Plan commission approves 6‑unit condominium at 805 Wall Street with conditions

The Delafield Plan Commission voted Feb. 26 to approve a conditional use permit, site plan and appearance for a six‑unit condominium development at 805 Wall Street, contingent on conditions from city staff and engineering.

The commission’s approval limits the development to six multifamily residential units in three buildings, with a maximum of two units per building, and requires the certified survey map (CSM) combining the parcels to be recorded and all engineering conditions to be met before construction. City planner Amy Barrows told the commission staff would also require a stormwater maintenance plan, a developer’s agreement and a letter of credit before final permits are issued.

The project team told the commission they had reduced surface parking after public works review: the original plan showed 12 exterior stalls in addition to two garage stalls; the revised plan reduces exterior parking to nine stalls while keeping two garage stalls. Project engineer Mark Elana said, "We removed the retaining wall on the east property line," and described changes that grade the site and simplify access. The applicants also removed proposed pole lighting and instead are proposing recessed soffit lights and wall sconces; staff said photometrics provided comply with the city lighting ordinance.

Neighbors had urged saving a mature beech tree at the corner of Lake Street and Wall Street. Barrows said the applicants are providing a protected tree well callout and that staff has requested an arborist report to verify whether the beech can be preserved. "We are already working with an arborist to get that report done," Barrows said. The commission agreed that preservation is a priority but reserved the right to require mitigation if the tree cannot be saved.

Other conditions in the motion require the landscape, civil and condominium plat documents to match; engineering approval of final civil plans; fire department sign‑off on final site and civil plans; compliance with the condominium declaration of restrictions (which staff will review to add conditional‑use conditions); and specific sign and lighting limits. The staff wording copied from a precedent (Saint John's subdivision) requires the sign lighting to be programmed to turn off at 10:00 p.m., and limits lumen output and measured intensity as described in the staff recommendation.

The public hearing record shows neighbors asked that lighting be kept minimal, a privacy fence be installed along the north lot line (reduced to 6 feet from an earlier requested 8 feet), and that drainage be reviewed. The applicants said they met with neighbors and agreed to some tree and fence changes; staff noted that certain existing trees in a drainage swale may not be practical to retain and mitigation could be required if removed.

A motion to approve the conditional use, site plan and appearance for files DELCO798075 and DELCO798066002 (805 Wall Street) passed by voice vote. The motion was made and seconded on the record; the minutes show the motion carried and the item was approved. The record does not include a roll‑call tally.

The commission directed staff to draft a conditional use agreement memorializing the conditions for council consideration and recording, and to ensure required permits and the stormwater maintenance plan are in place before construction begins. The conditional use was noted to automatically terminate if construction does not commence within 12 months of council approval unless the developer enters into an agreement requiring full development within two years.

The applicants were told to proceed with required submittals and recordings before beginning physical work on the site.