contact Forrest Adams at fadams@swpub.com.