Council approves concept plan for new Chaska Municipal Service Building; staff to refine parking, screening and solar details

Chaska’s City Council on Monday adopted Resolution 2025-57 approving the concept plan for a new Municipal Service Building (MSB) at 4501 Creek Road, moving the project into the preliminary design phase with conditions on parking, screening and stormwater coordination.

City staff presented the concept plan for a roughly 148,000-square-foot, primarily one-story building (a limited two-story area for administration), vehicle storage and a fuel island. The site comprises four lots totaling about 22 acres; the primary parcel (Lot 1, Block 1, Chaska Club West Industrial) is roughly 12.5 acres. The MSB would consolidate public-works operations — streets, parks, stormwater, mechanics, building maintenance, sewer and water, and the electric department — now dispersed across multiple city properties.

Staff member Liz said the concept includes an employee parking area of roughly 111 stalls and a fuel island on Outlot B. She noted current staffing of about 89 employees at the existing facility, with a projected increase of about 29 employees over the next 20 years. "There will not be any outdoor storage with this plan," Liz told the council, and the existing Victoria Drive site would retain cold storage such as the salt shed.

Council and staff discussed circulation, truck turning, and screening between the site and nearby residential properties. Liz said the design team has prioritized screening along the southwest edge of the site, where several residences are closest to the proposed building; further landscape and parking refinements will be part of the preliminary review. The western access point was described as a secure staff-only entrance; the southern extension of Chaska Creek Boulevard is proposed as the shared public entrance.

Andrew Cooper of Ortel Architects, the design team, said the project has moved from schematic design into design development and noted the team is refining site details, stormwater ponding on Outlot B and balancing green space with parking needs. City staff also said they are pursuing a grant to add roof-mounted solar arrays and that RJM (the city’s construction manager) is providing periodic cost-estimate reviews to keep the project within budget expectations.

Council Member comments were broadly positive. The council voted to adopt Resolution 2025-57 approving the concept plan and directing staff and the design team to resolve parking circulation, refine the landscape buffer with adjacent residences, complete truck-turning exhibits and advance solar and stormwater details for preliminary review.

With concept approval, staff will develop detailed plans and bring the project back for preliminary and final planning reviews and construction authorization. Staff said they anticipate additional cost-estimate milestones and further neighborhood and staff briefings as the design advances.