Planning commission recommends Cannonball 2 concept plan, advances rezoning and development hearing

The Cannon Falls Planning Commission voted July 13 to recommend the concept plan for Cannonball 2, a proposed 69‑unit apartment development, and to send the project to a development‑stage public hearing and an associated rezoning to R‑4 on Aug. 17.

Staff described the concept plan as an early overview that requests several planned‑unit‑development waivers. "This concept plan is just an overview of what this project is gonna look like," a staff member said, noting the proposal calls for 8 three‑bedroom units, 26 two‑bedroom units, 27 one‑bedroom units and 8 studios. Staff said the applicant is requesting waivers to allow a higher share of studios than the code’s 10% limit, a height increase from three stories (45 feet) to four stories (55 feet), a reduced parking requirement and a smaller lot area per unit to fit the site.

The developer’s engineer, Mark Wallace of GQED Engineering, told commissioners about site layout and access. "There's about 25% of the property to the south that is actually gonna be open green space," Wallace said, and he said a small area shown in the architectural materials was intended for a dog park. Wallace also said the project aligns one access with the adjoining street but that the highway is state‑controlled; the state — and potentially the county — must approve the two access points and the project is near the threshold for a traffic study.

Commissioners focused much of their discussion on parking, sidewalks and connectivity. Staff said Cannonball 2 proposes roughly 1.5 parking spaces per unit, down from the city code baseline of 2.25 spaces. Staff also noted an added clarification in the current application that underground garage stalls could be leased to tenants. One commissioner, who said they live in Cannonball 1, said surface parking there has generally been available and described the garage stalls as a leased amenity.

On pedestrian access, commissioners asked whether sidewalks or trail connections should be required now or reserved for the future. The engineer recommended preserving an easement or using a pedestrian facilities agreement so the city can accommodate a sidewalk or trail later, and said installation and responsibility for maintenance would be worked out when the roadway is reconstructed or via an assessment project.

A committee member moved to recommend approval of resolution 2026‑10 — forwarding the concept plan to the council with the addition that pedestrian facilities easements and future public connections be reserved in the development agreement — and another committee member seconded. The commission voted in favor and the motion passed. Staff said the development‑stage review and rezoning public hearings are scheduled for Aug. 17; the council will consider the recommendation at a future meeting (the next city council meeting is July 21).

The commission also discussed broader zoning implications: several members said repeated PUD waiver requests for similar projects suggest the city should consider whether code updates are warranted, while others said the PUD process remains a useful tool for site‑specific review. A staff member told commissioners that, to date, Cannonball 1 has not produced public‑safety or traffic issues and that occupancy there is healthy.

The commission adjourned at the end of the meeting. The development‑stage materials, the rezoning ordinance language and any traffic‑study determinations will be considered at the Aug. 17 public hearing.