Citizens’ Petition to Deny Approval of the Preliminary Plat for Pavilion Estates

Dear Rochester Township Planning & Zoning Committee and Township Board:

We respectfully submit this Petition asking the Township to deny the application of International Properties, LLC, for preliminary plat approval for Pavilion Estates.

Over the past year, many of us worked hard to get our voices heard in land use and development decisions regarding the proposed Pavilion Estates development. This development, if approved, will be located on the upland forest and great blue heron rookery acreage that township residents hope to purchase, and turn into, along with additional forest acreage, a Minnesota Scientific & Natural Area that will remain in its natural state in perpetuity for current and future generations to enjoy.

We have written emails, attended township meetings, held community events, staged rallies, built an active Facebook Group of over 1,000 members, attracted more than 14,000 unique visitors to our website, and generated dozens of print and broadcast articles. Yet despite all this effort, we believe that, so far, the Township has summarily dismissed our concerns throughout this development approval process, while they have given the developer’s concerns immediate and sympathetic consideration.

We have created this petition to try to change that dynamic and influence the future of this acreage before it’s too late. We hope this petition will convince you to prioritize the specific and well-supported concerns of many township and Rochester area residents when you consider this issue.

The full text of this petition is available here.

After presenting substantive reasons, the petition concludes by asking you to:

1. Follow the Township and County official ordinances,
2. Deny variances that lower standards to get around current County and Township ordinances, and
3. Vote to deny the Preliminary Plat for Pavilion Estates.