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Developer revises Harris property concept plan; commission praises added connectivity and asks for environmental and rail-edge details
Summary
Lennar presented a revised concept for the Harris property on April 8 showing 297 single-family lots across two annexed parcels; commissioners praised added street connectivity and asked for wetland mitigation, trail alignment coordination with Dakota County and plans to mitigate railroad-edge impacts for future residents.
Lennar on April 8 returned to the Farmington Planning Commission with a revised concept plan for the Harris property — about 153 acres annexed in 2022 as part of the Empire Township incorporation — showing a proposed residential layout, parkland and trail corridors. The developer described a plan with roughly 297 single-family lots, a proposed 11.8-acre park, multiple street extensions and trail connections; staff and the commission focused comments on road connectivity, wetlands, the County Greenway alignment and railroad-edge mitigation.
What was presented
Staff summarized the property constraints: about 20 acres of wetland, a roughly 3-acre flood plain tied to a North Creek tributary, two natural-gas pipelines bisecting the site, and the Union Pacific rail line to the east. The revised concept shows a mix of lot widths (55–75 feet), a minimum lot depth of 120 feet, proposed setbacks and five shoreline lots with more restrictive impervious-surface limits (maximum 25% impervious surface rather than building coverage alone). The plan also shows an 11.8-acre park in the northwest corner and a required trail corridor for the Dakota County Greenway; the city is coordinating with Dakota County on the preferred Greenway alignment.
Commission feedback
Commissioners broadly praised the revisions to internal connectivity and the removal of a long, straight north–south “raceway” street the commission had criticized at the previous meeting. Commissioner Teske called the revised ring-road approach a “huge improvement” that creates smaller neighborhood hubs. Commissioners asked for details on wetland mitigation where new connections cross wetlands, on where the three road stubs to the west would connect into Diamond Path, and on strategies to address noise and buffering for lots adjacent to the Union Pacific rail line. The developer replied that the layout pushed homes at least 100 feet west of the rail alignment, and said sound-dampening glass and other mitigation measures are options to study at preliminary plat stage.
Process and timeline
Staff reminded the commission that the concept plan is an early step; the project requires a comprehensive-plan amendment (from agricultural to low-medium density residential), rezoning, inclusion in the Metropolitan Urban Service Area (MUSA), and an environmental review (an EAW). Those steps will extend the schedule: staff noted the Met Council will typically not review a comprehensive-plan amendment while an environmental review is underway, so the overall schedule could take months. The commission asked the developer to continue refining wetland, trail and railroad-edge mitigation details as the project moves toward preliminary plat submittals.
Ending
The commission thanked the developer for revising the layout, requested continued coordination with county and city staff on Greenway alignment and wetlands mitigation, and said additional details on rail-edge buffering and multiple road-stub feasibility should be addressed during engineering and preliminary-plat review.
