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Planning commission hears multiple development updates; Dinner Bell site owner holds neighborhood meetings
Summary
Planning staff told the Lindstrom Planning Commission that the Dinner Bell site sold last summer and the new owner is holding neighborhood meetings; staff reported several other commercial and housing projects at various stages and said a large commercial redevelopment application was submitted for initial review.
Planning staff reported at the Lindstrom Planning Commission meeting that the Dinner Bell property sold last summer and the buyer — the same owner as the nearby OJ Juice site — is conducting neighborhood meetings to gather early feedback on possible redevelopment.
The staff presentation said the site is essentially a clean slate: existing entitlements have lapsed except for marina access, and the owner, identified at the meeting as Phil, is developing preliminary concepts that will be returned to the city for nonbinding concept review. “All of the existing entitlements that were there are gone — gone with the exception of the marina,” planning staff said, adding that the city will provide concept feedback but binding approvals will follow formal submissions.
Commissioners flagged traffic and access as principal challenges for redevelopment, especially given slope and proximity to the lake. One commissioner described possibilities discussed at a neighborhood meeting — “a boutique hotel and first-level retail along Highway 8, and then a separate residential unit” — and staff cautioned that setbacks and engineering needs could change concept feasibility.
Staff also updated the commission on other active proposals: an Andrews Avenue parking-lot expansion that staff found a pathway to pursue using an existing easement (the applicant still will return to the commission for required reviews); Alberts Landing (a preliminary plat approved in late 2024) working through final-plat paperwork and development-agreement phasing; and a new commercial redevelopment application that arrived for initial staff review the same day. On housing, staff said Boulder Cooper (a workforce housing proposal on the community garden site) did not receive state tax credits in the 2025 cycle but may seek partnerships to reapply, while the Royner Walton (OJ Juice) multifamily project tied in scoring and is pursuing reconsideration of the funding decision.
Staff noted several residential interest inquiries late in 2025 that could yield subdivision applications in 2026, and reported one active variance review for a new lake-lot house that staff is tentatively supporting.
The commission and staff emphasized the conceptual nature of many of these items and that any binding decisions will follow formal applications and entitlement review. The meeting concluded after routine procedural votes.
