HomeMy WebLinkAbout5.b. Request by FHR IUP
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Planning Commission Meeting: November 26, 2019
Tentative City Council Meeting: December 17, 2019
AGENDA ITEM: 19-46-IUP Request by Flint Hills
Resources for an Interim Use Permit for
Sixty-Five (65) Blast Resistant Modules,
Twelve (12) Blast Resistant Enclosures,
and Two (2) Warehouse Tents.
AGENDA SECTION:
Public Hearing
PREPARED BY: Anthony Nemcek, Planner AGENDA NO. 5.b.
ATTACHMENTS: Site Location, Plans and Images, Blanket
Agreement Area Map, Narrative APPROVED BY: KL
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Motion to recommend the City Council approve the Interim
Use Permit for Sixty-Five (65) Blast Resistant Modules, Twelve (12) Blast Resistant
Enclosures, and Two (2) Warehouse Tents, subject to the following conditions:
1. The interim use permit expires December 31, 2029.
2. The placement of the Blast Resistant Modules (BRMs), Blast Resistant Tents (BRTs)
and temporary warehouses is limited to the areas shown on the Blanket Agreement
Area map. No BRMs, BRTs or temporary warehouses are allowed within 300 feet of
the Rich Valley Boulevard right-of-way.
3. The Heavy Industrial Site and Building Standards are waived to allow metal and
fabric buildings within the areas shown on the Blanket Agreement Area map. No
temporary metal or fabric buildings are allowed within 300 feet of the Rich Valley
Boulevard right-of-way.
4. The applicant shall pay property taxes on the structures based upon their value.
SUMMARY
The Planning Commission is being asked to review a request by Flint Hills Resources to continue the use
of non-standard safety shelters and storage buildings within the refinery for another ten years. Temporary
structures are an interim use in the Heavy Industrial zoning district. The applicant is requesting a duration
of ten years for the IUP, and they have agreed to pay property taxes on the value of the temporary
structures. Staff is recommending approval of the request.
BACKGROUND
The IUP is intended to permit the temporary buildings with an exemption from certain zoning standards
associated with permanent buildings such as required materials, parking and landscaping. The IUP process
has been used in other situations when the use is expected to be temporary, and the duration is clearly
identified. An IUP process is also used when the site use or improvements are of a temporary nature that
will not adversely affect or inhibit future re-use of the site. As with the warehouse tent that was approved
with an IUP at the September Planning Commission meeting, staff would prefer permanent structures as
they are more visually appealing and more importantly provide tax base to the City. In discussions with the
applicant, they have agreed to pay taxes on the proposed buildings based upon the value of the structure.
As the City is not the jurisdiction that determines valuation or what structures are, or are not, taxed, staff
has included this commitment in the conditions of approval.
This request is essentially a renewal of an existing Interim Use Permit that was originally approved in 2013
and modified to include additional structures in 2014. More recently, at the September Planning
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Commission meeting, the Commission reviewed a request for a separate IUP to allow FHR to construct a
temporary warehouse tent. That structure is not included with this IUP. There are three types of
structures contained within this IUP request: Blast Resistant Modules (BRMs), Blast Resistant Enclosures
(BREs), and Warehouse Tents. The blast resistant structures are meant to protect workers while
eliminating the long travel times between the various project sites within the facility and a permanent break
area. Warehouse tents are used to cover inventory, equipment, and supplies close to project sites while
allowing flexibility as the projects occur in many different areas within the refinery.
Blast Resistant Modules are steel structures capable of withstanding a pressure wave of up to 8 p.s.i. to
protect workers inside from a high velocity shock or blast. BRMs are 12’x40’ in size, and can stand alone
or be combined for up to 12-plex assemblies. They are used to house workers for breaks or short-term
projects, and often get moved around to be near project sites within the facility.
Blast Resistant Enclosures are tent-like structures that can withstand a pressure wave of 3 p.s.i., and they
are designed to flex and protect the inhabitants of these structures. They are held to the ground with an
engineered anchoring system. The primary purpose of these structures is to provide break facilities for
contractors working on various projects within the refinery, and they can be more easily moved to where
work is occurring.
The third type of structure, Warehouse Tents, are similar to the structure contained within the IUP request
reviewed by the Planning Commission at its September meeting. These structures are unheated and
simply used to provide protection from the weather (rain, snow, etc.) for equipment used in construction
projects at the refinery. These are located at the southern portion of the facility.
The City and FHR have identified a Blanket Agreement Area within which the structures described above
may be located. This allows FHR flexibility to place the structures in closer proximity to projects as they
occur without needing additional approvals each time the structures are relocated. The applicant is not
requesting a change to the boundaries of this area, which is shown on a map contained in the attachments.
One of the original conditions of the IUP that was included to mitigate any impact from the westward
expansion of the Blanket Agreement Area is being included in the recommendation, and that is that no
temporary structures can be placed within 300 feet of Rich Valley Boulevard. Another 2013 condition that
required additional conifers be planted along Rich Valley Boulevard has been met and therefore is not
included in the recommendation.
Legal Authority
The interim use permit approval is a quasi-judicial action, meaning that if the application meets the City
Code and interim use permit regulations, then the interim use permit must be approved. Staff supports
approval of this interim use permit. The detailed analysis of this finding is provided below.
Findings for Interim Use Permits (Section 12.8):
1. The extent, location and intensity of the use will be substantially in compliance with the
Comprehensive Plan.
Finding: The site is designated for General Industrial use in the 2030 Rosemount Comprehensive Plan and
also the 2040 Comprehensive Plan Update. The blast resistant modules and tents will be used to house
workers that support the refining of petroleum, a permitted use in the Heavy Industrial zoning district.
2. The use will provide adequate ingress and egress to minimize traffic congestion in the public
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streets.
Finding: Access to the site is located along Clark Road, east of the site. Not changes are proposed to the
traffic to and from the site.
3. The use will not be detrimental to the existing character of the development in the immediate
neighborhood or endanger the public health, safety and general welfare.
Finding: The refinery complex with its exposed equipment, storage tanks and pipe racks has a heavy
industrial character. Public health, safety and general welfare are served with conformance with building, fire
codes and the IUP being visually screened from the US 52 right-of-way.
4. The use will not impede the normal and orderly development and improvement of the
surrounding property for uses permitted in the district.
Finding: The construction projects that prompt the IUP are further development of the refinery complex as a
permitted use in the Heavy Industrial District.
5. The use shall, in all other respects, conform to the applicable regulations of the district in
which it is located.
Finding: The use is consistent with applicable Heavy Industrial District standards and the IUP does not waive
performance standards such as setbacks and utilizing existing or future planned parking facilities.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends approval of an Interim Use Permit for Sixty-Five (65) Blast Resistant Modules, Twelve
(12) Blast Resistant Enclosures, and Two (2) Warehouse Tents, subject to the conditions contained in the
staff recommendation above. This recommendation is based on the information submitted by the
applicant and findings made in this report.
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Nemcek, Anthony
From:Kern, Don S. <Don.Kern@fhr.com>
Sent:Wednesday, October 9, 2019 3:51 PM
To:Lindquist, Kim
Cc:Nemcek, Anthony
Subject:Rosemount 2019 IUP for BRM's and BRE's
Attachments:20190617_102852.jpg; 20190617_102358.jpg; 20190617_102116.jpg;
10092019155339-0001.pdf
Kim, Flint Hills Resources Pine Bend LLC is submitting a revised interim use permit application for the use of non‐
standard safety shelters at the refinery for the next 10 years. This would be a modification and extension of the prior
IUP(s) we have had in place for these same structures since 2014 (Per our prior discussions, FHR has agreed to pay
property tax on these structures for the duration of this IUP). As you know, these structures do not fully comply with
Rosemount building codes however they are an industry best‐practice solution for providing a safe areas for our workers
during breaks. These structures will sit (per attached map) a minimum set back distance from any public road of 500’
and will be consistent with the industrial look of the refinery.
There are three main structure types in this IUP proposal.
Blast Resistant Module (BRM): These are steel structures capable of up to an 8 PSI pressure wave that will protect
workers inside of a high velocity shock wave or blast. These modules come in 12’ X 40’ but can come in either single
modules or up to 12 plex assemblies or more when combined. These BRM’s generally sit directly on leveled ground.
These BRM’s are used to house workers for breaks and for short term projects and often get moved around from project
to project. FHR PB currently has 65 of these on site.
Note: there are several control rooms built with these BRM modules, however they have been through the building
permit and inspection process and are considered permanent taxable structures already and are outside of this scope.
Blast Resistant Enclosures (BRE): These are blue and white tent‐like structures. They are actually a double lined tents
with an inflated tube structure that can resist a 3 PSI pressure wave and flex with this wave to protect the inhabitants.
These BRE’s have an engineered anchoring system. These tents are primarily used for break facilities for our contractor
work force and can be moved occasionally to where larger work fronts are occurring. We have 10 smaller and two
larger versions of these BRE’s on site.
Warehouse tents: These are non‐heated basic heavy duty tents that keep weather off of inventoried non‐operating
equipment. FHR PB has two of these tents at our facility now with another being built in 2019 on the separate October
2019 IUP. All three of these tents reside at the southern portion of the refinery.
FHR PB does not anticipate any additional BRM’s, BRE’s or Warehouse tents in the future but if they are needed for
some unforeseen reason we will discuss with Rosemount Planning staff prior to bringing them in.
If you have any questions I’d be glad to come meet with you and discuss.
Don Kern
Facilities and Engineering Manager
Flint Hills Resources LP
651‐437‐0762
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Don Kern
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Facilities and Engineering Manager
Flint Hills Resources LP
651‐437‐0762