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Minutes Zoning Advisory Commission 9 3 08THE CITY OF Dubuque Dus E ~' ~ a I I. Masterpiece on the Mississippi zar~ MINUTES ZONING ADVISORY COMMISSION REGULAR SESSION Wednesday, September 3, 2008 6:30 p.m. City Council Chamber, Historic Federal Building 350 W. 6th Street, Dubuque, Iowa PRESENT: Chairperson Jeff Stiles; Commissioners Stephen Hardie, Patrick Norton, Charles Miller and Tom Henschel; Staff Members Guy Hemenway and Kyle Kritz. ABSENT: Commissioners Martha Christ and Ron Smith. AFFIDAVIT OF COMPLIANCE: Staff presented an Affidavit of Compliance verifying that the meeting was being held in compliance with the Iowa Open Meetings Law. CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order at 6:30 p.m. MINUTES: The minutes of the August 6, 2008 meeting were approved unanimously as submitted. PUBLIC HEARINGIAMEND PUD: Application of DuTrac Community Credit Union (tabled from the August 6, 2008 meeting) to amend the PUD Planned Unit Development District to change vegetative screen to vinyl fencing for property located at 3465 Asbury Road. Staff Member Kritz read a letter submitted by Tom Anderson of DuTrac Community Credit Union asking to withdraw the request to amend the PUD. Motion by Hardie, seconded by Miller, to concur with the applicant's withdrawal. Motion was approved by the following vote: Aye -Hardie, Norton, Miller, Henschel and Stiles; Nay - None. PUBLIC HEARINGIAMEND PUD: Application of Jim Collins, Loras College (tabled from the August 6, 2008 meeting) to amend the Loras College ID Institutional District to allow a 32-unit (128-bed) Oaks Housing Project for property located south of Byrne Oaks housing complex and north of Rohlman Hall. John McDermott, representing Loras College, discussed the Oaks Housing Project. He said that the Commission appeared to be comfortable with the physical layout of the site; Minutes -Zoning Advisory Commission September 3, 2008 Page 2 however, they had questions with the location of available parking. He said that Loras has met the campus-wide comprehensive parking requirement. He discussed various parking scenarios considered by Loras College, which included creating additional compact spaces, expanding existing parking lots, or adding 103 spaces where the tennis courts are currently located. He discussed access to campus facilities, noting that the primary entrance for the Graber Center and San Jose Pool would be shifted and that this would make the 103 parking spaces ideally located for patrons of the facility. He discussed the parking survey undertaken outlining the available parking on campus lots. Commissioner Hardie questioned the color coded parking scheme submitted by the applicant. Rick Dickinson, Greater Dubuque Development Corporation, 300 Main Street, spoke in support of the request. He said that higher education is an asset for the community. Gary Schlosser, 1589 Cornell Street, spoke in opposition to the request, noting concerns with demand for parking in the neighborhood. He said that creation of a residential parking permit district has worked for his neighborhood; however, the proposed housing project will push additional traffic into the adjacent neighborhoods. He said that Loras should consider creating a ramp or additional surface parking where it is needed. Mr. McDermott stated that Loras College has received no complaints regarding parking thus far for previous developments on campus. He said that Loras College, at this juncture, could not afford to construct a parking ramp. He said Loras College values the green landscaped areas on campus, and does not want to eliminate them or undertake wholesale demolition of adjacent residences to create additional surface parking. Staff Member Kritz outlined the staff report. He said he has conducted a brief survey of parking in a number of the lots within the Loras College campus. He discussed the parking lots surveyed, the times the surveys were conducted, and the number of spaces available, noting that most lots had some available parking throughout the day. He noted that cars are currently parking on both sides of Kirkwood Street. He said there were approximately 20 cars on the street, about half of which have out-of-town plates. He speculated some of the vehicles on the street may belong to students. He noted that parking is a shared public resource, and that there is a generally a balance between available on-street parking and provision of green space and impermeable area. Chairperson Stiles said that he feels Loras College has provided an adequate amount of conveniently located parking. Commissioner Miller said that, in his experience, there is usually adequate parking along Kirkwood Street. He said that Loras College has done a good job of providing parking options for students and patrons of the college facilities. Minutes -Zoning Advisory Commission September 3, 2008 Page 3 Commissioner Hardie said that re-orientating the entrance for the Graber/San Jose Pool facility will help encourage the use the parking proposed for the tennis courts area. Commissioner Henschel agreed, and said he was satisfied Loras College had provided adequate parking. Staff Member Kritz noted that the Commission could condition approval of the rezoning by requiring that the 103 space parking lot be constructed prior to completion of the new housing project. Motion by Hardie, seconded by Miller, to approve the amendment to Loras College's ID District to allow the 32-unit Oaks Housing Project with the condition that a 103-space parking lot be constructed at the corner of Cox and 17th Street that will be available upon completion of the proposed housing project. Motion was approved by the following vote: Aye -Hardie, Norton, Miller, Henschel and Stiles; Nay -None. PUBLIC HEARINGIAMEND PUD: Application of City of Dubuque/Dubuque Initiatives to amend the Planned Unit Development (PUD) for the Dubuque Industrial Center to change designation of property from open space to commercial for property located at Chavenelle Road and the Northwest Arterial (Dubuque Industrial Center). Economic Development Director David Heiar, representing the City of Dubuque, introduced Aaron DeJong, Assistant Economic Development Director, Dan Brown, Fire Chief, and Julie Nebel, IIW Engineering. He stated that the City's proposal to rezone the property in the Dubuque Industrial Center West is different than the proposal that was formerly submitted. He said the area proposed is somewhat smaller, and has a designated use. Fire Chief Dan Brown noted that a study had been provided by a consulting firm that demonstrated a need for a west side fire station. He said that placing a fire station in the proposed location would better serve the west side and the newly annexed areas. Julie Nebel, IIW Engineers & Surveyors, P.C., discussed the need for IDOT approval for access to the Northwest Arterial. She discussed traffic patterns and emergency access for the subject area. She noted that a portion of the wetlands that would be removed would be replaced in the North Siegert Farm industrial site. Mr. Heiar noted that there would be three building pads, one of which. would be used for the fire station. He stated that there has been much change in the area since the industrial park was developed, which he said included industrial and commercial growth along the Northwest Arterial and an increase in traffic. He said that the development would be sustainable, because it represents in-fill development that will reduce sprawl. He said that the embankment on Lot 1 north of Chavenelle Road will be stabilized in the process of development. He said that the City would remove a portion of the Westmark hiking trail and replace it through the Industrial Park. He said it is not unusual for current development Minutes -Zoning Advisory Commission September 3, 2008 Page 4 to be a mix of commercial, office and industrial uses in the same PUD. He said development of this property will not inhibit the overall plan drafted for the City's bike/hike trails. He said that Dubuque Initiatives offered to donate the land for the fire station. In response to a question from the Commission, he noted that a retaining wall may be needed in the future to stabilize the embankment of Lot 1. He said it is hard to determine traffic patterns and counts that are likely to be generated by the proposed commercial development. Davin Curtis, attorney representing Westmark Development, 4050 Westmark Drive, said that Westmark objects to Lot 1 north of Chavenelle Road being rezoned or developed for commercial purposes. He said that the proposal for Lot 1 is exactly as was presented to the Zoning Advisory Commission two years ago. He said that with the Horsfield rezoning, open space has been eliminated and the overall open space for the Dubuque Industrial Center has been reduced. He outlined the reasons that the Commission had denied the first request. He said that the City is creating additional commercial land that will generate unfair competition with the adjacent private property owners. He said that, although no written agreements remained, they are not necessary to demonstrate that Westmark and the City had an understanding regarding preservation of the park-like environment. He read the PUD requirements. He said that trees and animal habitat would be destroyed if the property were to be developed. He recommended that the Commission deny the request. David Heiar said that the overall, the request is different, but the request for Lot 1 is not. He said that approximately 20% of the overall industrial park area will remain green space, and that each developed lot will also have additional green space. He said that the property has always belonged to Dubuque Initiatives. He said that the Westmark hiking trail is privately owned and that the trail extension in the future for the City will be open to the public. Staff Member Kritz noted a letter submitted by Walter McFadden regarding the rezoning request. He discussed the proposed amendment to the PUD, distributing aerial photos and discussing flood plain maps, development parcels, and the proposed hike/bike system. He said that the other existing industrial parks in the City of Dubuque already permit a limited amount of commercial development. He said that land use patterns that encourage mixed use development and less stringent separation of land use have evolved over the last couple of decades. He recommended that the Commission review the standards outlined in Section 3.5(F) of the Zoning Ordinance for review of planned unit developments Dave Bauer, 233 Shady Oaks, said that he is the President of Westmark. He said that Lot 1 had always been intended to provide a buffer between Westmark's property and the industrial park. He said that the walking path, a portion of which is located on Lot 1, had been created through a mutual agreement between the City and Westmark. Minutes -Zoning Advisory Commission September 3, 2008 Page 5 Commissioner Henschel asked if the southern-most parcel could be further subdivided to create additional building lots, and if so, if this could be restricted. Commissioners and staff discussed the parcel configuration and potential traffic conflicts. Commissioner Hardie said that he was not comfortable with rezoning Lot 1, but that he was amenable to rezoning the other parcel. He said that he felt C-3 type commercial uses were appropriate along a major arterial with no adjacent residential development. He said he was not concerned with the right-in/right-out and emergency access across the Northwest Arterial. He said the existing right-in/right-out access to the north appears to be working. Commissioner Norton expressed concerns with locating the fire station over the wetland. He said that the City should be compelled to mitigate the non-jurisdictional wetlands along with the jurisdictional wetlands. He expressed concerns with the potential to create acut- thru from Chavenelle Road to the Northwest Arterial. Commissioner Henschel expressed concerns with the development of Lot 1 and stated he supported limiting access onto Chavenelle Road. Chairperson Stiles. and Commissioner Hardie agreed thatthe right-in/right-out may improve the traffic congestion at the Chavenelle Road and Northwest Arterial intersection. Chairperson Stiles said that he is comfortable that the wetlands will be mitigated, but that commercial development of Lot 1 may not be appropriate. Commissioner Miller said that the location of Westmark's trail on Lot 1 indicates that there had been some discussion and agreement between the City and Westmark regarding the subject lot. He said that he does not have concerns with development of the second lot for the fire station because of fire safety needs on the west side, and because the wetlands will be mitigated. Motion by Henschel, seconded by Norton, to approve the amendment to the Dubuque Industrial Center West with the condition that Lot 1 not be included, and that uses 53, 56, and 64 be eliminated from the listed of permitted uses in the C-3 District. Motion was approved by the following vote: Aye -Hardie, Norton, Miller, Henschel and Stiles; Nay - None. PUBLIC HEARINGITEXT AMENDMENT: Application of City of Dubuque to amend Section 2.1 and Section 3-5.7 of the City of Dubuque Zoning Ordinance to establish a Rural Residential Overlay District. Staff Member Kritz outlined the request for the creation of the Rural Residential Overlay District. He discussed annexation history for the City's west side. He discussed the rationale for creation for the RROD, noting that the proposed district will permit agricultural uses on newly annexed property but permit development of all or a portion of the property for single-family residential development once a final plat is approved by the City Council. Minutes -Zoning Advisory Commission September 3, 2008 Page 6 He said agricultural uses would include such things as seasonal burning and hunting. He discussed the Comprehensive Plan goals relating to the request. He recommended the Commission approve the City's request to establish an RROD. Commissioner Miller asked if an RROD could be applied to existing City property or was only available for annexed areas. Staff Member Kritz said that this district is being proposed for annexed areas. Commissioners discussed the request and felt it was appropriate. Motion by Miller, seconded by Hardie, to approve the creation of a Rural Residential Overlay District. Motion was approved by the following vote: Aye -Hardie, Norton, Miller, Henschel and Stiles; Nay -None. ITEMS FROM PUBLIC: None. ITEMS FROM COMMISSION: None. ITEMS FROM STAFF: 2008 Comprehensive Plan -Citizens Guide: Staff Member Kritz noted that the Commissioners had received the 2008 Comprehensive Plan Citizens Guide in their agenda packet. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting adjourned at 8:15 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Kyle L. Kritz, Associate Planner Adopted F:\USERS\Kmunson\WP\Boards-Commissions\ZAC\Minutes\ZAC Minutes 2008\ZAC Min 09_03_08.doc