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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-24-15 YPC MinutesCity of Yakima Planning Commission (YPC) City Hall Council Chambers Meeting Minutes of June 24, 2015 Call to Order Chairman Dave Fonfara called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m. Roll Call YPC Members Present: Chairman Dave Fonfara, Al Rose, Patricia Byers, Ron Anderson, Carmen Mendez YPC Members Absent: Vice -chair Scott Clark (excused); Bill Cook (excused) Staff Present: Jeff Peters, Supervising Planner; Mark Kunkler, Senior Assistant City Attorney Others: Sign -in sheet in file Staff Announcements Supervising Planner Jeff Peters announced that at a previous meeting the Commission had consensus to begin study sessions for 2015 Comprehensive Plan Map Amendments (CPAs) at 3:00 p.m. rather than the normal 3:30 p.m. starting time for Planning Commission meetings. He added that Senior Planner Valerie Smith has since then contacted Commission members regarding available times and dates for special study sessions on the CPAs and has settled on 3 special study sessions including July 27, August 3, and August 17. All study sessions listed will commence at 6:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers. Audience Participation None noted. Approval of the Meeting Minutes for Ma 27 2015 Commissioner Byers made a motion to approve the meeting minutes of May 27, 2015. The motion was seconded. The motion carried unanimously. Public Hearing regarding Ci Council's Remand of Mission Uses & Definition TX"T"#001-15 Peters provided a brief update on the status of the remand. Audience member Gary Rufener discussed the success of North 1St Street previous to the Union Gospel Mission and the decrease in sales and property values resulting from the mission's move into that location. He shared that he believes missions should be a Class 3 use and go through a Type 3 review process. Esther Huey, another audience member and long-time resident of Yakima, confirmed that other problems existed on North 1St Street prior to the mission locating there. She added that the mission should not take full responsibility for current problems there. Audience member Bill Brado addressed and reminded the commission of their duties as the Planning Commission. Brado then listed some of the Class 3 uses in Title 15 of the Municipal Code to support his stance that missions should be a Class 3 use and go through a Type 3 review. -1- Rick Phillips, Director of the Union Gospel Mission, discussed past constructions relating to the mission that were done under a Type 2 review. Phillips suggested replacing "shall be subject to a Type (3) Review' with "may be subject to a Type (3) Review" in the staff report definition of "mission" where it refers to new mission uses in the GC, CBD, and M-1 zoning districts. James Carmody, attorney for the Union Gospel Mission, agreed with Phillips' statement regarding changing "shall" to "may" in the abovementioned section of the definition of "mission," as not all projects will be deserving of a Type 3 review. Carmody expressed his support of the concept of the development agreement. He took time to defend staff and their efforts through this process to come to a solution on mission issues. He also made a remark in reference to the Federal Fair Housing Act. Commissioner Anderson asked Carmody how a minor change would be determined, referring to a comment Carmody made regarding keeping minor changes at a Type 2 level of review. Carmody answered that a minor change would be based off the "material" change, so that nonmaterial expansions and changes or projects that would not increase the intensity of the usage would be considered "minor changes." Audience member Maud Scott expressed her frustrations with the lack of focus on the zoning laws in the testimony presented at the hearing examiner public hearing on this issue. She suggested utilizing a task force to solve neighborhood problems. Commissioner Anderson commented that he wants the Commission to move forward with adopting the recommendations to City Council as written. Commissioner Byers referred back to Maud Scott's comment about having a task force, saying that a task force in neighborhoods could help bring about a positive change. Byers also expressed that she wants to see the recommendations move forward. Commissioner Rose commented on the fact that most of the testimony at today's hearing was emotional rather than substantive. He agreed with Esther Huey's assessment that the problems of North 1St Street are not all directly caused by the Union Gospel Mission. He also agreed with Maud Scott's judgment that it is a neighborhood problem. Rose defended staff and their efforts to come to a solution on the matters related to missions and the homeless. He added that businesses need to do their job to maintain their properties and their business and then help the Union Gospel Mission to do their job as a part of a community effort. Lastly, he included that the language in the definition of "mission" that says "shall" could possibly need to be changed to "may." He concurred with Commissioner Byers and Commissioner Anderson, saying that he would like to see the recommendations move forward. Commissioner Mendez agreed the recommendations should move forward but that the language of the definition of "mission" that says "shall," should be further examined and revisited. Commissioner Byers asserted that she would like the term "minor changes", as James Carmody used, to be more clearly defined. Senior Assistant City Attorney Mark Kunkler expanded on the "shall" and "may" language existing in the Municipal Code and described how the code addresses -2- modifications to existing uses. Jeff Peters went over the criteria that must be met for a modification. Chairman Fonfara commented that he understands the concerns of the public on this issue but believes the proposed ordinance creates opportunity for public input and that the development agreement addresses many of the issues heard regarding the proposal. Commissioner Anderson made a motion to recommend approval of the text amendment to the Yakima Municipal Code (YMC) Title 15, Urban Area Zoning Ordinance. The motion was seconded. The motion carried unanimously. Other Business Jeff Peters announced that Congdon Orchards will be attending the Planning Commission public hearing for the Airport Safety Overlay on July 8th. He added that the staff may ask the commission to continue the hearing to allow for modifications to be made to the ordinance. Commissioner Rose brought up a concern that Commissioner Cook expressed at a previous meeting regarding the jurisdiction of Union Gap appearing in the overly on the map. Peters addressed this concern, adding that staff has reached out to Union Gap to inform them of the proposed changes to the Airport Safety Overlay. Commissioner Rose explained that the map may make it appear to some like Yakima is encroaching on the authority of Union Gap. Peters provided examples of other boundaries such as urban growth boundaries that extend beyond the jurisdiction of the city of Yakima. Commissioner Byers suggested inviting Yakima County and Union Gap planning officials to the hearing. Mark Kunkler agreed with this idea and Commissioner Mendez did as well, adding that these parties have shown interest in this matter. Additional discussion ensued regarding the topic of the Airport Safety Overlay. Adjourn A motion to adjourn to July 8, 2015 was passed with unanimous vote. This meeting adjourned at 5:08 p.m. / _ 1 _ �a J Chairman Dave Fonfara Date This meeting was filmed by YPAC. Minutes for this meeting submitted by: Lisa Maxey, Department Assistant II -3-