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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12/05/2002 CITY OF WHEAT RIDGE PLANNING COMMISSION Minutes of Meeting DecemberS, 2002 . ORIGINAL 1. CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER The regular meeting of the Wheat Ridge Planning Commission was called to order by Chair WEISZ at 7:00 p.m., December 5, 2002, in the City Council Chambers of the Municipal Building, 7500 West 29th Avenue, Wheat Ridge, Colorado. 2. ROLL CALL Commission Members Present: Paulette Cooper John McMillin Marian McNamee Nancy Snow Paula Weisz Kevin Witt Commission Members Absent: Phil Plummer (excused) Staff Members Present: Alan White, Planning Director Ann Lazzeri, Recording Secretary 3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Following is the official set of Planning Commission minutes for the public hearing of December 5, 2002. A set of these minutes is retained both in the office of the City Clerk and in the Department of Planning and Development of the City of Wheat Ridge. 4. APPROVE ORDER OF AGENDA It was moved by Commissioner SNOW and seconded by Commissioner COOPER to approve the order of the agenda. The motion passed 6-0. 5. APPROVE MINUTES - November 7, 2002 and November 21, 2002 It was moved by Commissioner SNOW and seconded by Commissioner McNAMEE to approve the minutes of November 7, 2002. The motion passed 6-0. It was moved by Commissioner COOPER and seconded by Commissioner McNAMEE to approve the minutes of November 21, 2002. The motion passed 6-0. 6. PUBLIC FORUM There were none present to address the Commission during this portion of the meeting. Planning Commission December 5, 2002 Page 1 7; PUBLIC HEARING A. Case No. ZOA-02-04 (continued from November 7, 2002) An ordinance amending Section 26-261 of the Wheat Ridge Code of Laws pertaining to parking in residential areas. This case was presented by Alan White. He reviewed the staff report which set forth two modifications made by Council on November 21, 2002: (1) clarifying that non-operative vehicles above the maximum number allowed (one) to be stored outside could not be stored in a carport or tent to be considered stored indoors, and (2) empowering the Board of Adjustment to hear requests for variances to the limitation of one non-operative vehicle allowed to be stored outside. This is the last opportunity for Planning Commission to make recommendations to City Council under the 60-day limit. Mr. White also suggested that the ordinance not contain a grandfather clause because of enforcement difficulty. Commissioner McMILLIN commented that staffs survey revealed that the proposed ordinance is much more strict than the surrounding communities in Jefferson County. The only exception would be Westminster which has more stringent regulations than the proposed ordinance. Chair WEISZ asked to hear from members of the public. Don MacDou~all 9815 West 37t Avenue Mr. MacDougall spoke in opposition to the ordinance. He stated that he felt a little resentful that a small number of people could change the way of life he has enjoyed in his present home since the 1960' s. He owns several recreational vehicles which are stored out of sight on his property. He has never received any complaints from his neighbors. In response to questions from Commissioner McMILLIN, he stated it would work well for him if setbacks, rather than the number ofRV's, were regulated. However, it might not work for everyone. He also stated he would go through a special use process, if absolutely necessary, to allow storage of additional RV's on his property, however, he has had RV's on his property since before the City was incorporated. He also pointed out that many motor home owners are out of the city for the winter. Since Mr. MacDougall is president of the Jefferson County Horse Council, Commissioner McMILLIN asked if he had any idea how many horse owners are in Wheat Ridge. Mr. MacDougall replied that he didn't have a definite number, but he did point out that there is a trend for more horse owners to board their horses. This still necessitates having horse trailers. Kevin Craig 10615 West 46th Avenue Mr. Craig spoke in opposition to the ordinance and in favor of a grandfather clause. He suggested that the number ofRV's not be limited as long as they are stored behind a six-foot fence. He expressed concern that passage ofthis ordinance would hurt a lot of urban people. Planning Commission December 5, 2002 Page 2 In response to a question from Commissioner McMILLIN, Mr. Craig stated that all of his vehicles are registered. Commissioner McMILLIN suggested that checking registrations may be a solution for the enforcement of a grandfather clause. Alan White agreed. Tom Prose 7295 West 28th Avenue Mr. Prose spoke in opposition to the ordinance. He stated that he and his son have been restoring automobiles as a hobby at the above residence for the past thirty-five years and he was in favor of a grandfather clause. He also stated that he took offense to collector cars being referred to as junk cars. He believed there should be no problem if cars are stored behind a privacy fence. He stated that adoption of this ordinance will hurt many residents of Wheat Ridge. He asked how a grandfather clause would work. Alan White explained that a grandfather clause could be written to cover the specific vehicles owned at the time or the number of vehicles owned at the time of the effective date of the ordinance. In response to questions from Commissioner McMILLIN, Alan White explained that the cost of a variance would be about three hundred dollars and special use permit would be approximately five hundred dollars. Denver Johnson 2948 Vivian Street Mr. Johnson spoke in opposition to the ordinance. He stated that, prior to his purchase of a motor home, he researched the city's ordinances and the model traffic code as they related to motor homes. He fonnd that the model traffic code allows two RV's. He purchased his motor home based upon that research. Beverly Agy 4625 Garland Ms. Agy stated she owns a small motor home which is parked on the side of her home. The configuration of her property would not allow her to park the motor home behind her home with a privacy fence. She stated they rarely park any vehicle on the street. She expressed frustration with laws governing motor homes when there are no regulations about the number of cars that can be parked on the street. Commissioner McNAMEE asked if Ms. Agy would be opposed to restricting the number of RV's that are in plain view with additional vehicles being stored behind privacy fences. Ms. Agy commented that there are many properties in Wheat Ridge that would not allow access to the back yard for RV storage. Tom Nielsen 10901 West 32nd Avenue Mr. Nielsen spoke in opposition to the ordinance. He stated he has lived on his four-acre lot for the past twenty-seven years. He collects cars which are stored in a six-vehicle garage. Those in running order are licensed and those in process of restoration are not licensed. These vehicles are not visible from the street. He also took exception to the definition of a non-operable vehicle including an inoperable headlight. Planning Commission December 5, 2002 Page 3 Jim Opp 3232 Vivian Drive Mr. Opp stated that he owns two recreational vehicles. He parks his 36' motor home on the side of his home and has received no complaints from his neighbor. He didn't want to see regulations about size and weight of vehicles. He stated that he could not erect a privacy fence on his property because he lives in a 100-year flood plain. However, he agreed with the compromise of allowing two RV's per property with any additional vehicles being stored behind a privacy fence. Jim Simons 2850 Teller Mr. Simons expressed opposition to the ordinance. He believed the only situation the ordinance should address is the number of vehicles visible from the street. He also asked that horse trailers not be included as recreational vehicles. He thanked the Planning Commission for taking the time to listen to citizens. Paul Dierschow 10510 West 47th Avenue He stated that he paid a premium to buy property in Wheat Ridge where he could pursue his hobby of restoring sports cars. He stated he owns approximately forty small cars over half of which are stored in a large garage on his half-acre lot. They are not visible from the street. He stated that he takes great pride in keeping his property presentable. He doesn't think automobile hobbyists should be criminalized. There was no one else present to address the ordinance. (Chair WEISZ declared a brief recess at 8:25 p.m. The meeting was resumed at 8:30 p.m.) Commissioner COOPER suggested that this ordinance be tabled until further discussions could be held at First Monday meetings in an attempt to find viable solutions. She did not feel comfortable with making a decision on the ordinance at this time. Commissioner McMILLIN expressed his opinion that the Commission had a duty to act upon the matter and give a recommendation to City Council. The Commission agreed to discuss possible amendments to the ordinance and reach a consensus on each point before making a formal motion. It was moved by Commissioner SNOW and seconded by Commissioner McNAMEE that Council Bill 36-2002 be approved with the following amendments: Section 1, third paragraph under definition of trailer: eliminate the words "and horse trailers" and add the words "but does not include horse trailers." Section 2, paragraph E: change the first sentence to l'Cad: "Horse trailers, pickup truck- mounted campers........." Planning Commission December 5, 2002 Page 4 Section 2, paragraph B: They may be parked outside in the front yard setback or any unfenced side yard adjacent to a public street. Parking is allowed only upon property occupied by the vehicle owner. Additional recreational vehicles or trailers may be parked elsewhere on the property provided that the maximum area used for parking or storage of recreational vehicles, trailers or inoperable vehicles does not exceed 40% of the remainder of the lot. Section 3, paragraph (k) second line: After the words "may be stored outside" add the following words: "in the front setback or unfenced side yard adjacent to a public street. Parking is allowed only upon property occupied by the vehicle owner." Section 2, paragraph B: Add the following words to the end of paragraph B: "Any property owner may apply to the Board of Adjustment for a variance from the location and number of recreational vehicles and trailers. Such application shall be made in the manner required by Sections 2-61 and 26-115 and shall be evaluated and decided upon by the Board of Adjustment in the manner required by Section 2-S3(d) and 26-115. Additional vehicles permitted by action of the Board shall be located, screened or covered as directed by the Board by conditions of approval of any such variance." Section 3, paragraph K, line 12: Change wording as follows: "Any property owner may apply to the Board of Adjustment for a variance from the location and number of non- operative vehicles imposed by............" Section 3, paragraph K: Add the following words to the section: Additional non- operative vehicles may be parked elsewhere on the property provided that the maximum area used for parking or storage of non-operative vehicles does not exceed 40% of the remainder ofthe lot. Section 2, paragraph F: Add the following words to the end ofthis paragraph: "Any owner of property attempting to improve the required parking surface to comply with this ordinance shall be given until September 30, 2003 to comply." Section 5 - Safety Clause should be renumbered to Section 6. Section 6 should be renumbered to Section 7: Add the following words: "Warning tickets will be the only type of enforcement for six months after the effective date of this ordinance. No fines will be assessed for six months after the effective date of this ordinance." Section 7, Suppression Clause should be renumbered to Section 8. The motion passed 6-0. Each portion of the above motion was discussed and approved by consensus earlier in the meeting prior to making the formal motion. Page 5 Planning Commission December 5, 2002 8. OLD BUSINESS . It was moved by Commissioner McMILLIN and seconded by Commissioner COOPER that a study be undertaken at a future date concerning regulation of over- sized campers, motor homes and recreation trailers. The motion failed by a vote of 3- 3 with Commissioners WITT, McNAMEE and SNOW voting no. . Commissioner McMILLIN inquired about the status of trees that were cut down at the Phillips 66 station. Alan White reported that the owner was contacted. The owner said the trees were removed because they were dead and has agreed to replace the trees. He also agreed to shield the lights on his property. 9. NEW BUSINESS Commissioner McNAMEE announced that she would not be present for the December 19th Planning Commission meeting. 10. COMMISSION REPORTS There were no Commission reports. 11. COMMITTEE AND DEPARTMENT REPORTS There were no committee or department reports. 12. ADJOURNMENT It was moved by Commissioner McNAMEE and seconded by Commissioner WITT to '~ ... m..ting.' I ~,oo p.m Paula Weisz, Chair Planning Commission December 5, 2002 Page 6