Council holds first reading on Costco plan development overlay; debate centers on lot coverage, parking and traffic

The Common Council on Tuesday held a public hearing and approved first reading of an ordinance to create a plan development overlay district for a proposed Costco wholesale warehouse on approximately 23.26 acres at Pabst Farms. The applicant seeks permission to build a 161,552-square-foot store, a detached vehicle fueling facility with 12 pumps, and three future outlots; the plan commission had recommended approval.

The council’s substantive discussion centered on three site requests: increasing maximum lot coverage from 75% to 90%, allowing about 210 additional parking stalls above the municipal maximum, and reducing a required 3-foot pavement setback to 0 feet in locations where shared access and state requirements dictate. Jason Gallo, city planner, said the biggest zoning deviation that required council approval is the lot coverage increase and that this site lacks an on-site stormwater pond because runoff is routed to a regional pond designed to serve multiple parcels.

“The lot coverage is an interesting one because this site does not have on-site stormwater,” Gallo said, explaining that stormwater was designed…