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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/05/15U1 0 0 4 21 City of' heatf-IWIge PLANNING COMMISSION Minutes of Meeting March 5, 2015 CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by Vice Chair OHM at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers of the Municipal Building, 7500 West 291h Avenue, Wheat Ridge, Colorado, ROLL CALL OF MEMBERS Commission Members Present: Commission Members Absent Staff Members Present - PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Emery Dorsey Donna Kimsey Scott Ohm Steve Timms Amanda Weaver Alan Bucknam, Lauren Mikulak, Senior Planner Jim Lorentz, Patrol Bureau Division Chief Kim Waggoner, Recording Secretary APPROVE ORDER OF THE AGENDA It was moved by Commissioner TIMMS and seconded by Commissioner KIMSEY to approve the order of the agenda. Motion carried 5-0. APPROVAL OF MINUTES — January 15, 2015 It was moved by Commissioner DORSEY and seconded by Commissioner WEAVER to approve the minutes of January .15, 2015, as written. PUBLIC FORUM (This is the time for any person to speak on any subject not appearing on the agenda.) Planning Commission Minutes March 5, 2015 No one wished to speak at this time, 7. PUBLIC HEARING A. Case No. ZOA-15-01: Ms. Mikulak presented the case. There was no digital presentation. She stated the purpose of the hearing was to review a simple change in Chapter 26 related to the sunset of the Animal Welfare and Control Commission (AWCC). It was a policy decision made by City Council and there is a brief history in the staff memo. The role of the AWCC has changed since its inception in the 1970's. After a year of discussions and work between City Council, the City Attorney's office, the Police Department, the AWCC and a consultant, it was decided that dissolving the commission is the appropriate decision. Planning Commission and Community Development was not involved in the decision. However, the sunset does affect Chapter 26, so the amendment is to be reviewed by Planning Commission. The AWCC was referenced in regards to the keeping of large animals. The reference is proposed to be changed to The Chief of Police and the Community Services Team Supervisor who are responsible for code enforcement and animal control. Staff recommends approval of the code change. She said City Council will review the ordinance later this month, Vice Chair OHM opened the public hearing. Vice Chair closed the public hearing as there was no one in the audience to speak. It was moved by Commissioner TIMMS and seconded by Commissioner DORSEY to recommend approval of the proposed ordinance providing for the sunset of the Animal Welfare and Control Commission. Commissioner WEAVER expressed her concern as she is a large animal owner. She stated she has worked with code enforcement and finds their animal expertise to be very good but their knowledge is not agriculturally based. The commission has been a group of people with pets and farm animal owners. She thinks the citizen involvement piece is essential as the city is openly encouraging urban agriculture. She wanted to ensure that CSOs were trained to handle different types of animal situations. Division Chief Lorentz confirmed the CSOs are trained to handle different types of animal situations and the members of the AWCC will still be available for assistance. Commissioner WEAVER expressed appreciation for how the AWCC handled the dwarf goat issue by supporting a code amendment. Her comments indicated that she may be disagreeing with the decision to sunset the board, Ms. Mikulak reminded the commission that it was Council's policy decision and the Planning Commission does not have jurisdiction to discuss the merits of the sunset separately from how it affects Chapter 26. Planning Commission, Minutes -2— March 5, 2015 Vice Chair OHM called for a vote. Motion approved 5-0. 8. OTHER ITEMS A. Election of Officers: I. Commissioner BUCKNAM was voted Chair. 2. Commissioner OHM was voted Vice Chair. B. 12015 Code Amendments: Ms. Mikulak informed the Commission that the following items were proposed to City Council for code amendments in 2015. • Accessory dwelling units • Signage niodemization • Exterior lighting standards • Cell facilities • Microbreweries She stated City Council discussed the difficulty to scrape and rebuild single family homes in East Wheat Ridge due to setbacks and narrow lots. Council raised the question of whether or not the City should encourage or facilitate scrapes. Commissioner OHM asked if there was any discussion of micro units, Ms. Mikulak replied micro units could be considered as part of the accessory dwelling unit code amendment. C. ULI Presentation Ms. Mikulak summarized an event that occurred in mid-February. Ms. Mikulak stated Urban Land Institute (ULI) is a nationwide non-profit organization whose membership includes real estate developers, brokers, and designers. The Colorado chapter offers a Technical Advisory Panel (TAP) program for the purpose of helping communities focus on a land use issue or problem. They approached the City and provided a TAP panel focused on the Ward Road station area. The subarea plan allows for mixed land uses but it remains relatively vague in terms of specific land use recorrimendations. Over a day and a half, the panel toured the property, interviewed property owners, brokers, housing experts and major employers in the area. Their recommendation is to focus on an employment based TOD area that capitalizes on the creative industrial uses. The TAP panel recommendations are not binding on the City, but they will be Planning Commission Minutes -3— March 5, 2015 producing a written report that will be shared with City Council. It will be determined at that time if the subarea plan requires any modifications. Commissioner OHM thanked staff for the invitation and stated be did attend. Commissioner DORSEY stated it is a challenging property to develop. Commissioner OHM stated some of the most interesting buildings in Denver are those that have been repurposed for residential or commercial uses. D. The meeting scheduled for March 19 will be canceled. Commissioner OHM asked if the City is contiguous with the residential development proposed at the Applewood Golf Course in unincorporated Jefferson County. Ms, Mikulak stated that is immediately west of our boundary and out of the city limits. 9. ADJOURNMENT It was moved by Commissioner WEAVER and seconded by Commissioner TIMMS to adJourn the meetingat7:28 p.m. Motion carried 5-0. gR Ki aggon on r, r,R ink Secretary Planning Commission Minutes -4— March 5, 2015