Planning commission forwards Ranch Road rezoning and four-lot preliminary plat to city council after 3-3 tie

The Woodbury Planning Commission on Aug. 18 voted to forward a rezoning and preliminary plat for the Ranch Road Addition (project 28-2025-00574) to the City Council after a 3-3 tie at the public meeting.

The application from property owner and applicant Nate Labatt would rezone the parcel at 8040 Ranch Road from R1 Urban Reserve District to R4 and create three new single-family lots in addition to the existing home, for a total of four lots. Eric (staff) told commissioners the site is guided as low-density residential in the comprehensive plan, is served by municipal utilities through the adjacent Bridlewood Farms development, and meets R4 standards for lot width and setbacks.

The rezoning and preliminary plat are a by-right subdivision, staff said, and no zoning variances were requested. Staff recommended approval with conditions addressing contractor parking, additional landscaping, grading and drainage plans and security to ensure proper grading and drainage work.

Neighbors who live along Ranch Road objected at the meeting, citing stormwater runoff, private-road maintenance and parking. Arlin Marcus, whose property is directly east of the proposed lots, told the commission that recent heavy rains had not caused water on his yard when the ground was undeveloped but that increased impervious surface and construction could change that. "Water is the biggest issue here," Marcus said, and he asked that any approval identify likely negative impacts, remedies, who pays for them and how those remedies will be enforced.

Willie Hendrickson, who lives at 8030 Ranch Road, said prior development in the area caused water to run through his yard and that he had little confidence that future construction would be done without problems. Tom Harder, a Ranch Road resident, said the proposal would nearly double the number of homes on a private gravel road built and maintained to retain a rural character. "We're on well and septic on purpose because we wanted to keep it rural," Harder said, and he asked the commission not to approve the plan.

Commission discussion focused heavily on stormwater and private-road issues. Staff and the project engineer described grading and a swale system designed to maintain existing drainage patterns and said the subdivision ordinance does not require stormwater quantity control for subdivisions of this size. Staff also explained Ranch Road would remain a private road maintained by property owners; the city would participate in maintenance only if it began to use the road as an access in the future.

To address neighbors' concerns, commissioners proposed and staff recommended additional conditions: requiring a staff-reviewed engineering analysis of whether the development can connect to the existing storm sewer on Stable View/Bridlewood (and, if feasible, to route additional runoff to that structure), adding security (a cash or letter-of-credit) to ensure proper grading and drainage, adding signage with a contact number and strengthening contractor-parking/material-storage requirements so the right of way is not blocked. Staff noted some plan revisions already reflect added evergreen landscaping requested at neighborhood meetings.

After a motion to approve with the additional conditions and a second, the roll call produced three votes in favor and three opposed. The chair said that a tie means the motion will still move forward to the City Council for final action; the item is scheduled for the council public hearing on Aug. 27, 2025.

The commission record shows significant neighborhood opposition focused on drainage, long-term maintenance of a private Ranch Road and the potential loss of the area's rural character. Staff recommended approval with conditions and will review final grading, drainage and contractor-parking plans during the permit phase if the council approves the rezoning and preliminary plat.