Cedar Bluff could be back on hot seat

A builder on Afton's new development, Cedar Bluff Homestead, has missed a deadline in the developer's agreement that could place the controversial project once again on the hot seat before the City Council.

Builder Len Pratt said it was impossible for him to make the Dec. 31 deadline to have the first home completed, as the city had required after extending an earlier deadline.

The developer, attorney Todd Baumgartner, now has informed the city that the model home should be completed by March 31, City Administrator Sara Irvine said. She was preparing a report last week for City Council members to consider before their next meeting on Jan. 17.

Pratt said the latest delay came because he had to wait to get permits approved by Washington County, which was a slow process because it was for the first home in the project.

The model is a 3,400-square-foot rambler on 22nd Street, with four bedrooms, three bathrooms, three-car garage, two fireplaces, screen porch and deck.

"It's challenging, but the bottom line is, it's beautiful," Pratt said. "We have a home underway."

Mayor Pat Snyder said she believes the City Council will discuss the missed deadline, but she doesn't foresee it halting the project. She said the city attorney will likely advise council members of options for remedies under the developer's agreement.

Pratt, however, said at the city's request, the 70-acre green space had been placed in an easement for the Minnesota Land Trust, to be maintained as a natural environmental setting and habitat. The trust's requirements preclude public access and trails, he said.

Developer Baumgartner plans to bring in other builders as well to the project just off 22nd Street South, not far from Interstate 94 and Hwy 95.

Pratt said the homes are expected to range from $600,000 to more than $1 million, and he has several lots sold. The green space, with prairie grass planted, is a key feature in the community, he said.

The model is finished on the exterior but interior work remains, said Pratt, adding that his crews have been working as fast as possible since getting a required permit from Washington County about seven weeks ago.

"I'm the guy on the end of the process that just had to wait for everybody to get caught up," Pratt said.

"Some people had expressed to me that they hoped it would not move forward," she said.

Afton's current ordinances require a minimum of five acres per lot, except in the Old Village, which is the city's commercial area downtown, the mayor said.

Once Cedar Bluff plans were changed to have 2.5-acre lots and individual septic systems, residents with whom Snyder spoke didn't seem to feel so strongly about the development, she said.

Snyder said that those past compromises with the developer have led to plans for a development that she believes will be an asset to Afton.