Luverne City Council members took action at their Sept. 12 meeting to change the zoning designation along Roundwind Road.
The property is currently zoned “Business Park,” which allows for various business uses. The zoning change is R-1, which would allow for various residential uses.
A public hearing on July 13 allowed for comment by residents in the area, who mostly said they would prefer to keep the “green space” that currently exists east of the pool and fitness center.
The area had been zoned for business development in the 1980s to allow for potential expansion of the Tri-State Insurance building (now occupied by Total Card Inc.).
With no business development foreseen in that neighborhood, city officials are seeking more areas in town for housing — possibly market rate twin homes.
The Roundwind Road neighborhood — already residential in nature — was a logical choice.
Councilman Kevin Aaker made the motion to approve the zoning change at Tuesday’s meeting, and Councilwoman Lori Hallstrom seconded the motion.
It passed unanimously on a roll-call vote — after some council discussion.
For example, Councilwoman Caroline Thorson said she has given the matter sincere thought and had discussed it with affected residents in addition to considering their public comments.
She applauded their participation in the process for the proposed zoning change.
“They’ve been passionate enough to come to the public hearings, to have conversations with many of us on the council and to voice their opinions by other means,” Thorson said.
“That’s what makes a good community — a strong community — when you have people who care about their neighborhoods and it makes your community stronger.”
She said she and the council learned valuable information from the public “civil discourse” that led to a storm drain study and plans to improve water drainage in that neighborhood.
But she said the matter of the zoning change affects the whole community.
“In trying to decide where I’m going with this, I looked at what my role is as a City Council member and what my role is to fellow community residents,” Thorson said.
“A housing study showed that there was a need for development of this type of housing, and so I think it’s our due diligence to make sure we look for ways we can best utilize the resources that the city has in moving the city forward and not doing harm to others in that process.”
She pointed out that the zoning change would make an area in an already residential zone from commercial use to residential use.
“In my mind that makes sense,” Thorson said. “… something that would make good partners with what’s already there.”
She empathized with the residents facing change.
“I understand the residents’ passion for keeping it green space, but it was never meant to be a green space. It was never meant to be a park. We have a park in that neighborhood,” Thorson said.
“It just so happens that this has been green space for so many years and I appreciate the fact that they’ve enjoyed that.”
She pointed out that the zoning change will allow the city to better control the use of that ground to be complementary to the existing neighborhood.
“It will not be exactly the same as what they have now. Yes there will be change. But I don’t feel that that change will negatively affect that neighborhood.”
Kevin Aaker said he looked forward to the drainage improvements that will result from the discussion.
“The neighborhood should end up in a better place than it is now,” he said.
Tuesday’s action changes the land use from commercial to residential, and it stipulates that there will be no two-story structures and that green space and trees will be preserved as much as possible.
The zoning change means the city can now seek proposals from developers interested in building twin homes there.