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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1991-02-11 Minutes• • • MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE FAYETTEVILLE CITY PLANNING COMMISSION A meeting of the Fayetteville Planning Commission was held on Monday, February 11, 1991 in the Board of Directors Room on the second floor of the City Administration Building, 113 West Mountain Street, Fayetteville, Arkansas. MEMBERS PRESENT: Fred Hanna, J.E. Springborn, Jerry Allred, Joe Tarvin, Charles Nickles Jack Cleghorn, Jett Cato, Jana Lynn Britton, and Mark Robertson OTHERS PRESENT: John Merrell, Don Bunn, Becky Bryant, Elaine Cattaneo, members of the press and others INTRODUCTION OF THE NEW PLANNING COMMISSIONER Chair Hanna introduced the new planning commissioner, Mark Robertson, and welcomed him. MINUTES The minutes of the regular Planning Commission meeting of January 14, 1991, were approved with one correction by Commissioner Britton. On Page 11 in the second paragraph "circulate" should be "percolate". PUBLIC HEARING FOR REZONING PETITION R91-2 NEAL CRAWFORD & TINA CAZORT - NW CORNER OF GREGG AVE & TAYLOR ST The third item on the agenda was a public hearing for rezoning petition R91-2 submitted by Neal Crawford & Tina Cazort on behalf of the owner, Donald Roller Wilson, for property located on the northwest corner of Gregg Avenue & Taylor Street. The request was to rezone from R-3, High Density Residential, to C-2, Thoroughfare Commercial. Chair Hanna advised that they have received two letters from neighboring property owners pertaining to this. John Merrell, Planning Management Director, advised that the staff is recommending denial of the rezoning request because there are a number of problems with a commercial rezoning at this location. He noted that the staff doesn't fault the applicants for making an effort to make some sort of use of the property. However, the property has poor access and there are potential noise and parking problems which has been pointed out in the letters submitted in opposition to this petition. Also, this use would be incompatible with the surrounding land uses which is a mixture of apartments, duplexes and single- family residences. Neal Crawford, petitioner, stated that pending the approval of this rezoning, he would be leasing the building and property. The lease would be set up so that if the zoning is changed, it would change back to R-3 after they are finished using it. As for the access, it has a chat drive. He noted that would like to create a place for kids who use skateboards to hang out which would be safer than on the streets. In their skate park design, they have allowed for about eight parking spaces which they feel will be adequate because most of the patrons will be under driving age. He stated that he had talked to a couple of neighbors who support their petition. Winifred Sharp, who was unable to be is / • • • Planning Commission February 11, 1991 Page 2 present, is in support of it. He noted that, if there is any opposition at all, he doesn't want to step on anybody's toes. They just feel that there is a need in Fayetteville for a place to skateboard. He stated that they would anticipate 20 to 30 kids maximum. If the business grew larger, they would have to move to a different location. He advised that the structures shown on the drawing will not all be built at the same time. In answer to a question from Chair Hanna, Mr. Crawford stated that there would be two small ramps indoors. Then the first structure shown on the west side would be the first to be constructed outdoors followed by the structures going north and clockwise. The last one would be a competition ramp to be built if the business grows to that capacity. In answer to a question from Commissioner Allred, Mr. Crawford stated that the existing building is vacant. He added that they would install a water fountain, but there wouldn't be any public restrooms. In answer to a question from Chair Hanna, Mr. Merrell stated that there wouldn't be any problem with this as long as it met the requirements of the building and plumbing code. In answer to a question from Commissioner Nickle, Mr. Crawford stated that they would be selling cokes and prepackaged foods. He stated that they will have music indoors but not outdoors, because the neighbors are 80 close. Their hours of business would be 3 to 9 Monday through Thursday, 3 to 10 on Friday, 12 noon to 10 on Saturday, and 1 to 5 on Sunday. Lighting would be installed. Bruce Johanson, son of Mr. & Mrs. Richard Johanson who own approximately 50 apartments in that two block area, stated that this proposed site is only a short distance from some of their units. They are concerned about the noise of the skateboards banging up and down. Most of the students in that neighborhood are graduate students. They may not be able to hear the music, but they will hear the banging of the skateboards. He stated that he agrees with Mr. Crawford that a place is needed in Fayetteville for this kind of thing, but this isn't the proper location for it. Collier Pierce, representing Sweetser Properties, stated that they also have several single-family and multi -family homes in that area. They feel that it would be incompatible to have commercial zoning in that neighborhood. There being no one else wanting to speak, the public hearing was closed to the Commission. Commissioner Allred stated that this is a situation that should be addressed by the City. He added that he has a problem supporting something of this nature without any restroom facilities. MOTION Commissioner Allred moved to recommend denial of the rezoning petition, seconded by Britton. The motion passed 9-0-0. Chair Hanna advised the petitioners that they do have the right to appeal this decision to the City Board of Directors. • • • • Planning Commission February 11, 1991 Page 3 PUBLIC HEARING OF REZONING PETITION R91-3 WAYNE & CHARLOTTE RING - 2743 OLD FARMINGTON ROAD The fourth item on the agenda was a public hearing of rezoning petition R91-3 submitted Wayne & Charlotte King and represented by Terry McConnell for property located at 2743 Old Farmington Road. The request was to rezone from A-1, Agricultural, to R-0, Residential -Office. John Merrell, Planning Management Director, stated that there is an existing house on the property and a switch building behind the house. The understanding is that the house would be demolished and a two-story building of approximately 8,000 square feet be constructed for offices. The staff's opinion is that they will need an R -O rezoning along with a conditional use to legalize the switch building in the new zoning. The staff recommends approval of the rezoning for the reasons stated in the staff report. He advised that the staff spent a great deal of time doing field work on this petition. At first they were concerned about recommending a non-residential rezoning this far to the west of the intersection of Old Farmington Road and Shiloh Drive. However, they determined that there were several good reasons to recommend it as listed in the staff report. Also, the fact that the R -O zoning is a step down from the C-2 zoning on the corner of the Shiloh Drive and Old Farmington Road helps their case. Therefore, from the standpoint of land use planning, this is a good rezoning to support. Terry McConnell of Commerce Construction, representing the petitioners who are principals of Call America, stated that the plan is as the staff stated to remove the existing house and construct a two-story office structure. In answer to a question from Commissioner Nickle, Mr. McConnell advised that Call America would be moving their offices to this location. In answer to a question from Commissioner Britton, Mr. McConnell stated that the office building could accommodate approximately 25 to 30 employees. There being no one else wanting to speak, the public hearing was closed to the Commission. MOTION Commissioner Nickle moved to recommend approval of the rezoning as requested, seconded by Springborn. The motion passed 8-1-0 with Cleghorn, Allred, Springborn, Hanna, Tarvin, Robertson, Cato, & Nickle voting "yes" and Britton voting "no". CONDITIONAL USE REQUEST FOR SWITCHING STATION 2743 OLD FARMINGTON ROAD - WAYNE & CHARLOTTE RING The fifth item on the agenda was a conditional use for a switching station in an R -O zone submitted by Wayne & Charlotte King on property located at 2743 Old Farmington Road. John Merrell, Planning Management Director, stated that this conditional use is required to make the switching station legal in connection with the R -O rezoning petition at this location. He advised that the staff recommends approval of this conditional use subject to the retention of the existing trees and shrubs on the east and south borders of this property. Mr. McConnell stated that the staff's recommendation sounds reasonable to them. • • • Planning Commission February 11, 1991 Page 4 MOTION Commissioner Cato moved to grant the conditional use request subject to the staff's comments, seconded by Allred. The motion passed 8-0-1 with Cleghorn, Allred, Springborn, Hanna, Tarvin, Robertson, Cato, & Nickle voting "yes" and Britton "abstaining". WAIVER OF THE SUBDIVISION REGULATIONS - LOT SPLIT BILL LAZENBY - 3016 MT. COMFORT ROAD The sixth item was a waiver of the subdivision regulations - lot split submitted by Bill Lazenby and represented by Dave Jorgensen for property located at 3016 Mt. Comfort Road. Don Bunn, City Engineer, stated that the staff is recommending approval of this lot split. There is an existing house on the property which would be retained on a .25 acre tract with a .18 acre tract being split off. Both of these lots would meet the zoning requirements for an R-1 zone. Staff found that there were covenants prohibiting the further splitting of property within the subdivision, but the covenants expired in 1985. The staff's recommendation is to approve the lot split subject to the payment of one parks fee and the construction of a sidewalk along Mt. Comfort Road in accordance with the Master Sidewalk Plan. Dave Jorgensen, representing Bill Lazenby, stated that they are proposing to split an existing lot in a subdivision which would abide by the minimum code requirements and the staff's conditions. He noted that the existing house would have a 30' setback from the proposed property line. There is frontage on Gooseberry Lane and all the utilities are available. In answer to a question from Commissioner Nickle, Mr. Jorgensen stated that they plan to save as many of the trees as possible when the new lot is developed. Commissioner Nickle stated that he had heard concern from the neighborhood that the trees would be cleared off the property if this was approved. In answer to a question from Commissioner Britton, Mr. Jorgensen stated that they don't have a proposed house plan at this time, but it would be around 1,600 square feet. Commissioner Springborn asked if there is any consideration being given to splitting the lot 9 which lies on the west side of Gooseberry Lane. Mr. Jorgensen stated that it could not be split, because there is an existing house sitting in the middle of it. Chair Hanna stated that he has a problem with an 8,000 square foot lot being split off adjoining all of the 20,000 square feet lots along this street. In answer to a questions from Commissioner Britton and Commissioner Cleghorn, Ms. Bryant stated that property owners immediately contiguous to and across any streets from this were sent an agenda notice. She noted that notification isn't a requirement for lot splits, but the Planning Commission had requested that the staff notify on lot splits, too. She added that the staff doesn't have lot split signs so no sign was posted on the property. Commissioner Springborn stated that his problem with this request is the possibility of creating two lots so much smaller than the others should have been considered at the time it was subdivided. • • • Planning Commission February 11, 1991 Page 5 MOTION Commissioner Springborn moved to deny the request, seconded by Britton. The motion passed 9-0-0. DISCUSSION OF THE GENERAL PLAN John Merrell, Planning Management Director, stated that the staff will be sending out some backup material on the proposed General Plan and will be discussing this at the next Planning Commission meeting. The staff will finalize their ideas and make some recommendations to take over the project of the General Plan that the consultant did. They intend to involve the public heavily in this project. He noted that the development regulations, zoning update, landscaping and trees ordinances will come later. HEARINGS ON EXCAVATION AND GRADING ORDINANCE AND EXTRACTION DISTRICT ZONING John Merrell, Planning Management Director, stated that the Excavation & Grading Ordinance was drafted by the City Planning and Engineering staff. Then a citizens committee was appointed to review it. The following people were the members on the committee: Planning Commissioner Chuck Nickle as the chairman, developers Jim Lindsey, Charles Sloan, & David McClinton; Karen Rollet, landscape architect; Richard Geddes, representing the Zion Road neighborhood; Betty Davis, citizen at large; Katie Featherston, soil scientist; Doug Knapp, builder; and Dennis Becker, architect. The ordinance reflects a lot of hard work by that committee. Chair Hanna asked what the staff expects from the Planning Commission. Mr. Merrell stated that they would like the Commission to be a sounding board for public comments both at this meeting and on February 25th. Then, the staff suggests that the Commission make a recommendation with any changes to the City Board for a decision. This involves amending the City Code to add this ordinance if it does get adopted. Chair Hanna stated that he feels if the Commission is going to make recommendations to the City Board, they should have a presentation from some of the committee members giving some of the reasoning behind their proposals. Commissioner Nickle stated that this ordinance is really a product of the staff. All the committee did was take a look at it from every angle that they could think of and gave input to the staff who did as they wished with their comments. He noted that, for the most part, the comments they made were included in the ordinance. In having dealt with this for an extended period of time, it is his opinion that questions be directed to the staff. Chair Hanna suggested that each member of the Commission read this ordinance thoroughly and be prepared to make comments or ask questions. Mr. Merrell advised that this is a significant ordinance which will impact construction in Fayetteville, if this ordinance or some version of it is ultimately adopted. The staff doesn't want to be perceived as trying to railroad this ordinance through, but they don't want it to be delayed unnecessarily. The staff will do a presentation at the next meeting. The public hearing was opened. Jamie Jones who lives on Zion Road stated that he would have never known of the need for an ordinance such as this had there not been a graphic illustration of the need for regulations on grading and excavation in their neighborhood (referring to Jerry Sweetser's borrow pit on Zion Road). He stated that they i60 • • • Planning Commission February 11, 1991 Page 6 need regulation and control on grading and excavation in the City of Fayetteville. It is needed to ensure responsible care of the land for the public at large; it is needed to be fair and consistent with the other contractors who have to abide by all kinds of ordinances such as plumbing and electrical. There may be some concern about whether enacting this ordinance would make building more costly in Fayetteville. Some may say that this will cause more people to decide to locate in another city. However, if he were a new resident, he would much prefer paying a little more to live in a City that had responsible control on grading and excavation operations. He stated that he isn't for repressive, excessive, and needless control by a governmental agency, but he is for ordinances which would make for a responsible use of the land. Richard Geddes, a resident of Zion Road, stated that the City has to do something to stop the destruction and insult to the environment and to the people such as what Mr. Sweetser has forced on them. Jerry Sweetser stated that he tends to agree with the gentlemen who spoke about the Zion Road project. He noted that they approached the City about it before they purchased the land. It was a permitted use and there was a letter to the City explaining their proposed use of the land. Then when they got into the proceedings, the neighbors realized that this was a permitted use in this area and objected to it. He stated that, if the City doesn't want any more borrow pits inside the City Limits, they probably should write an ordinance restricting them within the City Limits instead of an excavation ordinance. He stated that it is amazing to him that this committee was appointed to address this problem, and the ordinance was written by the staff. He noted that, if he were a member of the staff, this ordinance would reflect his personal views. In his opinion, when an ordinance that could have long-lasting and detrimental affects on the growth of Fayetteville is being considered, it should be written by a cross- section of citizens of Fayetteville and not audited as such. He would like to see public input at the committee level rather than after the ordinance is drafted. He noted that he hates to see the City take this one incident on Zion Road and develop an ordinance that penalizes Fayetteville. Hie recommendation would be to pass a stop gap ordinance that restricts borrow pits in the City. Betty Davis stated that she feels this ordinance is necessary, and she is in support of it. She stated that if there had been such an ordinance on the books when her house was built, she might have saved several thousand dollars to correct some of the things that would have been corrected before her property was developed. She is sure that there have been other citizens in Fayetteville who have had extra expense to install corrective measures on their property. There being no one else wanting to speak, the public hearing was closed. Commissioner Nickle stated that all the committee meetings were' open to the public. They were advertised in both the local newspapers. They welcomed any public input in writing. They could also offer any comments to any member of the committee. He noted that the press did a good job in reporting some of the comments and concerns that the individual committee members had during the process of review. Commissioner Robertson stated that he has some questions on some of the technical aspects of it and some of the recommendations. He noted that there are several points that he would like to address. Mr. Merrell stated that the staff would be glad to discuss it with them. Commissioner Springborn stated that, as he understands it, the Commissioners are invited to individually go over any particular points or comments. He advised • • • Planning Commission February 11, 1991 Page 7 that he is happy.to go forward on that basis and not go into detail at this meeting. Becky Bryant, Associate Planner, advised that they also have a great deal of materials in the Planning Office on other cities' ordinances and related materials which are open to anyone who wants to review them. Mr. Merrell stated that hundreds of cities across the country have an ordinance that addresses this type of thing. In fact, some states mandate it. He noted that the City of Little Rock has had an ordinance similar to this for years. In preparing this ordinance, the staff worked closely with Mike Batie who is the public works director in Little Rock. Commissioner Springborn stated that he would like to complement the staff and the volunteers who supported this ordinance. He noted that he is highly in favor of an ordinance of this nature. Commissioner Cleghorn asked if they had any public turn out at the committee meetings. Commissioner Nickle stated that there were several citizens in attendance at the first three or four meetings. OTHER BUSINESS Item #1: Nomination of New Officers Chair Hanna stated that he thinks it would be a good idea to follow a general rule of not having the chairman succeed himself so that everyone gets a chance to be chairman. He noted that they have a slate of officers and they will also get nominations from the floor. The nominees for the chairmanship were Joe Tarvin, Jerry Allred, and Chuck Nickle. The vote was taken and Jerry Allred was elected Chairman and Chuck Nickle as elected Vice -Chairman. Jana Britton was nominated for Secretary and elected by acclamation. Item #2: Planning Secretary's Resignation Elaine Cattaneo, City Planning Secretary, announced to the Commission that she had resigned her position with the City. John Merrell, Planning Management Director, stated that he would like to express his appreciation to her for holding the Planning Office together for several months while it was so understaffed by drafting a resolution to that affect. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 6:15 p.m. 161