Loading...
10-09-2012 PC MIN MEETING OF THE ELK RIVER PLANNING COMMISSION • HELD AT ELK RIVER CITY HALL TUESDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2012 Members Present: Chair Anderson,Commissioners Bell,Keller and Konietzko and Westberg Members Absent: Commissioner Johnson Staff Present: Jeremy Barnhart,Planning Manager;Chris Leeseberg,Planner/Park Planner;Debbie Huebner,Recording Secretary 1. Call Meeting To Order Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, the meeting of the Elk River Planning Commission was called to order at 6:30 p.m. by Chair Anderson. 2. Consider 10/9/12 Planning Commission Agenda MOVED BY COMMISSIONER WESTBERG AND SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER KELLER TO APPROVE THE OCTOBER 9,2012 PLANNING COMMISSION AGENDA WITH THE FOLLOWING CHANGE: CONSIDER ITEM 4.3 BEFORE ITEMS 4.1 AND 4.2 • MOTION CARRIED 5-0. 3. Consider 9/11/12 Planning Commission Minutes MOVED BY COMMISSIONER WESTBERG AND SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER KELLER TO APPROVE THE SEPTEMBER 11,2012 MINUTES. MOTION CARRIED 5-0. 4.3 Request by Sherilyn Wieber for Conditional Use Permit for Home Occupation (Hair Salon— Hair Guru).Public Hearing—Case No. CU 12-19 The staff report was presented by Chris Lees eberg. Staff recommended approval of the request with the five conditions listed in the staff report to the Commission dated October 9,2012. Commissioner Westberg asked if there would be a permanent sign. Mr.Leeseberg stated that the applicant was present to answer questions. Chair Anderson opened the public hearing. Sherilyn Wieber,applicant,stated she did not have a sign yet,but the sign would be a permanent,wooden sign and within the city's guidelines. Commissioner Konietzko asked for clarification on the evening hours of operation. Ms. • Wieber stated that two evenings a week she may be open until 9 p.m. Commissioner Konietzko asked how many of the five parking spaces would be used by the family.Ms. Planning Commission Minutes Page 2 October 9,2012 Wieber stated that they would use two during the day and three in the evening. She stated if parking became an issue, she could park her vehicle at her in-law's home which was only a • block away. Commissioner Konietzko asked if she planned to increase her clientele. Ms. Wieber stated that was not her plan. Bonnie Robideau, 19343 Baldwin Street,stated she lives next door to the applicant. She stated she did not object to the use. She asked how many chairs Ms.Wieber will have. Ms. Wieber stated there will be two chairs. Ms.Robideau stated her concerns regarding increasing the number of chairs (stations),the sidewalk around the house to the driveway, possible impact the business next door might have on the resale value of her home if she decided to sell,parking and traffic till 9 p.m. Linda Wieber, 19438 Auburn Street,mother-in-law of the applicant,stated that she is the owner of the subject property. She stated that the previous owner had not done any landscaping and they have been working on a walkway using pavers to prevent the soil from washing away. She noted that the driveway is around the corner of the house and the pathway will eventually be completed. Ms.Wieber stated that as far as the resale of the neighbor's home,no one can predict what will happen with the economy and what impact that may have on home values. There being no one else to speak for or against this matter,Chair Anderson closed the public hearing. Commissioner Konietzko asked if there were any association rules that might prevent a home business. Mr.Leeseberg explained that homeowner association covenants are a civil matter and are not enforced by the city. Linda Wieber stated that there was no association 410 when she purchased the home. MOTION BY COMMISSIONER BELL AND SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER KELLER TO RECOMMEND APPROVAL OF THE REQUEST BY SHERILYN WIEBER FOR A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT FOR A HOME OCCUPATION (HAIR SALON-HAIR GURU),WITH THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS: 1. AS A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT IS NOT A BUILDING PERMIT,THE APPLICANT SHALL APPLY FOR ALL REQUIRED PERMITS. 2. THE BUILDING SHALL MEET ALL BUILDING CODES. 3. THE BUILDING SHALL MEET ALL FIRE CODES. 4. PARKING ON 193RD SHALL BE PROHIBITED. 5. EXTERIOR SIGNAGE SHALL NOT EXCEED SIX(6) SQUARE FEET. Commissioner Westberg noted that the sign should be designed to fit in with the residential neighborhood. MOTION CARRIED 5-0. 4.1 Request by City of Elk River for Ordinance Amendment Relating to Outdoor Storage in the Business Park Zoning District.Public Hearing—Case No. OA 12-04 Jeremy Barnhart reviewed the staff report and the revised draft ordinance which was distributed at the meeting. He stated that staff recommends approval of the revised ordinance. • Planning Commission Minutes Page 3 October 9,2012 Commissioner Bell asked if there would be any restrictions on the size of the outdoor • storage area. Mr.Barnhart stated no,based on the ordinance as drafted. He noted that some cities do have a size restriction,but staff chose not to add more regulations. Chair Anderson stated he would not want to see storage of unsightly items allowed,since those types of businesses should be located in the industrial zoning. He added that the outdoor storage area should not be more than 50 percent of the property. Commissioner Westberg asked if there were requirements for screening in the I1 and I3 industrial zoning districts. Mr.Barnhart stated no. Commissioner Westberg stated he could see the potential for an outdoor storage area to become a junkyard. Mr.Barnhart stated that is a possibility. He noted that some businesses may have some type of waste product that might be stored until it could be removed. He stated that the question is whether or not we can live with that possibility. Commissioner Westberg stated the reason the business park zoning was created was to have higher standards and restrict this type of issue.Mr. Barnhart stated that the question is whether or not the Planning Commission feels outdoor storage is appropriate in business parks, and if the negative aspects can be mitigated through the conditional use permit process. If they can,then they can move forward and recommend approval of the amendment. Commissioner Bell questioned requiring a berm to be only three feet in height. He stated that if a fence was only three feet high,it would not be effective screening. Mr. Barnhart stated that a fence would likely be six feet in height. Commissioner Bell stated he felt the tree height requirement should be 6 feet,not 5 feet. 411 Chair Anderson opened the public hearing. There being no one to speak for or against this matter, Chair Anderson closed the public hearing. Commissioner Keller stated that he would also want to keep outdoor storage from turning into a junkyard. Commissioner Bell stated that since the use would only be allowed by a conditional use permit, they could have some control over what happens. He stated that staff could negotiate the screening with applicants. There was some discussion about whether or not a hedge would be an appropriate screening method. Mr.Barnhart stated that"hedge"could be removed as an option. Commissioner Westberg stated that the CUP would not condition what could be put in the outdoor storage area,and he had concerns that items such as large equipment would be well over the height of a fence. Commissioner Keller stated he would like to remove the"hedge" option. He suggested requiring trees in addition to fencing. Mr.Barnhart stated that the language in the propose amendment could be changed to require 2 or more screening options. Commissioner.Bell stated that trees and fencing do not go together. He stated that this might pose a security issue, since someone could climb a tree to get over a fence. 111 Planning Commission Minutes Page 4 October 9,2012 Commissioner Westberg asked what would happen if an existing business in the business park decided to have outdoor storage. Mr. Barnhart stated they would be required to obtain • a CUP. Discussion followed regarding setting a restriction on the maximum area that can be used for outdoor storage. Commissioner Keller suggested a percentage of the lot size could be used. Chair Anderson stated he would be in favor of allowing outdoor storage to supplement the growth of a business.The general consensus was to use a maximum of 30 percent of lot used for outdoor storage as a starting point,although not all Commissioners were in agreement. Commissioner Westberg suggested researching what other cities'ordinances allow. Mr. Barnhart stated that not all cities have business park zoning,only industrial zoning. He stated it would take some work to research this issue, since it would require trying to compare"apples to apples". Chair Anderson stated that they need to consider future properties being developed and the impacts of the amendment. Commissioner Westberg stated he had concerns with allowing 30 percent of a lot used for outdoor storage. Commissioner Keller suggested allowing 20 percent for certain types of storage and 30 percent for others. Commissioner Konietzko stated that those types of issues could be dealt with at the CUP review. Further discussion followed regarding types of screening and whether to require 1 or 2 types of screening to be used. Commissioner Konietzko suggested that the screening for outdoor storage applications could be reviewed by the Planning Commission when they review the conditional use permit. Mr.Barnhart stated that the business community wants to know what the rules are and they would not want approvals on a case-by-case basis. He stated that if the Planning Commission is uncomfortable with the ordinance, they should vote"no". Commissioner Westberg stated he was uncomfortable with a recommendation to allow 30 percent of a lot to be used for outdoor storage. MOTION BY COMMISSIONER BELL AND SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER KELLER TO RECOMMEND APPROVAL OF THE REQUEST BY THE CITY OF ELK RIVER FOR AN ORDINANCE AMENDMENT RELATING TO OUTDOOR STORAGE IN THE BUSINESS PARK ZONING DISTRICT,AND FURTHER RECOMMENDED THESE CHANGES: - ADD RESTRICTION TO LIMIT AMOUNT OF OUTDOOR STORAGE TO 30% OF LOT AREA OR LESS. - REQUIRE TWO OR MORE TYPES OF THE APPROVED SCREENING - CONIFEROUS TREES MUST BE AT LEAST SIX(6) FEET IN HEIGHT MOTION CARRIED 4-1. Commissioner Westberg opposed. r Planning Commission Minutes Page 5 October 9,2012 4.2 Request by Alliance Machine/Bryan Provo for a Conditional Use Permit for Outdoor • Storage at 17520 Tyler Street(Northstar Business Park).Public Hearing—Case No. CU 12- 17 Mr.Barnhart reviewed the request by Alliance Machine.He noted that the applicant was not present. Staff recommended that the request be denied,as it is inconsistent with the proposed ordinance amendment,and he did not want to assume the applicant was willing to accept the changes. Commissioner Konietzko asked if it was an option to postpone the request. Mr.Barnhart explained that state statute requires that applications must be processed within 120 days. He stated that there was no reason to extend the deadline,since the applicant was not present to request an extension. Chair Anderson opened the public hearing. There being no one to speak to this issue,Chair Anderson closed the public hearing. MOTION BY COMMISSIONER KONIETZKO AND SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER BELL TO RECOMMEND DENIAL OF THE REQUEST BY ALLIANCE MACHINE/BRYAN PROVO FOR A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT TO ALLOW OUTDOOR STORAGE IN THE BUSINESS PARK ZONING DISTRICT. MOTION CARRIED 5-0. 5. General Business • 5.1 —Mr.Barnhart stated that the public meeting for the Downtown Task Force plan was continued to Monday,October 22nd, from 4—7 p.m. An open house will be held at this time as an additional opportunity for the public to ask questions and provide comments. 6. Adjournment There being no further business,Commissioner Bell moved to adjourn. The meeting of the Elk River Planning Commission adjourned at 7:46 p.m. Minutes prepared by Debbie Huebner. Tina Allard City Clerk l f 11 Dana Anderson,Planning Commission Chair •