Lennar Homes has submitted a complete wetland replacement plan application. Staff and a Technical Evaluation Panel (TEP) has reviewed the application and determined it meets the requirements of the Wetland Conservation Act (WCA). This replacement plan must be acted upon by the City Council in their role as the Local Government Unit (LGU) for the WCA of 1991. Attached for Council consideration is Resolution No. 7887, a resolution approving a Wetland Replacement Plan for the Ridge Creek project.

The replacement plan, as proposed by Lennar Homes, would fill approximately 0.4809 acres of wetland as part of their road relocation project. The impacted wetlands are proposed to be replaced at a 2:1 ratio for a total of 0.9618 acres of replacement. Replacement is to be provided through the purchase of wetland credits from an approved wetland bank within the same Bank Service Area.

The application was noticed to the TEP, which consists of a City staff member and representatives from the Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD), the Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR), the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), and the Prior Lake-Spring Lake Watershed District (PLSLWD) on March 29, 2017. The TEP, established by the WCA, provides professional, technical review of wetland issues. The TEP had the opportunity to review the application and provide comments to the LGU through April 28, 2017. No comments were received by the TEP.

The wetland replacement plan is being proposed to facilitate the construction of a roadway (Crossings Boulevard) and grading for 104 single-family homes, including housing pads, residential streets, and associated infrastructure. Impacts were minimized by constructing roadway shoulders with the steepest allowable slopes and aligning Crossings Boulevard along the existing buried sanitary sewer corridor.