Rochester City Council set to review plan to double floors on proposed Second Street apartment building

Randy Petersen, Post-Bulletin, Rochester, Minn.
·4 min read

Nov. 5—ROCHESTER — A

request to double the number of planned floors

for a proposed Second Street Southwest apartment building will be up for Rochester City Council review on Monday.

The project, dubbed Citywalk Apartments, has been approved for six floors on the southwest corner of the intersection of Second Street Southwest and Sixth Avenue, but the developer is looking to enlarge the project to 12 stories.

During its regular meeting at 7 p.m. Monday in council chambers of the city-county Government Center, the council will hold a

public hearing on the proposal

to revise the permit for the planned apartment complex.

The development was originally approved as a seven-story building with 131 apartments, but a change was made last year, and the council approved a six-story plan with 219 units, which was made possible through the planned purchase of a nearby apartment building.

The second proposed change to the plan is expected to provide 361 apartments in the 12-story building, which will include underground parking.

Logan Tjossem, with Widseth, which was hired by DM Companies to help direct the project, said the expansion is being considered in response to Mayo Clinic's proposal to build new healthcare facilities nearby as part of its "Bold. Forward. Unbound." initiative

"We don't know how high or how big, but from what we've heard it's going to be epic, and it's going to be huge," he told the Rochester Planning and Zoning Commission last month, when it recommended approval of the change. "We wouldn't expect anything less from Mayo Clinic."

The proposal doesn't come without concerns from Rochester residents.

During the planning and zoning commission's public hearing, concerns were voiced about the planned demolition of the nearby apartment building, which was originally a

boarding house by former Rochester Mayor Martin Heffron

, as well as traffic and environmental issues.

One resident, Dondi Hanson, said he's working with others on a legal challenge, if the revised proposal is approved.

"We are completely fine with this being a six-story building, but it's the straw that breaks the camel's back, where we have to go beyond public comment and start getting into litigation," he said.

In addition to the hearing regarding the Citywalk Apartments request, the City Council is slated to hold a public hearing regarding the

proposed final plat for Preserve of Mayowood

, which is seeking to build 74 homes on nearly 90 acres near the intersection of the Abigail Lane Southwest and Mayowood Road.

The

council approved the subdivision in June

, but some residents questioned plans to create a trail connection that would cross Mayowood Road, rather than remain solely on the northside of the roadway, where developers plan to preserve a historic stone wall and existing trees.

Meetings scheduled to be held during the week of Nov. 6 include:

Rochester

—City Council study session, 3:30 p.m. Monday in council chambers of the city-county Government Center, 151 Fourth St. SE. The meeting will livestream at

www.rochestermn.gov/meetings/council-meetings

and be available on Spectrum cable channel 180 or 188 and Metronet channel 80.

—City Council, 7 p.m. Monday in council chambers of the city-county Government Center. The meeting will livestream at

www.rochestermn.gov/meetings/council-meetings

and be available on Spectrum cable channel 180 or 188 and Metronet channel 80.

—Airport Commission, 2 p.m. Tuesday in the administration conference room of City Hall, 201 Fourth St. SE.

—Park Board, 4:30 p.m. Tuesday in room 104 of City Hall, 201 Fourth St. SE.

—Planning and Zoning Commission, 6 p.m. Wednesday, council chambers of the city-county Government Center.

Olmsted County

—Administrative Committee, 8 a.m. Tuesday in conference room 2 of the city-county Government Center, 151 Fourth St. SE.

—Physical Development Committee, 8:45 a.m. Tuesday in conference room 4 of the Government Center.

—Health, Housing and Human Services Committee, 8:45 a.m. Tuesday in conference room 2 for the Government Center.

—Board of County Commissioners, 10 a.m. Tuesday in the board chambers of the Government Center.

—Human Rights Commission, 6 p.m. Thursday in conference room 2 of the Government Center.

—Zoning Board of Adjustment, 6:30 p.m. Thursday in board chambers of the Government Center.

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