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Kwik Trip pitches 9,200 sq ft QuickTrip store at West Broadway TOD parcel; council asks for design that better meets TOD goals
Summary
Kwik Trip representatives asked Brooklyn Park for early feedback on a 9,200 sq ft store on a 2-acre parcel in the transit-oriented employment overlay, seeking about a dozen variances (setback, frontage, parking). Planning staff warned the current design departs from the TOD frontage and build-out standards; council asked the applicant to explore designs or partnerships that better meet TOD objectives.
Kwik Trip representatives presented a concept plan for a 9,200-square-foot flagship convenience/grocery store and described why they believe the parcel near West Broadway and I-610 is suitable. Lisa Watson, a Kwik Trip real-estate manager, said the site can serve nearby hotels and employment centers and emphasized the company's workforce and benefits model.
The applicant and the parcel owner (JT Norville) said the property was rezoned to a transit-oriented employment overlay after the owner bought and developed adjacent hotels, and that the TOD design standards now on the books make conventional convenience-store footprints difficult to meet. The applicants asked the council for early feedback on a set of zoning variances (about a dozen items including building-setback relief, parking layout and the 70% street-fronting build requirement) before they spend the time and cost of a full site-plan application.
Planning staff said the use itself is permitted in the TOD employment district but the current building layout does not meet the overlay's frontage and build-out objectives; staff said they could not recommend approval of the present design under the existing rules. Council members split on the programmatic merits: some said Kwik Trip's food offerings and local hiring would be a benefit to workers and hotel guests; others said the store's footprint and lack of building-fronting would undercut the city's TOD goals and that the parcel could be more urban and mixed-use.
Council requests to the applicant included returning with a design that better meets TOD frontage goals or a creative, mixed-use approach that provides more building-on-street and pedestrian access. Staff said the planning commission was receptive to hearing the variance requests at a work session but recommended the applicant refine designs and explore options that reduce the number of variances.
Next steps: applicants said they would revisit the design and continue to work with staff; staff will return with formal analysis if the applicant files a variance/site-plan application.
