Hello everybody. Hello. All right, you can hear me. I can barely hear myself. Well, welcome everyone to the July 23rd, 2025 city planning commission meeting. On behalf of the rest of the commission, we are grateful you are here. to those in person and those tuning in remotely. Say it every time, but your participation, your curiosity, and your feedback is vital to this process as we navigate change together here in Edina, specifically regarding the ways in which we'd like to use our land. So, tonight we have one public hearing. If you'd like to participate by testifying and sharing testimony on the matter, you can do so later. will provide you in instructions for those participating in person and those who are tuning in remotely later when we get to that part. Just have your phone ready. And just remember all feedback that's made its way to us, we consider before every commission meeting. Uh the best way to do so is through our engagement website ww.etto togetherina.org. That is the best way to find anything out about upcoming, current, or prior developments. Uh, I'll go quickly through the agenda so you know what to expect. We'll start with a call to order, then a roll call, an approval of the meeting agenda for tonight, followed by the prior meeting minutes. Then we have a community comment period, then the one public hearing, and then we end with chair and member comments and staff comments and then adjournment. So with that, we will call the meeting to order. Then roll call. >> Commissioner Nelson >> here. Commissioner Elkre >> here. >> Commissioner Padilla >> here. >> Commissioner Smith >> here. >> Commissioner Day >> here. >> Commissioner Bournestein >> here. >> Commissioner Felt >> here. >> Commissioner Honaman >> here. >> Chair Bennett >> here. Next we have the approval of tonight's meeting agenda. >> Motion to approve. >> Second. >> All those in favor say I. I. >> I. So moved. Next, we have the approval of the prior meeting minutes from June 25th. >> I have an edit. >> Yeah. So, if we have a proposed edit, we'll hear it and then welcome a motion with that proposed edit. >> Um, it's just a a motion to change the total vote counts for the first public hearing from 9 to 8. >> Correct. Yes, we will get that updated. >> Do we have a motion with that proposed? Was that a motion with proposed edits? >> Second. >> All those in favor say I. >> I. I. >> So moved. Thank you. >> Next, we have the community comment period. And this is your chance for any any resident who is here in person to testify about any matter not on tonight's agenda. You have three minutes to do so. You can come up to either podium, state your full name, address, and speak away. Uh we try to welcome anything and you know act on it or get staff or city council updated on it and try to make any changes if we can or just inform the community with any of any of the potential recommendations you might have. Is anyone here for community comment? Seeing none, we will move on to our one public hearing. So tonight's public hearing is for a conditional use permit for Rivian at the Galleria. Uh just so you know what to expect for those tuning in remotely with any public hearing. Uh if someone proposes to do something in our city that doesn't quite conform to our code, uh they have to apply to do so and then the then staff will kind of guide them through what they need to get from them from detail-wise and then kind of research the exact situation and put together a staff report where they consult with other commissions and departments throughout the city to try to get all and every piece of feedback. back into that staff report. And that staff report usually includes a recommendation for approval or denial of the request. Staff then puts all of this into a presentation tonight, which looks very nice so far. After that, we typically have a back and forth with staff, just question and answer. uh we will combine that period again like we've done in previous sessions uh with the presentation that Rivia might want to put forward the applicant tonight. Uh we'll just roll right into that and then do a question and answer together after that. Following that we'll do the public hearing similar to the community comment period. You'll have 3 minutes to speak and then after that we bring it back to the count to the commission to deliberate and then make a recommendation for approval or denial. So with that, Addison, take it away. >> All right. Good evening, chair, members of the commission. Uh this is a request for a conditional use permit for Rivian at 3510 Galleria to occupy space at Galleria Mall. Rivian would have a small vehicle showroom of about 31 or 3,180 ft located inside the mall. Um, additionally, there would be up to six vehicles on site available for test drives. Customers could place an order for a new vehicle on site. However, for sale vehicle inventory would not be stored on the property. Uh, and any purchased vehicles would be shipped directly to the customer, not to Galleria. Uh, the property is zoned plan commercial district 3, which lists automobile agencies selling new unused vehicles as a conditionally permitted use. Uh the comprehensive plan guides the property as community activity center. Um primary uses include retail, office, lodging, entertainment, and residential uses combined or in separate buildings. Um so this image here just kind of gives you an idea of of where the tenant space is within the mall. It's on the kind of the western side of the mall. Um this is the proposed floor plan. Just kind of showing you what the showroom is going to look like. You can see it's it's not very big. There's just a couple vehicles in there. Um, and a little bit of office space. Um, and kind of some like a manager's office and a little break room. Um, they would, you know, make some changes to the interior storefront. Um, but there would be no changes to, you know, the footprint or the exterior of the mall, um, other than potentially some exterior signage. Um, they're not doing any kind of expansion or changing the exterior facade. Uh, they provided some renderings of kind of what some of their showrooms look like in other locations. This is one from Aventura, Florida, White Plains, New York, Hayes Valley, California. Um, and then here, this is just showing um the location of where the vehicles would be parked. So, um, this parking area is actually below uh the mall, underneath the mall. They would have four vehicles down here um for charging. There's, I believe, already um vehicle chargers here. I believe Rivian would be replacing them with their own chargers and then there would also be two vehicles stored here um but no chargers. Um so as I mentioned um we're here tonight because um automobile agencies selling new unused vehicles are listed as a conditionally permitted use uh in the PCD3 subdist. So um here's our pyramid of discretion you see here with uh conditional use permits. um the city is um has some discretion in these cases generally limited to the guidance in um uh the zoning ordinance. So looking to the zoning ordinance section 36305 says that the council shall not grant a conditional use permit unless it finds that the establishment maintenance and operation of the use um meets this criteria. So number one does not have an undue adverse impact on governmental facilities, utilities, services or exist or existing or proposed improvements. Will generate traffic within the capacity of the streets serving the property. Does not have an undue adverse impact on the public health, safety or welfare. Will not impede the normal and orderly development and improvement of other property in the vicinity. conforms to the applicable restrictions and special conditions of the district in which it is located as imposed by this chapter and is consistent with the comprehensive plan. Um so just an overview of some of the staff findings. Um so with a showroom of just 3,180 ft and just six vehicles available for test drives. Um the scale of this use is uh pretty small. It's not likely to have any noticeable impact on government facilities, utility services or existing or proposed improvements that would be any different from any other retail user. um retail tenant at Galleria. Given the scale of the proposed use, there should not be any noticeable difference in traffic uh than there would be for any other retail tenant. There is adequate capacity on the adjacent roads to support the proposed use. Uh the use will not have an undue adverse impact on public health, safety, or welfare. The use should have no impact on the normal or orderly development and improvement of other property in the vicinity. The use conforms to the applicable restrictions and special conditions of the PCD3 zoning district. And since the proposed use would provide education and greater access to electric vehicles that would support EV adoption, staff find that the proposed use is consistent with the goals of the comprehensive plan and the climate action plan. Um so staff tonight is recommending that the city council um or that you recommend uh to the city council that they approve the conditional use permit subject to the following conditions. All operation of the business uh should be consistent with the application materials included in the August 19th, 2025 city council packet. Um, I'm sorry that is a typo. That should be or no, that would be the correct meeting date, August 19th, 2025. Uh, the vehicle showroom space within the mall shall be limited to 3200 square feet. No more than six vehicles shall be stored on the property for test drives. For sale vehicle inventory may not be stored on the property. Uh, vehicles purchased by customers may not be delivered to the property for pickup. And any changes to these conditions requires a new conditional use permit. Um, so that is all I have for you. Uh, would you like the development team to come up and give their presentation? Okay. Have you guys come up? >> Perfect. All right. Uh, good evening members of the planning commission. My name is Sam and I'm here uh, with my colleagues today to share a little bit more about Riven and our excitement to have a retail presence here in the in this community. Rivian is an American automotive manufacturer found in 2009 uh, with the goal of helping to accelerate the global transition to zero emissions transportation. Uh we Rivian design, build, sell uh advanced electric vehicles along with the software and services that support them. Our vehicles are proudly assembled right here in the United States. We currently have a few uh different vehicles on the road. Uh the R1T, which is our flagship pickup truck, uh the R1S, which is our flagship SUV, and the Rivian commercial van uh which we use to electrify delivery fleets for commercial customers. Our products are sold directly uh to individual consumers and commercial clients. We're also looking to the future with our next generation vehicles. We have the R2, which is a midsize platform coming in next year, 2026, which will be followed by our highly anticipated R3 and R3X models. And those can be uh displayed here at the very end as an appendix uh for you guys to take a look at. Uh at a glance, we currently have about 32 open retail stores today across the United States that are within malls, uh outdoor lifestyle centers, and standalone retail, which we will briefly showcase towards the end of our presentation. Uh so, thank you again for your time, and now I'll pass the presentation over to my colleague, uh Madison, who will briefly discuss about the program of our store. >> Hi everyone, my name is Madison Grot House. I'm with Reschart Design Studio Architecture Record for Rivian. Um, we can kind of go through this next part pretty quickly. Is it this one? There we go. Um, this is just the space hubs provide visibility into our brand through education displays as well as uh vehicle displays. Um, Addison did a good job of going through kind of the floor plan here, 3,80 square ft. Uh the showroom is is very interactive and and focuses on vehicle education. So there's a lot of digital displays, interaction with the vehicle. Um the the and some lounge seating. The back of house um office has some break room area, employee restrooms, private offices and and storage. Um we are replacing the entire storefront with new aluminum storefront, wood doors. And then the chargers, as Addison had mentioned, um we are just replacing what's existing into the garage. There's four chargers down there that we're uh replacing with Rivian chargers and rebranding that area. And then the uh two spaces on the street level um are are not EV charging spaces um there for demo demo drives, test drives um for throughout the day. >> Thank you, Sam. Thank you, Madison. Hi, good evening everyone. My name is Siobhan Lee. I am the lead design manager for this project. So, um given the layout that Madison just explained, I just want to emphasize that our showroom is really for educational purposes. We want the customers to come in and feel comfortable asking us questions and being able to touch and feel the vehicle. So, we've um we have many touch points throughout the retail store for customers to take a look at the um the exterior paint, the interiors um and talk with our staff to understand how they can configure them to their um to their liking. We have uh educational touch points throughout the retail stores so that they can uh understand how the charging works at home and understand how they can plan their trips throughout um the country with uh the Rivian uh charging network. We also like to engage the community and have activities to bring people into the stores and use the space as kind of like an external living room. So, we welcome families. We welcome children um to just come and hang out. There's a lot of soft seating, a lot of uh books and artwork for people just to come and like stay connected. And lastly, there will be demonstration drives at this location and customers can hop in one of our vehicles, take a lap around and uh see if they like our vehicles. And so the next few slides are just uh some of our active sites that Addison has already showcased already. So we've got retail stores throughout the country. As you can see the mill work and the finishes are very bright, very um welcoming, inviting. We have uh you know we have I we have showrooms inside malls and also standalone sites as well as you can see in Pasadena. Um, and this is just a a larger image of what you would expect from our store inside the the Galleria shopping mall. Thank you. >> Thank you very much. Uh, with that, I'd open it to the rest of the commission for any questions you might have. All right, let's How about we just start down there? I saw your hand first. And we'll just go this way. Thanks, guys. Um, I have a couple of of questions. Um, I guess let's just start on this page. Um, why did the chargers underground need to be replaced? And I guess is there any I presume those are included because of some city standard for EV chargers? And have we in changing them to Rivian chargers, is that going to negatively affect non-Rivian drivers who may previously have charged there? I guess that that was my understanding was that you guys would be replacing the chargers that are already at Galleria. Is that correct? >> That's correct. >> Okay. So, do you guys want to speak to them? Like I guess why they >> I know this much about EVs, but I do know that there are different kinds of chargers and not everything is universal. >> Okay. >> Yeah. So they uh the Rivian vehicles or the EV chargers will be replaced uh the current chargers will be replaced with Rivian chargers but however those chargers are universal with the adapters. >> So if they're Tesla today I don't know what they are and I used to charge once once you've changed them over I still should be able to charge. >> That's correct. >> Okay. >> Um do Rivians include a a self-driving component? uh at this time that is still in development. So no. >> Okay. Um I do have a little bit of pause around if one of the uh reasons for not approving a CUP had to do with safety. if having a vehicle in a crowded parking lot using self-driving capabilities was maybe is a component of why this was a conditional use in retail. So I I'm trying to think through that. Um will there be batteries in the vehicles that are in the store? >> That's correct. Yeah. So customers will be able to interact uh when once they come into the store with the vehicle and so in order for the vehicles to do that interaction it would need to be in place too. >> So and I know Addison you said that we wouldn't have answers to the fire marshall's um report but I guess just question making sure that one of the conditions if it moves forward is addressing the fire marshall's concerns there about batteries or sprinklers like that's all baked in. >> Yeah. So, um the the memo from the fire marshall and and building official um that was added to the packet today uh included some recommendations of things that are not addressed in the fire code directly. So, as of right now, they are recommendations that >> they are only recommendations. >> They're only recommendations. So, the question of whether or not those could be like added as required conditions as part of this conditional use permit project. Um I don't know the answer to that tonight. If there's something you want to recommend, I think feel free to recommend it and then obviously we will follow up between now and the city council meeting. Um, work with our city attorney to see if that's like a viable option. >> Okay. And then while we're on the fire marshals memo, he had working hours and I know that was a recommendation, but is he are we saying that we have to have a different set of he would recommend different working hours than the rest of Galleria? >> Those were referring to the hours of construction. Oh >> for doing the tenant the finish of the tenant space. Got it. Okay, that's all my questions. And I'll start by following up with this one. I suppose my question was about fire, too. And I appreciate having this in here because right like um uh these will have battery engines versus um having a combustible engine. Is there setting any precedence? Do we set a precedence? Would we allow like a combustion engine car to be in there? And is there once again would be be setting something up that would be difficult for the building department to take care of >> um from from a from a zoning standpoint? No. I mean, we wouldn't look at this any differently if it were an internal combustion engine vehicle being stored in there. Um I I don't know about the fire code, but I think the issue right now is that from what the fire department staff have said is that the fire code is a little bit behind on addressing this issue. Um, so I I don't I wouldn't think of it as like setting precedent um at this point because it's not something that's in the code. Um, it's the use is allowed. Um, it's it's not prohibited by the code. So these are just suggestions at this point from the >> minimal. It's not like there's a huge tank in there or something or >> correct. I think one one of one of the recommendations is that the vehicles be at like no more than 25% charge. I think they said that that is um kind of their practice anyway. >> Okay. Okay. And then I had a question about the business model. Um, does does the financing process happen here too or is it literally just education and then the financing of the vehicles or does that happen online? >> Yes, the all the financing transactions will happen online. That's correct. >> Okay. Um, I think those were my only questions. Thank you. Okay. I just wanted to pick up on the parking spot piece. Um because you asked about the parking conversion, right? But and said, you know, I'd be able to park my Tesla or whatever. We understand my understanding is no because those spots are going to be permanently occupied by four Rivian vehicles now. So now those are no longer available to people with EV that would be visiting the Galleria. Correct. Oh, >> I believe these um we'll have to follow up with you because I think we do have dedicated stalls for test drives. Um so, as far as the quantity uh of what's going to be available for dedicated drives versus not, uh if we can follow up with you on that, that'd be appreciated. >> Okay. Okay. because I think most likely most of us would want to see an outcome where we're not eliminating EV spots by permanently placing Rivian uh vehicles there. And if you were to have to place Rivian vehicles per million spots that you'd have to add EV infrastructure to accommodate that make up for that loss at the Galleria. Um the only other question I had was the parking map. If you maybe pull up the the diagram of the spots proposed. This is This could be a very silly question, but I'll ask it regardless. Those highlighted spots right up there, given their proximity to the front and entrance, are those those aren't handicapped or anything or you know handicapped spots today, we're not taking away any accessible spots like that. Okay. Okay. Um, that was that was my only question there. Just making sure that we didn't eliminate eliminate uh premium parking for for people that need it. So, >> add something. >> My name is Paul. I I work at Gallery. I'm a property manager there. So, my understanding is that Rivian is not going to take up all four of the current charging stations there. They will take up two. So, there will be two remaining that are universal chargers for any EV to hook up to. Mhm. >> Um, but I will I will commit that Galleria as well as the Weston, we're in current conversations with Tesla about bringing in additional level two chargers on both of the properties. Um, not committed to that yet, but uh, we're in we're in discussions with Tesla about bringing more because we see it every day. There's more and more EVs in our parking lot. So, and the the current four that are there are an amenity to our tenants. I mean, and customers where uh we don't charge for it. It's an amenity. So, we try and put a two-hour limit on there. So, Rivian will take up two of those and have four dedicated Rivian locations and they'll be branded and then two of them will remain Galleria EB chargers. So, just want to clarify. >> Okay. Okay. Are you going to charge Rivian to to charge there those two spots? >> No. >> Okay. >> All right. Thank you. Uh, exciting stuff. EVs. Um, I have a just a few questions just on the operations. Um, just so I can understand the process a little bit better. This is really a location where it's a showroom. Folks would come see, feel it, feel it, feel the material, check out the colors, these kind of things, get a sense of it. And if they're so inclined, you would take them to the test vehicles, drive around. Um any sense of where you would be going uh for that test drive? Is that something that you guys have mapped out yet or understand just the route you would be taking residents? I mean uh potential customers. >> Yeah. So that that's um >> Sam, can we have you stand for this just it's better for it's better for TV. >> See for feedback there. So there uh it's sight by sight conditions depending on the jurisdiction and just the site layout of the area. So when we go from store to store, the route that we would choose, our operations team would just do uh usually a couple weeks prior to opening, which is do a survey of the area, make sure the regulations are safe to do the test drive routes, whether it's, you know, uh regulating to the science itself or to any city codes, plus kind of incorporating the experience of customer vehicles, whether it's the nearest on-ramp to a freeway, uh just to be able to give them that feel of a vehicle. Uh so it is kind of a condition from sight to sight on how that's how that's routed. >> Makes sense. Um just along those those same lines. Um so if let's just say I'm a Rivian curious person, right? And I do like it. I think you mentioned that in some of the memo the paperwork that you guys would provide wouldn't I would I be able to purchase from a paperwork perspective the vehicle at that location and then have it delivered to my house or do I have to go somewhere else to do the paperwork to purchase the vehicle? That's a good question and I don't know the answer to the paperwork portion but from a customer if you were to walk into a store you would be able to purchase that via with the web online. So all that documentation would happen via internet. Um as far as the registrations and so forth I believe that was something that I have to follow up on but I don't know that at the moment. >> Gotcha. along those same lines too. So, um you mentioned that we'll be selling accessories right at this location. Um um I'm guessing you can get a a a Rivian cap, maybe a jacket, right? A few things. >> Uh at what point does an accessory for the vehicle turn into a car part for a vehicle? And and and here's what I mean. So, I could probably get, and I've never driven one, but I'm guessing you could buy stuff that you could put into the vehicle, like a some thing to put on a steering wheel or make make it more comfortable. Um, other things like that. But could you buy tires, for example, or things that would not be an accessory to a vehicle, but actually a car part to a vehicle? How do you differentiate between the two? So at our stores, we sell the accessories uh that are um what do you call it? Uh more for the personnel itself. So your jackets, your t-shirts, your water bottles, and so forth. Actual vehicle parts would be purchased through the web and then serviced at the nearest service center. So for instance, tires in a sense. >> Gotcha. So it's more like comfort items in the vehicle is what would be sold versus parts. So >> you know I'm driving my Rivian, something breaks, I don't drive to you guys store and pick it up essentially, right? I have to go. >> And where's the nearest Rivian dealership where I would actually go to get the parts if I had to. >> So customers can pick up their vehicles at the nearest service center which is at St. Louis Park. So that's our nearest location. >> Gotcha. Okay. Um, electric vehicle. Um, no gas emission, right? So, from a >> That's correct. >> From a air pollution problem, probably no noise either, right? So, you know, we have folks walking around in the galleria every day for exercise, right? Um, sound testing. I'm guessing folks that get to play with the sound system, but I'm sure you guys would manage that, right? That's make it too loud. um those bits. And this question might be more for the property developer um at at Galleria. But if another competitor, you know, they see you guys go in there. Wow. Ribian could get in there. Tesla might want to get in there. BYD might want to get in there. Um and you know, maybe other vehicles. um and they would all be permitted use but well conditional use. Do you see any friction that would cause other competitors to question or want to interact or come into your store as a result of Rivian coming in? >> Yeah, so um thanks for the question. Uh, G gallery at this point is very committed to strictly just Rivian. Um, and as you know, we're confined with space there. We're not as big as most other malls. And so we try and be very careful and selective with what kind of tenants we um lease space to there. And so when we have a a specific u one-time use like a like a Rivian car, we would not sign a lease with a Tesla. And Rivian wouldn't want that partnership u either. So we're both committed to each other. Rivian Galleria and Galleria with Rivian. >> All right, that's it for now. Thank you so much. You >> Yeah, just a couple quick questions. Um, >> do you have any other Rivian dealerships in the state of Minnesota? >> Uh, no we do not. >> So, and at this point is the only service center in St. Louis Park? >> Yes. >> And, um, are you going to be open once you get rolling beyond the construction piece? Are you going to be open on Sundays? Are >> uh, yes, Monday through Saturday. Uh operating hours are around 10 to 7 and then Sundays, yes, we'll be over. >> Okay. So, even though dealerships can't sell cars on Sunday, you'll be open in accordance with the Galleria rules and regulations. Basically, that's who you're following. Okay. Uh I think those are my only questions. Thanks. >> Thank you. >> I said one. I think it's for Mr. Lewis. Um so, Galleria was built some time ago. I don't know what year are they is the Galleria compelled by any city ordinance to have a certain number of EV charging stations? >> No, I don't. No, not I don't believe so. I don't think there's anything right now. So like I think the ones that they put in they did so on their own, >> right? >> So that's a a customer service decision on their part, >> correct? of how they balance providing those resource >> resources or not. >> For for newer buildings um where you know the the green building policy applies then you know the city can require it through that process but um the ones that they have I believe they put in on their own. >> Okay. Thank you. >> All right. probably more for Addison as well here, but um my understanding was there's no new car dealerships allowed in the city and that's why they're going under the cup in this in this case or is that not a fair assessment? >> Um I don't think it's a fair assessment. I think yeah, this this has been a conditional use in the PCD3 district for probably some time. So, um I think when it was written, it was probably envisioning, you know, more of like a traditional car dealership that's going to have more of that impact. Um which is why here I think from a zoning standpoint, we have very few concerns because it's just a much less intensive use than a traditional car dealership. >> Okay. It is my recollection that at one point either Southdale or um the Galleria did host vehicles on display in um you know and not just for monthly purposes or something for a special occasion but actually in store in a storefront. I think it was Southdale down in the lower level. Um, >> I'm not sure, but I mean it is that was that a under a conditional use permit as well or do you recall? >> Uh, not to my recollection, at least not during my time here. Um, I don't Did they actually have cars on display? >> Yeah. >> For sale? Yeah. I guess we we don't know the history on that. >> They did. I mean, it was um and maybe it was even I'm not sure who it was. I don't want to speculate, but uh anyway, yeah, it was I mean, it was wasn't that long ago. I mean, it was 5 to 10 years. I I always think it's shorter than it was, but um it was probably closer to 10 years back. Um I guess my I have a few different concerns. Um the 25% charge situation is that both for the interior the cars that are stored inside and outside. >> I believe that's just for the ones that are stored inside was the the fire uh marshall's recommendation for for vehicles that are being stored inside that they'd have not more than a 25% charge. And then uh I I guess as far as maybe a bigger concern is is turning the shopping center parking lot kind of into sales space where really there's nothing else being sold out out in the lot outside. There be signage out there, vehicles parked out there 24/7, at least in those upper spots. The the ones down below won't be seen as much. um the current congestion in that particular lot, I mean, the whole place is is uh can get busy, but that particular lot where they're peeling two spots off, it's a very popular spot to park. Um, and obviously there was some negotiation with the with the mall for those, but uh I guess I I don't know if I have any other comments other than the fact that, you know, we're going to start seeing signage out in the lots and then other tenants are going to want to be there are the exterior signs, I understand, on the building, but this would be um one of the pictures showed uh or the renderings showed a couple spots reserving those those two spots. And I don't know if there's a limit on the size of that or if it's more like a handicap parking size. Obviously, it's gonna have their their logo and image on there. Um I I think it just takes the whole retail thing outside of the wall the walls of the mall and brings it into more public spaces. Um I just a just something to think about going forward. Um question also arises like what how do you obviously the models change from time to time. So what how do you access that? Yeah, you're rolling it through the the one of the front doors of the mall. How do you how do you get them in and out? It looks like the doors you're proposing in the buildout are not it doesn't appear to be large enough. May maybe they are to to roll the vehicles in and out. >> Yeah, that's that's correct. So we'll uh the the the storefront that we displayed that we were showing is custom uh large large enough for vehicle swap outs. And so because um as I mentioned earlier, we have our new vehicle forthcoming as well. So we'll we will do uh vehicle dis display uh will get swapped uh every every so often for just for the customer branding. And then as far as the access goes, we are working with uh the landlord and and company to provide a safe uh and feasible access for our vehicles to go safely through the mall and into our store. >> Yeah. Is there is there current door on the mall that that you can roll those through or >> will there be that be will that be part of the buildout? >> That'll be part of the buildout. >> So switching out the the doors to the mall? >> Yes, sir. >> Okay. Um guess along those lines, uh yeah, the something on the fire marshall note said and again we don't know if they're following this or not, but mentioned uh preferring a a garage door setup and obviously the location where you're at. Um there's a panels on the outside, there's a transformers right on the outside. is not not access from the outside wall. I mean, I guess what I was envisioning was you'd put some sort of garage door from the exterior into the back of that space, but you got a break room back there and different things. So, it doesn't appear that that was going to be how you were going to swap those cars out. So, that was why I had that question. Um, let me just see here. So those four spots that have the charging stations, those are the only four in the whole that whole block right now that are available, right? Okay, I think that's uh that's about all my questions. Thank you. >> All right, with that, thank you. Appreciate the presentation. Thanks for standing. I do have one more um on this again. It was on the the note we got today from fire marshall. There was a note about sack determination. Any idea why that's in there? I mean, I don't think there's any >> I I I think that the building department um when they issue the building permit, you know, that's the opportunity that they have to collect that sack fee. So they always want to make sure the Met Council agrees that the SAC determination, you know, it's not changing based on what was there before. >> Yeah. So you you run a >> they just make the council tell them if if any additional sack fees is due. >> I think in some of the the uh other write up that we received in the packet, it did mention that the vehicles inside the inside the store would not be operational, but it sounds like they are they will have batteries on them. So they'll be somewhat operational. They are just regular cars, I would assume, with with maybe the the drive disabled or something like that. >> Yeah, that's correct. So they're um they're in uh what they call I think display display mode uh for customer interaction. So it's a low state of charge. So that uh the it's really the uh the lights and the little the glamours that works within the vehicles that's only operating. And then as far as um someone driving that the component or the vehicle itself is locked and so that that software is built into the vehicle. >> Okay. Um yeah, I was just wondering if perhaps that sack determination was regarding some special fire protection system or something that might be in there, but I I guess that's not been determined yet. Uh, I wouldn't think they'd use water to put it out a fire anyway. So, um, okay. I think that was all I had now. Sorry. >> Thank you guys. Thank you everyone for the presentation and um applying to do this. This is a public hearing, so we've asked a lot of questions. Now, we're going to let the community weigh in. Uh, it does not look like we have anyone who is here in person to participate. Is that correct? Okay. So, I will just go right into kind of giving the rundown for how you can participate remotely. So, for those tuning in who might want to testify, this is how you do so. Call the following number 3125358110. Enter access code 2633905355. then password 5454. Then press star three on your keypad to get in the queue to start speaking. Uh since we have a one minute lag, we will wait about a minute for those to catch up. See if any jump in the queue. Um you have three minutes to testify. similar to the community comment period. State your full name and address and we will let you know when your time's up. In the meantime, we'll wait here. >> I have no callers on the phone yet, but because there is a short delay in the broadcast, I'd recommend we wait a minute or so, giving people time to call in. My clock shows that it's 7:44, so I will come back to you when I have a caller or at 7:45, whichever comes first. Thank you. It is now 7:45 and I still don't have any callers, so I think it's safe to move forward with your agenda. >> Thank you very much. I'd welcome a motion to close a public hearing. >> Motion to close the public hearing. >> Second. >> All those in favor say I. >> I. >> So move the public hearing is closed. Now we take it back to the planning commission to deliberate on this energetic one. Energized one, right? Powerful one, electric one. Yeah. >> Okay. Yeah, you got it. >> Not really, but um Sure. Um Yeah. Well, I I just have some some concerns mainly around the uh changing the the exterior of what a what a mall looks like today um with the signage and and different things and how that might propagate from what might potentially be small signs to larger signs and things like that. I'm sure there's codes for that as well. But uh and the fact that all car car car makers are making EVs would kind of open this up for you more more vehicles in other malls and other places across the city, which I'm not saying is a good thing or a bad thing, but um just seems to be different than what we've been used to. So, uh, I guess I I brought up the other concerns I had. Um, and I I don't need to reiterate those, but, uh, I guess I feel, um, this might not be the right right thing for the Galleria. there they're you know they're um all city is here and on behalf of the galleria and obviously is for this but uh I have heard from several residents that were against it as in addition to the um the better together comments there was the four I saw there were three against one four um and the 14 really said it was due to guess key Cadillac being so close to the galleria I think was the reasoning listed there. Um, yeah, I guess it it's just more so in in changing the way um we're we're dealing with the outside of uh retail locations, I guess, is my main concern. So, that's all I have. Uh, I'm supportive of this. I guess I I don't know enough about the the the safety concerns that I've heard to know whether it's truly dangerous or not. I just don't know. Um and so because I don't know, I don't feel comfortable saying no to something that I that I can't really explain why it's dangerous. And I know I have several acquaintances who who store their own vehicles in garages that are attached to houses where their families live. Um, and it seems like Galleria and Rivian insurance carriers would have an interest in this being a safe thing to do. Uh, so on balance, other evidence makes me think um it it seems like an acceptable thing to do. Uh so I'm I'm not persuaded by safety concerns, although some of that might just be ignorance. Uh secondly, I don't think we're empowered to require any number of charging stations. Although I might personally like to have more rather than less. Um, I don't think we as a planning commission are empowered to tell Galleria how many charging stations they should have, at least according to current code. And I'd leave it to the Galleria to decide what happens with uh with those charging stations. I'm fully supportive of this idea. I've had the opportunity to be in other Rivian dealerships, which um to even call this to even call something like this a car dealership is kind of a misnomer and is very misleading I think because it's unlike any other dealership. Um you know, in terms of the experience, in terms of the vibe, uh in terms of what they're trying to do so, I think this fits in. And somebody on Bed Together Dina had had made a comment about how it fits perfectly with the Yeti uh store that that's in there. And I think that that's very apt and it's certainly um closer to something like that. And and in the Rivian dealership that I've been in, they have they have they show a film and it's all very comfortable and there's food and it's very experiential. It it's not um um just about it's not about selling a car at all. It it's um so I so I think um it's helpful to not think about it um as a dealership. And I wanted to also address some of the comments in Better Together Diner which have a concern about that that they think that that um the gallery is interested in doing this just because other stores have moved out. Um and that it isn't a fit. So again, I would I would say the same to them. Um, and I think it's interesting for the for the people that brought up the idea that um they don't want a dealership or they're afraid for safety or something like that. The and some of the it sounded like the residents might be people who live right there in the hotel, the condominiums at the other end of the galleria who are far closer to key Cadillac than they would be to the Rivian dealer. and you know Cadillac is selling in their showroom EVs um and so they're closer. So I don't I don't think that that's a a a fair comparison. So I think I'm fully supportive. I think this is a different and a new way to sell cars and it fits with the innovation that Galleria is looking for. >> It has a lot of great points here today. Um just a couple of things to think about as the presentation was going along and I was listening to the responses from a zoning perspective, right? Um I think this this certainly fits as a conditionally permitted use. I think that that makes a lot of sense here, especially it being a uh not a combustion engine vehicle, but more of an electric vehicle. Um the questions around traffic and parking, I thought the team covered those well. Um I think having the dedicated parking spots is a good idea than having it randomly placed across the different lot sites, right? Cuz then you never know uh where it's going to be. But having a dedicated spot makes sense. And um the locations also make sense. Mean having six spots and no more than six spots. I think it's a high demand area for sure, but of course um the Galleria management had to play a key role in determining the number of spots and location. So I trust that for their business, they they made the best call there. Uh the team answered my questions when it come to the operational concerns, right? um it being a location where you could uh feel get an experience of what the vehicles are like um and you know it's not a place where you'll see Rivian users drive up to get it serviced right it's it's not that they would go to St. Louis Park to get that done. Um, and I think to just the question on on accessories versus parts, right? There's always a a potential where we're selling things already. Why not throw in a part that you need and you don't have to drive that far if you live in a diner, right? And so the team, you know, kind of differentiated the two. One being something that gives you comfort in driving the vehicle as an accessory versus a part that makes the vehicle function, right? Right. And we want to separate the two. And you go to St. Louis Park uh at that nearest dealership if you need to for uh parts and then accessories you could pick up at the at the galleria site. Um so I thought that was a good response there. Uh when it comes to setting precedents, right? Um I know this is a conditionally permitted use for sure. Uh I am and I appreciate the Galleria team for you know sharing why they want to have a close partnership with Rivian and not with Tesla or another vehicle. Um I'm sure there was some set of decisions and an assessment that was done that says yeah this is a good partner. Having a Tesla dealership three or four months ago was probably a risk. Uh you don't want someone breaking in and setting fires. Uh but I don't think um Rivian is a Tesla, right? And so it's a it's a it's a new type of a a vehicle with different management that's trying to grow in the American market. Um so I think that makes sense. And from a a tenant mix, I'm sure this one fits with the other tenants as um we heard, you know, if it's next to Yeti, that's a great spot. you you buy a Yeti and you take it home and then you get a Rivian delivered and you put your Yeti in the the Rivian and you go for a road trip. Um community and the economic impact. Um I think it it makes sense, you know, the uh showroom idea now that we're going into an experiential world right in the galleria area, right? you know, experiential shops like putt shack where you're doing golf, golf simulators, these kind of things are all experiential and I think people like that, but I think the gallery of management would decide on how much experiential content they want to have in their in their site. Uh, Rivian being one of them and I think that makes sense. So, I think overall uh I think it it's a it's a it's a good idea. I don't know if 25% charging makes a fire 25% bigger than if you've charged at 100%. I don't understand charging and fire risk that well. But um I would have to assume that being a commercial vehicle a lot of testing would have had been done to determine that this was a safe vehicle and people have this in their homes today. So I don't see the fire risk there from a battery perspective as as well. But again, it could be ignorance too from my perspective. But overall, I like the concept. I like what they're trying to do. Um, I I think the service model makes sense and it's a conditional use permit. So, I I don't see any major flags here. So, I've been support of this. Okay. Quick things. First, I think this clearly meets the requirements of the conditional use permit as laid out by the code and I agree with staff and their assessment there. um none of the small concerns that we brought up today I think negate any of the or um make it such that we don't meet these requirements for a conditional use permit. Uh two, I would rely on the fire department and the building code or I guess uh our building department to work with city attorney and then ultimately go to city council and impose any other additional conditions as needed um before it gets to city council level to make sure that we're covered there. um based off the information that we received today. And then finally, you know, I just wanted to provide a little bit of clarity on the on Commissioner Alky's point because I wasn't sure I understood it. So, a conditional use permit, if we're granting it, we can put conditions on it even if it's not required by the code, right? Um if we wanted to say like here, we said you have to reserve six spots, you can only keep it at six spots for parking, right? That's not something that's specifically outlined in the code. we can make a recommendation for a condition to the council. They don't have to accept it, but we're certainly free to do so. Um, so I didn't I wanted to make it seem as if we're not in not in our ability to do so. Um, if Cadillac came in and took away six EV charging spots, we could say, "Well, no, you need to replace them with six additional uh EV charging spots." So, just, you know, we as a planning commission suggest conditions all the time on conditional use permits that aren't specifically outlined by the code. Um, and it's up to city council to accept or reject those. So, I'm not making a recommendation based on the EV charging spots and the information I received from the gallery ownership and and what their future plans are there. Um, but I thought that was important to address. So, >> yeah, I mean, I agree with what others have said. I think the factors that are relevant to whether a conditional use permit can be granted or met um clearly here and for that reason we'll be supporting it. Beyond that, I don't think it's I think some of the conversation is interesting, but I don't know that it's our role to dictate to the gallery how it wants to serve its clients, how it wants to do its business. That's just not not really what um we're responsible for. So, thanks for coming and I'll be voting in favor. I do agree with a lot of the things my fellow commissioners have um talked about tonight. I appreciate Commissioner Padilla's comment about being in um other Rivian dealerships. I know I would feel much more comfortable walking into this dealership. I personally Well, I'm I'm gonna stop. I think your business model is very different than a traditional dealership. I'm getting that sense from some of our questions. So, I'm I'm going to take that back. But going for me going into traditional dealership, I'm uncomfortable there. It's not a place that's welcoming for me. This seems like a lot a lower bar to kind of step into and learn about something and a little lower pressure. So, it seems more inviting to me. Um, I know some people obviously on Better Together feel differently about about that, which is fine. Um, right. They might enjoy that traditional kind of going to a dealership. Um, but I think it also provides a different kind of experience for people like if a family goes and someone wants to go to this store and someone gets to go to a different store. I mean, I think it provides more opportunities. of Galleria and um I appreciate getting the information from the fire marshall and I appreciate knowing the steps that there are steps the city and the building department has taken to kind of address some of that and that makes me comfortable. Um and that's it. Those are my questions. So um I'm very supportive of of this. Thank you. Hi. Um, I too uh was really kind of batting back and forth in my head, but Commissioner Padilla's um reframing of it as a retail space, I started to think if this was selling electric bikes and we're going to my concern and was really with EV self-driving or not, there are different mechanics and let's call it like an old school car that some of us may have learned to drive on. and this idea of having a very congested parking lot that is kind of scary sometimes of year with how busy it is and then people maybe hitting reverse and not you know like so I was working through that and then I was like if it's a electric bike we would we wouldn't be having this conversation but you could still have people learning how to move about a parking lot who are maybe inexperienced at doing it. So um I love that we're encouraging electric vehicles. I think it's the right demographic for Galleria. I think you're absolutely right. While this is a car related business, this is a retail store where you just happen to have cars that you can drive outside, but you can also cross the street and get one at at the Cadillac dealer that's also an EV and you couldn't drive that or you'd have to learn to drive that, too. So, um, thank you. I'm excited to have you in the city. >> Thank you. Appreciate the presentation. Again, I too am fully supportive of this. I I see all the conditions for a conditional use permit are met. I I too have a unique perspective on the matter. My my wife's a property manager and manages the shops at the West End. Three years ago, they incorporated Polestar electric vehicles into a showroom. Went about the same process and it's just seamless with the experience up there as it will be here. uh no no relevant safety concerns or anything above the code. So I would strongly recommend we don't impose anything beyond the fire code. Um a code is there for a reason. They're nice to haves, but that's just going to cost people more money until it's code. So I I would recommend approval of this without further conditions. Thank you. Anyone have a motion? or further discussion. >> I have one more comment just um the six spots were requested. >> Uh two upstairs were noted. There's two uh of the four charging stations down below that were being taken. Are there two others that are being considered or are those four down below all the charging stations downstairs or are there two adjacent that aren't? >> Yeah, so currently there are four electric vehicle charging stations down below. Riven will have two demo vehicle locations up there on the ground level >> and then they will uh they will brand two of the existing four charging stations and then we will provide the electricity and power for two additional spots adjacent to those. So down below there will be six total charging stations. Four of them will be branded for Rivian. >> Thank you. I'd like to make make a motion to recommend approval of the conditional use permit for Rivian to operate an automobile agency selling new unused vehicles 3510 Galleria. >> Second. >> Uh all in favor say I. >> I. >> Opposed. >> We have eight in favor, one opposed. The motion carries. Congratulations. Thank you. Well, that's it for our public hearings tonight. So, now we move on to chair and member comments. Thank you again for your time here. Don't worry, you can leave. You don't have to sit for this. Yeah. Uh, so any comments from anyone? See some shaking of heads. Commissioner Day, just >> mark your calendar for September weekend of September 6th and 7th for Fall into the Arts if you are not already planning on going. Great event. Um I'm part of the Adina Crime Prevention Fund and we benefit greatly from that. We put that on and bought proceeds from that event go to the Adina crime prevention fund which if you're not familiar with that fund um you know we basically provide uh well equipment services etc whatever our fire and police department need beyond what they're currently given at the city level. So recently, uh, we approved some funds for some mental well-being and physical well-being, um, programs, um, that they're going to work be signing up for for two years that go beyond their current health plans, which are very valuable to them in terms of addressing, you know, cardiac problems, PTSD, etc., and helping them work through that. So, um, we support them in that regard and it fall into the arts helps helps fund those kind of initiatives. So, hope to see people there. Thank you. >> All right. See no other comments, staff comments. >> Just an update from the last city council meeting. They they took action on the town home project on Vernon, the removal of the single family home and build the two duplexes that was approved. So that that was a comp plan amendment. We'll be submitting that to Met Council. So likely this fall, you'd see some activity on that site. That's it. >> All right. With that then we have one >> motion to adjurnn. >> Second. >> All those in favor say I. >> I. >> Motion or the meeting's been adjourned. Thank you everyone. >> There's more than 10 years. More than five for sure. Right.