Request for fuel pump near Lake L’Homme Dieu withdrawn

Jul 18, 2023

ALEXANDRIA – Zoning requests that would have allowed a fuel pump for boaters on the shoreline of Lake L’Homme Dieu were withdrawn on Monday before the Alexandria City Council's regular meeting.

Kevin Hanson, owner of the Zorbaz restaurant at 2710 N Nokomis NE, had requested the rezoning and other zoning items – a variance and two conditional use permits.

At the start of the meeting, Mayor Bobbie Osterberg announced that Hanson withdrew all his zoning requests.

The council had tabled all the requests at its July 24 meeting after council member Scott Allen made a motion to approve the request even though the city’s planning commission recommended to deny it. At that meeting, Allen said that fueling stations at docks on the lake are more safe than boaters carrying gas containers out to their own docks and pouring gas into their boat. "To me, this is the best option for the environment," Allen said.

Even though the request was withdrawn, two residents talked about the fueling station during the public comment period at the beginning of the council's Aug. 14 meeting. Alan Roebke said he liked the idea and was disappointed that boaters would not be able to fill up at Zorbaz. Laura Mickelson, who lives on the lake, said she was glad the project wasn't going forward. She said gas is so volatile that the proposed 12,000 gallon tank equaled the explosive power of 148,000 sticks of dynamite. She added that in comparison, Lake Carlos has a 1,000-gallon tank for refueling and Arrowwood Resort on Lake Darling has an 800-gallon tank.

ADVERTISEMENT

Under the city’s zoning rules, the council had until Aug. 15 to remove the item from the table and take action. Otherwise the zoning requests would have been granted automatically.

Zorbaz wanted to replace an abandoned fuel tank and pump with a new pump that would be located next to the lake and a new fuel tank that would be located on the restaurant site. The above-ground tank would hold unleaded fuel.

Hanson told the planning commission that the site of the proposed tank is zoned for single-family resident use even though he’s been paying the commercial tax rate ever since he purchased it.

When the property was known as The Wharf, the original fuel tank and pump were built and it sold gas to boaters for years, according to Matt Hagstrom, an engineer that represented Hanson at the planning commission meeting.

In 2000, the restaurant burned down and the property remained vacant for 10 years. Hagstrom said that Hanson didn’t know the lake property was zoned as residential and had been paying commercial property taxes.

The Lure, located across the street from Zorbaz, applied for the same zoning request in 2019 and was denied, according to City Planner Mike Weber.

The planning commission cited several reasons why the requests should be denied, including:

The council approved three special event permits:

ADVERTISEMENT

City staff received an email last Thursday, August 10, from Tuyet Mai Ngo to withdraw a THC – tetrahydrocannabinol – product sales license for Alex Tobacco, 611 44th Ave. W, Suite 100,. The public hearing for the request was canceled.

In related action, the council approved a new tobacco license application from the same Alex Tobacco location. Back on March 12, 2023, the council denied the request, which had been submitted by Tin Do and was doing business at that time as Smoke N Vape.

The Alex Tobacco store is under construction near Starbucks in south Alexandria. Initial plans called for the building to house a King Tobacco location but on Jan. 23, 2023, the council did not renew King Tobacco’s license for 2023 at its store at 4617 Highway 29 South because it failed four under-age compliance checks and it also suspended King Tobacco’s store at 307 North Nokomis for three months.

The owner of Smoke N Vape was also one of the owners of King Tobacco but because tobacco licenses are issued for a particular location, there’s nothing that would prevent someone previously associated with King Tobacco from applying for a tobacco license at a new location, according to city staff.

The Alexandria Street Department will soon purchase a used snow plow truck from Douglas County for $35,000.

The council approved the request from Dane Bosl, street department director. The 2006 International 7600 plow truck will replace a 1987 International truck that the city used for hauling snow. It has become so rusted it should be taken out of service, Bosl told the council.

The Douglas County truck, which is bigger than the city's 1987 truck, comes with a plow, wing and sander but would primarily be used for hauling snow.

ADVERTISEMENT

The money will come out of the street department’s equipment fund budget, which has a balance of $256,469.

The council gave final approval to a new city code that allows owners of private land to install and maintain a managed natural landscape.

The action was taken because of a new state law that requires cities to regulate native or natural landscapes.

Under the city’s new code, native landscapes are defined as a planned, intentional and maintained planting of native of native or non-native grass, wildflowers, forbs (herbs), ferns, shrubs or trees. This includes rain gardens, meadow vegetation and ornamental plants.

It does not include turf-grass lawns left unattended for the purpose of returning the land to a natural state.

Except as part of a managed natural landscape, any weeds or grass growing higher than eight inches or that are about to go to seed, are prohibited, under the proposed city code.

ADVERTISEMENT