Prairie Bluff Commons Residential Development Gains Unanimous Approval in Eden Prairie
The Eden Prairie Planning Commission has unanimously advanced plans for a new residential community featuring townhomes and age-targeted villas on the former C.H. Robinson site.
Eden Prairie’s Planning Commission has unanimously approved the proposed Prairie Bluff Commons residential development, paving the way for a new community of townhomes and age-targeted villas on a significant site previously occupied by the C.H. Robinson building. The decision, reached at a recent meeting, marks a step forward for a project that developers describe as a rare opportunity for residential growth in the city.
The development, situated near the intersection of Flying Cloud Drive and Charleston Road, aims to repurpose the vacant office site into a vibrant residential neighborhood. Josh Metzer, a representative for the Prairie Bluff Commons development, emphasized the unique nature of the project during his presentation.
We’re excited to be here tonight with what seems to be a rare opportunity for residential in Eden Prairie. So, we're presenting Prairie Bluff Commons.
Prairie Bluff Commons is designed to cater to diverse demographics, offering a mix of housing styles. The townhomes are envisioned for buyers in their 30s and 40s, including single individuals, young families, and even empty nesters or 'snowbirds.' Complementing these, the villas will be age-targeted specifically for residents 50 and older.
Townhomes probably targeted towards buyers in their 30s, 40s. They could be single people, young families. Even we’ve seen some empty nesters or snowbirds purchasing our townhomes. The villas will be age-targeted to 50 and up.
Meeting City Goals and Addressing Concerns
City staff voiced strong support for the proposal, noting its alignment with Eden Prairie's housing objectives and its exceeding of several municipal requirements. Jeremy, representing city staff, highlighted how the project’s design integrates with city planning goals.
Staff reviewed the waivers and looking at our code in terms of what our goals are with the flexibility from a PUD perspective and we’re looking for a project that enhances or meets certain goals of the city in this situation. It exceeds our required open space requirements. Project also exceeds our landscaping and buffering requirements between different land uses. And this project also does meet certain housing goals in terms of not just the inclusionary and affordable housing, but just a housing style because we don’t do a lot of town homes as Josh had mentioned earlier.
Despite broad support, the project did elicit concerns from nearby residents, particularly regarding homeowner association (HOA) dues and potential traffic impacts. John Miller, a representative of the Hennepin Village HOA, expressed skepticism about the feasibility of the projected low HOA dues for the new development.
Our dues in our HOA are 525 a month and we do everything we can to keep the dues low there. So, I’m just not seeing any way that the math could work out to have low 200s dues there.
Traffic concerns were also raised by residents of Hennepin Village, particularly regarding the potential increase of vehicles on Plum Stone Drive, a city-owned street. Discussions during the meeting included how the proposed street system within the new development would handle additional traffic and integrate with existing infrastructure.
Ultimately, the Planning Commission weighed these considerations against the project’s benefits, including its open space provisions and diverse housing options. Commissioner Farr articulated support for the development, acknowledging its efficient use of the site.
I think that the applicant while they’re certainly maximizing the density of the site opportunities in the zoning districts that they’re changing it to with the park and open space that they have scattered around at their areas and the street system which apparently serves this redevelopment concept quite well. In terms of handling the additional traffic I’m in support of this.
The motion for the Prairie Bluff Commons development carried unanimously, indicating a consensus among the Planning Commission that the project aligns with the city's vision for growth while effectively addressing site-specific challenges and community needs.
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Full analysis
Votes (1)
Prairie Bluff Commons Development Proposal
Dissent: None
Moved by Commissioner Piper [00:35:46] · Seconded by Commissioner Kirk [00:36:31]
The proposal by Lennar Minnesota involves redeveloping an existing vacant office site into a residential community. The project includes 166 townhomes and 16 villa units, requiring comprehensive plan amendments and a zone change from office to residential. Waivers were requested for lot area, width, and density (7 units/acre vs. 6.7 max). The applicant detailed home features, open space amenities (dog park, tot lot, gazebo), construction phasing, and sustainability efforts (EV ready, solar ready for villas). Staff highlighted that the project exceeds open space and landscaping requirements and meets housing goals. Public comments, primarily from Hennepin Village HOA, expressed concerns about increased traffic on Plum Stone Drive, buffering, conservation area protection, and the feasibility of projected low HOA fees. Staff and the city engineer addressed traffic concerns, explaining that the proposed intersection alignment is safer and residents are likely to choose main routes over Plum Stone Drive.
Notable Quotes (6)
Um we're excited to be here tonight uh with what is a what seems to be a rare opportunity for residential in Eden Prairie. So, um we're presenting uh Prairie Bluff Commons.
Um townhomes probably targeted towards um buyers in their 30s, 40s. They could be single people, uh young families. Um even we've we've seen some uh empty nesters or snowbirds uh purchasing our townhomes. The villas will be age-targeted uh to 50 and up.
Um we're close to the airport, so um our windows will be glazed for noise attenuation on the inside. Um we'll we'll be sure to meet city standard on that. Um residents will be required to sign a disclosure, which states that you are near an airport, there will be noise.
Staff reviewed the waivers and and kind of looking at our code in terms of what our goals are with the flexibility from a PUD perspective and we're looking for a project that enhances um or meets certain goals of the city in this situation. It exceeds our required open space requirements. Project also exceeds our landscaping and buffering requirements between different land uses. And this project also does meet certain housing goals in terms of not just the inclusionary and affordable housing, but just a housing style because we don't do a lot of town homes as as Josh had mentioned earlier.
I mean our our dues in our HOA are 525 a month and we do everything we can to keep the dues low there. So, I'm just I'm just not seeing any way that the math could work out to have low 200s dues dues there.
I think that the applicant um Wha- while they're certainly maximizing the uh density of the site opportunities in the zoning districts that they're changing it to um with the uh park and open space that they have scattered around uh at their areas and the street system which apparently uh serves this redevelopment concept quite well. Um In terms of handling the additional traffic um I'm in support of this.
Ordinances & Resolutions (7)
Proposed change in land use guidance for the development site.
Conceptual review of the overall development plan.
Detailed review of the development including specific requests for waivers from zoning code standards.
Proposed rezoning of the property to accommodate the new residential densities.
Subdivision plan for the new residential lots and associated common areas.
Review of the layout and design of the proposed development.
Official report from city staff recommending approval of the development.
Source document
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