Sauk Rapids City Council Approves Strip Center Development With Conditions

(KNSI) – At Tuesday’s meeting, the Sauk Rapids City Council unanimously approved plans for a three-bay strip mall to be constructed by Keystone Design Build.

The facility will feature a shake nutrition lounge with a drive-thru that sells healthy drinks and a cat lounge where customers can interact with cats and adopt one if they choose. Keystone Design Build, a construction company based in Rice, will lead the planning for the center, which is set to be developed at 920 Golden Spike Road.

Despite the approval, Community Development Director Todd Schultz said there are several conditions the company must meet before a building permit is issued. One of these pertains to the cat lounge, which, according to Schultz, does not fall under any specific use in the city’s Highway Commercial District. Because of this, the city will need to determine whether the lounge is similar to other uses in the district and does not adversely affect the city’s welfare and general health.

Schultz added that the center’s heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) unit and dumpster must be decoratively screened, and that the city’s building/fire marshal must approve the location of the center’s HVAC system and any planned hydrants. The city’s engineer must also review and approve the drive-thru and stormwater aspects of the nutrition lounge, and tracer wire must be installed on the building’s utilities, as per the Public Works Department.

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