Minutes_Zoning Advisory Commission 8 5 20 Copyrighted
August 17, 2020
City of Dubuque Consent Items # 1.
City Council Meeting
ITEM TITLE: Minutes and Reports Submitted
SUMMARY: City Council proceedings of 8/3, 8/6; Community DevelopmentAdvisory
Commission of 7/15; Historic Preservation Commission Council Update
No. 200 of 7/23; Zoning Advisory Commission of 8/5. Proof of
publication for City Council proceedings of 7/6, 7/8, 7/13, 7/20, 7/23;
Proof of publication for List of Claims and Summary of Revenues for
Month Ending 6/30.
SUGGESTED Suggested Disposition: Receive and File
DISPOSITION:
ATTACHMENTS:
Description Type
City Council Proceedings of 8/3/20 Supporting Documentation
City Council Proceedings of 8/6/20 Supporting Documentation
Community Development Advisory Commission Minutes Supporting Documentation
of 7/15/20
Historic Preservation Commission Minutes of 7/16/20 Supporting Documentation
Library Board of Trustees Council Update#200 of Supporting Documentation
7/23/20
Zoning Advisory Commission Minutes of 8/5/20 Supporting Documentation
Proof of Pubilcation for City Council Proceedings of Supporting Documentation
7/6/20
Proof of Pubilcation for City Council Proceedings of Supporting Documentation
7/8/23
Proof of Pubilcation for City Council Proceedings of Supporting Documentation
7/13/20
Proof of Pubilcation for City Council Proceedings of Supporting Documentation
7/20/20
Proof of Pubilcation for City Council Proceedings of Supporting Documentation
7/23/20
Proof of Publication for List of Claims and Summary of Supporting Documentation
Revenues for Month Ending 6/30/20
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MINUTES
ZONING ADVISORY COMMISSION
REGULAR SESSION
6:00 p.m.
Wednesday, August 5, 2020
Virtual Meeting
The Zoning Advisory Commission met at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 5. Due to
the COVID-19 pandemic and mandates for social distancing, this meeting was
conducted virtually.
Commissioners Present: Chairperson Martha Christ; Commission Members Steve
Baumhover, Rebecca Kemp, Brittany Loeffelholz, Matthew Mulligan, Pat Norton and
Rich Russell
Commissioners Excused: None
Commissioners Unexcused: None
Staff Members Present: Wally Wernimont, Guy Hemenway, Travis Schrobilgen and
Jason Duba
CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order by Chairperson Christ at 6:00 p.m.
MINUTES: Motion by Baumhover, seconded by Norton, to approve the minutes of the
July 1, 2020 meeting. Motion carried by the following vote: Aye — Baumhover, Kemp,
Loeffelholz, Mulligan, Norton, Russell and Christ; Nay — none.
ACTION ITEMS/FINAL PLAT: Application of James and Mary Gansen to approve
Final Plat property of JQ Acres No. 3.
Commissioner Norton recused himself, noting that his company, Buesing & Associates,
surveyed the subject property.
Tina Flanagan spoke regarding her request stating that she and her family intend to
purchase the 10 acres of property that is being split from JQ Acres No. 3, as requested
in the Plat of Survey. She said they intend to build their home on part of the property
and leave the remainder to be farmed as it is now.
Staff Member Hemenway detailed the staff report. He said that the submitted Plat of
Survey for JQ Acres No.3 splits off the eastern 10 acres of a 47-acre lot to provide a
residential building site. He said that Lot 1 is the 10-acre property and Lot 2 retains 37
acres of the original lot. He noted that neither lot has frontage on a private or public
street but are accessed from an easement across City property from Metropolitan
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August 5, 2020 Page 2
Heights. He said that access to Lot 1 continues across an easement along the south
side of Lot 2. He recommended approval as submitted subject to waiving the lot
frontage requirement for Lot 1 and Lot 2.
Motion by Mulligan, seconded by Russel, to approve the Final Plat of JQ Acres No. 3
subject to waiving the lot frontage requirement for Lot 1 and Lot 2. Motion carried by the
following vote: Aye — Baumhover, Kemp, Loeffelholz, Mulligan, Russell and Christ; Nay
— none; Abstain — Norton.
ACTION ITEMS/WAIVER: Application of David TeBrake, Miller Architects & Builders to
waive specific requirements of Chapter 13: Site Design Standards for property located
at 3860 Asbury Road.
Applicant David TeBrake, Miller Architects & Builders, said that Hoffman, Schneider,
and Kitchen Funeral Home is proposing to expand their building by 38%. He noted that
as this exceeds the 25% expansion threshold, design standards apply. He said they are
requesting waivers from three design standards:
1. Side buffer requirements
a. To the east there is not enough room on their property and there is a
steep uphill to the neighboring property
b. To the north there is also a significant grade
c. To the west there is Grace Baptist Church whose parking lot is accessed
through the funeral home parking lot, and there is an existing buffer
between the two
2. Screening requirements — similar issues as with side buffers
3. Landscaping end caps and internal islands requirements — during a funeral home
visitation most stalls are used. Additionally, funeral home staff are lining up
vehicles for procession to the cemetery, and interior islands would make that
challenging. There is already a north-south oriented island on the east side.
Mr. TeBrake said that applying these standards would cause the loss of numerous
parking stalls, bringing the lot below the minimum number required, thereby
necessitating a parking variance. He noted that there is nowhere else nearby to park, as
no parking is allowed along Asbury Road.
Staff Member Schrobilgen detailed the staff report. He outlined the Unified Development
Code design standards stating that they are applied to new developments as well as
existing developments that involve the expansion of 25% or more of the building area.
He said that the applicant is specifically asking that the City waive the standards
outlined in Sections 13-3.5D, 13-4.6B, and 13-4.8A regarding parking lot layout, parking
lot landscaping, and screening requirements. He noted that Miller Architecture plans to
maintain at least 83 parking spaces to avoid applying for a parking variance and the
entire proposed parking area will cover existing impermeable area. He further stated
that the site is limited in that no parking is permitted along Asbury Road leaving few
options for any spillover traffic that might occur.
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August 5, 2020 Page 3
Staff member Schrobilgen explained the three design standards regarding parking lot
layout, parking lot landscaping and site screening. He noted what the applicant is
asking to waive and what Miller Architecture is planning to do:
• Parking lot layout — Miller Architecture plans to leave the lot as-is and not install
intermediate landscape islands and would mark endcaps with paint striping.
• Parking lot landscaping — Miller Architecture is asking to waive this standard
along the east and west sides of the parking lot.
• Screening — Miller Architecture is asking to waive this standard, though existing
conditions partially meet the standards. There are deciduous trees along the east
property line for part of the length of the parking lot. Additionally, the large open
green space with about twenty scattered trees located in the north 1/3 of the
property provides partial screening of the property from the north, east and west.
Commissioner Mulligan inquired about the number of parking stalls and the difference
between the designs shown in Exhibit A and Exhibit B. Staff member Schrobilgen
explained that Exhibit B showed the already approved building expansion but that the
applicant will be seeking another conditional use permit to allow an enlarged expansion
which is depicted in Exhibit A. He said that the request is the same for both concepts
and that approval of the waivers would apply to whichever expansion was approved.
Commissioner Baumhover said that he had no issues with the waiver request.
Motion by Norton, seconded by Kemp, to approve waiving specific requirements of
Chapter 13: Site Design Sections 13-3.5D, 13-4.6B, and 13-4.8A as submitted. Motion
carried by the following vote: Aye — Baumhover, Kemp, Loeffelholz, Mulligan, Norton,
Russell and Christ; Nay— none; Abstain — none.
ACTION ITEMS/WAIVER: Application of AI Urbain, Urbain Construction Management,
LLC. to waive specific requirements of Chapter 13: Site Design Standards for property
located at 3187 University Avenue.
Commissioner Norton recused himself, as he served as the presenter for Buesing &
Associates on behalf of the applicant. He said that the applicant was seeking approval
to waive the site design standards for:
1. Side yard buffers — On the west side, the pavement abuts the car wash
pavement, and they propose to keep it as or they would lose parking stalls
2. Internal parking islands — These would impede flow of traffic for semis and
deliveries
3. Landscaping — There is no room on either the west or east side, the north is
already wooded, and the front/south will have some landscaping
Staff Member Hemenway detailed the staff report. He noted that the applicant is
specifically asking to waive the standards established in Chapter 13-3.5 and 13-4.6 that
require a 7-foot-wide landscape buffer be provided alongside property lines, a 10-foot-
wide landscape buffer be provided along front property lines and that parking bays in
excess of 11 spaces provide landscaping at each end of the bay.
Minutes — Zoning Advisory Commission Minutes
August 5, 2020 Page 4
Staff member Hemenway explained that since the internal bays are less than 11 stalls,
no internal island are required, and a waiver is not necessary for that. He said that
imposing the 7-foot side yard buffer would lead to a 17-stall loss. He said that to
accommodate the 10-foot front yard buffer, the first space on either side of the lot
entrance could be landscaped. He said that this would eliminate problematic spaces
where cars back into the drive entrance. He said that it is also possible to convert the far
northeast corner space to landscaping, as it may also be problematic for parking. He
said that based on parking formulas there is a surplus of 10 stalls.
Commissioner Mulligan asked Mr. Norton's response to Hemenway's proposals. Mr.
Norton said that staff's recommendations are doable. He said that landscaping two
stalls in the front would be okay, but the northeast corner stall could be valuable as a
staff stall.
Mulligan asked to clarify which requirements still need to be waived now. Staff member
Hemenway explained that by removing the two front stalls the 10-foot buffer
requirement would be met, the east buffer is not required as it is proposed to become a
drive aisle, so only the west side buffer would need to be waived.
Motion by Mulligan, seconded by Russel, to approve waiving the Chapter13: Site
Design Standard requirement that a 7-foot-wide landscape buffer be provided along the
side property lines. Motion carried by the following vote: Aye — Baumhover, Kemp,
Loeffelholz, Mulligan, Russell and Christ; Nay — none; Abstain — Norton.
ACTION ITEMS/WAIVER: Application of Mike Fenton, Landfill Group, LLC. to waive
specific requirements of Chapter 13: Site Design Standards for property located at 101
Airborne Road.
Commissioner Norton recused himself, as he was the design engineer.
Mike Fenton, Landfill Group, LLC, described the project. He said that the site would be
collocated at landfill and that its purpose is to capture landfill gas and convert it into
usable natural gas. He said they are seeking to waive requirements for paved surface,
and they plan to use the landfill's existing gravel roads which can support large trucks
and equipment. He noted that these facilities are also adequate for fire trucks, and they
have a letter from Fire Marshal Mark Burkle to that effect. He said that they also seek to
waive landscape requirements as they are at the landfill, out of sight, and not a
frequently visited site.
Staff Member Schrobilgen detailed the staff report. He explained the location and
function of the proposed facility and the standards the applicant was seeking to waive.
He said that the applicant proposes to continue the crushed rock road up to and
throughout the biogas station facility. He said that an accessible parking stall and
walkway will be constructed at the site. He said that most site design standards do not
account for the unique circumstances of all development, noting that the proposed
biogas recovery station will be located in the middle of the City's landfill, will not be
Minutes — Zoning Advisory Commission Minutes
August 5, 2020 Page 5
close to any other commercial or residential development and will be very small relative
to the 200-acre facility, diminishing the need for traditional standards.
Commissioner Mulligan asked how to ensure that the road is adequately constructed for
fire truck access. Staff member Hemenway stated that the fire department will review
the road and ensure it is designed sufficiently. Mr. Norton stated that it would be built
with a 12-inch stone base and that stormwater considerations would also be factored
into its design. He said that the roadway will be built to accommodate both maintenance
vehicles and fire trucks. He said that landfill employees and maintenance workers would
notice any issues with the road.
Motion by Mulligan, seconded by Loeffelholz, to approve waiving the specific
requirements of Chapter 13: Site Design Standards regarding parking lot layout, site
landscaping, and parking lot landscaping as submitted. Motion carried by the following
vote: Aye — Baumhover, Mulligan, Russell, Kemp, Loeffelholz and Christ; Nay — none;
Abstain — Norton.
ITEMS FROM PUBLIC: None
ITEMS FROM COMMISSION: None
ITEMS FROM STAFF: None
ADJOURNMENT: Motion by Kemp, seconded by Baumhover to adjourn the August 5,
2020 Commission meeting. Motion carried by the following vote: Aye — Norton,
Baumhover, Mulligan, Russell, Kemp, Loeffelholz and Christ; Nay — none.
The meeting adjourned at 6:50 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Wally Wernimont, Planning Services Manager Adopted