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Smart Planning Consortium UpdateMasterpiece on the Mississippi TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members FROM: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager SUBJECT: Smart Planning Consortium Update DATE: November 14, 2011 Dubuque bitil All- Amedcaciy 1 2007 Planning Services Manager Laura Carstens is transmitting an update on the October 5, October 26, and November 9, 2011 Smart Planning Consortium Meetings. Minutes of the October 5 and October 26, 2011 meetings, Housing Goals and Objectives, and Smart Planning Public Input Meeting schedule are also provided. After review, it is requested that the City Council provide any feedback to the Smart Planning Consortium. IA/114 4-31/114,- Michael C. Van Milligen MCVM:jh Attachment cc: Barry Lindahl, City Attorney Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager Laura Carstens, Planning Services Manager Masterpiece on the Mississippi TO: Michael Van Milligen, City Manager FROM: Laura Carstens, Planning Services Manager -,g( SUBJECT: Smart Planning Consortium Update DATE: November 10, 2011 Dubuque AY- America City 2007 INTRODUCTION This memo provides an update on the October 5, October 26, and November 9, 2011 Smart Planning Consortium meetings. Minutes of the October 5 and October 26, 2011 meetings, Housing Goals and Objectives, and Smart Planning Public Input Meeting schedule are enclosed. DISCUSSION The Consortium reviewed the enclosed Housing Goals and Objectives. Comments from the City's Housing and Community Development Department were incorporated in the enclosed revised draft of these goals. The Dubuque County Smart Planning Consortium, consisting of Dubuque County, Dubuque Soil and Water Conservation District, and the cities of Asbury, Cascade, Dubuque, Dyersville, Epworth, Farley and Peosta, is holding a series of public meetings to gather input on four draft chapters of the Dubuque County Smart Plan and on the Future Land Use Map. The first meeting was held on November 1 in Peosta. The City of Dubuque will host a public meeting on November 16 during the Commission's regular meeting. The next Consortium meeting will be 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. on November 23, 2011 at ECIA, 7600 Commerce Park in Dubuque. RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends that the City Council review the enclosed information, and then provide any feedback to the Smart Planning Consortium. Enclosures F: \USERS \LCARSTEN \WP \Smart Planning Grant \Smart Planning Consortium update to City Council 11 10 11.doc 1 SMART PLANNING Meeting Minutes Consortium Members ® Anna O'Shea- Dubuque County Laura Carstens -City of Dubuque ® Dave Johnson (proxy) -City of Dubuque ® Beth Bonz -City of Asbury ® Randy Lansing -City of Cascade ® Mick Michel -City of Dyersville Public Present October 5, 2011 10:00 a.m. ECIA ® Janet Berger -City of Epworth ® Bill Einwalter -City of Farley ® Karen Snyder -City of Peosta ® Eric Schmechel- Dubuque SWCD ❑ Chandra Ravada -ECIA Jim Bodnar, Dubuque County; Cory Burbach, City of Dubuque, Jeff Geerts, Iowa Economic Development Authority; Paul Hanley, University of Iowa Staff Present Dan Fox, Gail Kuhle Call to Order The meeting was called to order by Anna O'Shea at 10:05 a.m. The Smart Planning meeting for October 5, 2011 was held at City Hall in the City of Dubuque. Introductions were made at this time. Carstens began by giving a brief planning history of the City of Dubuque. Cory Burbach, Dubuque Sustainability Coordinator, continued with a brief background on Dubuque's Sustainability Initiative. Burbach stated that as the Initiative moves forward, the City needs a way to measure their sustainability performance. Therefore, the City has partnered with the University of Iowa and their students for the next year to develop a Performance Metric. The Metric will be used to track the sustainability progress which would allow the City the opportunity to compare the progress from year to year and as well as to other communities. She noted that the University of Iowa students will also be working on other projects such local foods at the college level, renewable energy asset mapping, a study on poverty and the Green and Healthy Homes project. Burbach stated that as a second year project she would like to take the sustainability performance measures and see how they are working as a region. O'Shea offered that assistance of the Consortium. Carstens said that as a goal, the region would like to see a common set of development standards, subdivision codes as well as building codes. Hanley gave a brief update on where the students were on developing the metric, noting that the students are using existing community indicators and data that is currently available. Discussion followed. Burbach noted that for the second year of projects, there is a possibility that the projects could be regional, similar to the Dubuque projects. Fox noted that the one of the requirements of the HUD Sustainable Grant is to track the performance measures; therefore the University of Iowa was included as one of the partners in the HUD Sustainability Planning Grant application. Lansing asked if all of the small cities, with the exception of Cascade, agreed to be a part of the HUD application. Fox stated that yes, all of the others cities did agree to be a part of the application. Approval of the Agenda Under Other Business, O'Shea added the Watershed Project, HUD Planning Grant, Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities and Des Moines training. Motion by Einwalter, second by Carstens to approve the revised Agenda for October 5, 2011. The motion passed unanimously. 2 Review and approve the revised minutes from the Wednesday, September 14, 2011 Smart Planning Consortium Meeting O'Shea requested that the Smart Planning website be added to the agenda. Motion by Carstens, second by Bonz to approve the revised minutes from the Wednesday, September 14, 2011 Smart Planning Consortium Meeting. The motion passed unanimously. Dubuque County Smart Plan Progress Report O'Shea gave a brief update on the progress of the Dubuque County Smart Plan. She began her update by stating that Dubuque County applied for the Smart Planning Grant in September 2010 to update their Comprehensive Plan. In November 2010, the County was awarded the grant. From November 2010 to March 2011, the Consortium worked out the logistics, created a chapter timeline and scheduled their first Smart Planning Workshop for March 2011. The Smart Planning Workshop included City Council members and Planning and Zoning Commissioners from the Consortium communities. In April 2011, the Consortium started their first planning chapter, Community Facilities. In May 2011, the Consortium began to meet twice a month and worked on their Public Input Plan, with a general Public Input session to be scheduled in the near future. In June, the Watershed chapter was started, with the Community Data chapter beginning in July and the Land Use chapter in August. Fox noted that three approved chapters have been placed on the website. Einwalter asked if Fox could email him the completed chapters. Snyder asked if the chapters could be placed on the website with a download link. Geertz stated that Des Moines also received a grant and they are doing a series of speakers for community awareness Discussion followed. Fox asked Geertz to give an update on how other grantees are doing. Geertz stated that the Dubuque Consortium seems to be a little ahead of most of the other grantees. Discussion on Land Use Chapter Fox presented the current Future Land Use Map for Dubuque County for review. He stated that the map needed to be updated and asked for suggestions on the update process. Fox suggested that staff would like to incorporate some more technical analysis into the updated map using a GIS Land Suitability model. He indicated that staff would be gathering information such as transit and bike routes, road access, fire department response time and wildlife habitat, then aggregate that information into a map which shows what land is most suitable for development. Fox stated that staff could then take the updated map into individual communities and hold land use workshops. Fox noted that updating the future land use map /chapter in the GIS format will take longer; therefore he suggested that the Consortium continue to move forward with the other chapters at the same time. Fox thought that gathering the information and writing the Land Use Chapter should take approximately two months. Future Land Use Map Workshop Fox asked the Consortium how they would like to hold the Land Use Map workshops. Einwalter said that he would prefer to have an individual workshop for each community and would like to link his meeting with the watershed meeting that Farley will be hosting. Snyder suggested that each community hold an 3 individual meeting and then hold a large meeting that encompasses the Consortium. O'Shea said that she would like to be notified of each community meeting so that she can attend as many as possible. Fox indicated that he would also like to create some land use scenarios for each community. Discussion followed regarding updates to the current Dubuque County Future Land Use map. The following suggestions were made: • Use 2002 Map as a draft • Add 2 mile jurisdiction • Add Delaware and Jones County • Add any changes to city boundaries • Update existing Land Use Maps Discussion followed about the individual work sessions in each community. It was decided that each community would work with Fox to schedule their workshop, with some of the communities including a watershed workshop at the same time. It was discussed that the large general public input meeting could be held in January at the Peosta Community Centre. Comments from public on an item that did not appear on the agenda There were no written comments received or public in attendance. Other Business Watershed Management Grant Schmechel stated that there was good news and bad news on the grant. The good news is that the City of Dubuque, Asbury and Peosta are included in the grant. The bad news was that the grant was based off the watershed lines rather than the county lines; therefore the grant does not include the other communities of the Consortium. Schmechel reported that there are two phases of the competitive grant. The first phase ($30,000) is to establish a 28E Agreement between all political subdivisions and relevant organizations within the HUCK10 Watershed. Phase II is for up to $200,000 to do further modeling in the watershed area. Schmechel noted that the Watershed Management Grant is due October 21, 2011. HUD Sustainable Planning Grant O'Shea explained that staff is applying for a $1.5 million dollar planning grant that would include funding to create zoning and building codes and an Eco Village. EPA Grant - Letter of Support O'Shea suggested that the Consortium apply for the EPA grant, Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities, Tool # 4 -Smart Growth Zoning Codes for Small Cities and Rural Areas. She noted that this EPA grant was similar to the one in which they applied for in February 2011. Fox noted that the grant needed a letter of support from the Board of Supervisors. O'Shea presented the letter of support that was written for the previous EPA grant. It was suggested that the date and populations on the letter be updated, and then presented to the Chair of Dubuque County Board of Supervisors for his signature. 4 Motion by Carstens, second by Lansing to approve applying for the EPA grant and providing a Letter of Support from the Dubuque County Board of Supervisors. The motion passed unanimously. Planning Training session O'Shea reported that a Planning training session will be held in Des Moines, Iowa on November 2, 2011. The training session will include Integrating Hazardous Mitigation into Comprehensive Planning and Planning Downtown a Vital Role in a Thriving and Sustainable Community. Adjournment Motion by Carstens, second by Bonz to adjourn the October 5, 2011 Smart City Planning meeting. The motion passed unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 12:05 p.m. 5 SMART PLANNING Meeting Minutes Consortium Members ® Anna O'Shea- Dubuque County ® Laura Carstens -City of Dubuque ❑ Dave Johnson (proxy) -City of Dubuque ® Beth Bonz -City of Asbury ® Randy Lansing -City of Cascade ® Mick Michel -City of Dyersville Public Present Jim Bodnar, Dubuque County Staff Present Dan Fox, Paige Comer October 26, 2011 10:00 a.m. ECIA ® Janet Berger -City of Epworth ® Bill Einwalter -City of Farley ® Karen Snyder -City of Peosta ❑ Eric Schmechel- Dubuque SWCD ❑ Chandra Ravada -ECIA Call to Order The meeting was called to order by Anna O'Shea at 10:05 a.m. The Smart Planning meeting for October 26, 2011 was held at ECIA. Introductions were made. Approval of the Agenda Carstens asked if Discussion on Community Planning Assistance could be added to the discussion on AIA Sustainable Design Assistance, Number 5. Motion by Michel, second by Carstens to approve the revised agenda for October 26, 2011. The motion passed unanimously. Review and approve the minutes from the Wednesday, October 5, 2011 Smart Planning Consortium Meeting Minutes were not given at this meeting. The item will be tabled until the meeting on November 9. Discussion on AIA Sustainable Design Assistance / APA Community Planning Assistance Carstens discussed both the differences between these organizations. The cost of both would come out to about $12,000, with APA possibly being less. The application deadline for AIA Sustainable Design Assistance is on November 18th which is followed by a $5,000 fee. APA Community Planning Assistance has an application deadline for December 13 and has an application fee of $50. Michel suggested that Heritage Trail be the focus of this assistance. The group could look at paving the trail, and look at the problem of connectivity for Asbury and Peosta. It would be helpful to find a way to connect all communities to the Heritage Trail. Other suggested trail improvements included increased parking, increased signage, benches, restrooms, and water fountains. Motion by Lansing, second by Einwalter to pursue assistance from both APA Community Planning Assistance team, and AIA Sustainable Design Assistance. O'Shea will talk to Brian Preston to see about any available money as well as to see what information he has on the trail system. Each member of the consortium is to talk to their councils about pursuing assistance for the Heritage Trail. Dubuque County Smart Plan Progress Report Fox compared the Consortium's with the original project timeline from January 2011. The Consortium is two chapters behind schedule as of now, but that he believes the group can catch up as next chapters will take less time to complete. O'Shea expressed that she wanted to see a schedule made to extend from the previous one through May or June. Fox will draft up the extension of the schedule, allowing for two meetings a month. The meeting for December 28`h is cancelled, and there will be one meeting in January and one in February. For the rest of the months there will be two meetings scheduled for the second and the fourth Wednesday. 2 The schedule for the community public meetings was set. Either Fox or Ravada will be in attendance at these meetings and O'Shea plans to attend most of them. Each member needs to make their own agenda for their community meeting, as each community has different needs and will find different subjects more important. There still needs to be an introduction explaining the group, their goals, and objectives. The consortium would like Fox to have the land use goals objectives on the website before the meetings start in November. Discussion on Land Use Chapter Fox described how he will be using a weighted overlay analysis in GIS to locate the most suitable sites for new development. The Consortium will be able to use the analysis to help guide future land use decision making. Data sets used in the analysis included steep slopes, distance from existing development, distance from roads, agricultural value, and floodplain. He explained that each variable could be weighted which would change its impact on the final score. The consortium suggested changing the name of restricted land to protected or something similar. The consortium determined that the three most important variables are distance from cities, distance from transportation, and floodway. The consortium also wanted to add historical sites and schools. Discussion on Community Data Chapter Fox shared each community's data. Members offered some corrections for Fox, and expressed their concern that the information from Info USA was not accurate. The consortium decided to remove the Info USA data. Fox will call Dan McDonald to see if he has information about the top ten employers for the county. Comments from public on an item that did not appear on the agenda There were no written comments received or public in attendance. Other Business Fox mentioned that timesheets have been given to him very regularly by every member, and that he will send out an email for the ones he is missing. Lansing will be leaving the consortium and his last day in Cascade is December 16th' Adjournment Motion by Lansing, second by Snyder to adjourn the October 26, 2011 Smart City Planning meeting. The motion passed unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 11:55 am. 3 DUBUQUE COUNTY SMART PLAN Housing Goals and Objectives 1. To promote the preservation, rehabilitation, and investment in our regional housing stock and neighborhoods. 1.1. Ensure all rental housing exceeds minimum housing quality standards through systematic code enforcement. 1.2. Encourage a range of affordable, accessible, and decent rental housing options throughout the community. 1.3. Consider expanding the use of housing preservation programs whenever appropriate and possible. 1.4. Promote programs to improve energy efficiency and enlist the participation of utility companies in promotional efforts. 1.5. Encourage participation in and use of low- interest rehabilitation and home purchase loan funds. 1.6. Promote adaptive reuse of existing vacant or under - utilized structures, such as convents, schools, and industrial buildings, into housing with an affordable and /or workforce component, where appropriate. 1.7. Encourage the expansion of the capacity of neighborhood associations. 1.8. Promote residential educational workshops regarding restoration, rehabilitation, and maintenance. 1.9. Encourage relocation of existing housing as opposed to demolition whenever possible; when removal is necessary, require deconstruction and landfill diversion as much as possible. 1.10. Communicate with legislators to empower local governments to have more local control in the administration and monitoring of federal housing programs. 1.11. Support the integration of new neighborhood residents into the neighborhood associations, local schools, and community activities. 1.12. Continue to reduce vacant and abandoned housing in our neighborhoods through code compliance, purchase, rehabilitation, and deconstruction if necessary. 1.13. Promote historic preservation as the cornerstone of housing and neighborhood revitalization programs, to promote economic development and attract younger residents. 2. To promote programs, education, and training that support and encourage appropriate rental housing oversight. 2.1. Promote programs, education, and training that support and encourage appropriate landlord accountability. 2.2. Promote programs, education, and training that support and encourage appropriate tenant accountability. 2.3. Support Community Oriented Policing and participation of neighborhood residents in crime reduction strategies. 3. To promote the creation and maintenance of an adequate supply of sound, affordable housing integrated throughout the region. DUBUQUE COUNTY SMART PLAN Housing Goals and Objectives 3.1. Promote partnerships with private sector, nonprofit, other government agencies and neighborhood groups to access available public funding and attract private capital for affordable housing development. 3.2. Promote mixed - income, mixed - rental housing developments. 3.3. Support the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program to benefit lower- income families seeking affordable rental housing. 3.4. Encourage local lenders to work with all homeowners to rehabilitate, remodel, or repair existing homes. 3.5. Develop programs and incentives that encourage property owners to maintain and improve the appearance of their property. 3.6. Maintain the existing sound housing units and to upgrade or replace all substandard housing units. 3.7. Support the Green and Healthy Homes Initiative, providing empowerment services to households in combination with efficient rehabilitation and preservation of affordable and workforce housing. 4. To expand the opportunities for homeownership, especially for low to moderate income households. 4.1. Encourage the use of flexible development regulations in order to assist affordable and workforce housing production and decrease housing costs. 4.2. Encourage local lenders to participate in programs designed to assist first -time home buyers. 4.3. Promote infill housing development opportunities, in the region's older neighborhoods, through a combination of public subsidy, affordable housing incentives and owner sweat equity. 4.4. Promote compact and contiguous development with a variety of higher density housing options that utilize available infrastructure within the existing built environment. 4.5. Provide housing opportunities and incentives for low and moderate income families. 5. To promote fair housing opportunity for residents in all neighborhoods. 5.1. Provide for effective implementation of existing fair housing programs. 5.2. Encourage involvement of neighborhood residents to the fullest extent possible when planning affordable housing developments. 5.3. Monitor, evaluate, and work to minimize federal, state and local codes and regulations that are possible barriers to development of housing, particularly for persons with disabilities or low income. 6. To assist local service agencies in providing shelter and semi - independent living for persons in need of supportive services. 6.1. Monitor and evaluate homeless and other special needs populations in order to document needs and design assistance programs. DUBUQUE COUNTY SMART PLAN Housing Goals and Objectives 6.2. Provide technical assistance to agencies in preparation of applications for program funding. 6.3. Encourage partnerships with area agencies in sponsorship of housing initiatives for special needs populations. 6.4. Encourage development of special housing for the elderly and persons with disabilities wherever suitable sites can be made available. 7. To promote the understanding that the availability and affordability of workforce housing is an important key to successful economic development. 7.1. Promote corporate participation in employer assisted housing, for home purchase assistance for employees. 7.2. Encourage local institutions, i.e., hospitals, colleges, to establish replacement housing programs for housing lost to corporate expansions. 7.3. Encourage corporate participation in the Federal Low Income Tax Credit Program, for purposes of investment in affordable housing development. 7.4. Promote an adequate housing supply to support workforce development efforts. 8. To promote the public's awareness of housing needs and issues through informational and educational efforts. 8.1. Consider serving as a clearinghouse of information for housing issues and information, to include providing educational programs for tenants and landlords. 8.2. Monitor housing market conditions and availability of housing. 8.3. Become more aggressive in attracting new residents to live in the cities. 8.4. Promote workshops for area housing industry members (contractors, lenders, realtors) regarding changing regulatory mandates, i.e., lead -based paint, asbestos removal. 8.5. Combat the "Not In My Back Yard," or NIMBY, syndrome by dispelling stereotypes associated with affordable housing. 8.6. Continue to promote collaboration with housing industry groups (Board of Realtors, Mortgage Lenders Association, Dubuque Area Landlords Association) to promote cooperation and consensus - building regarding housing issues. 9. To provide housing resources for aging residents. 9.1. Encourage the development of high -end, market -rate, and subsidized housing. 9.2. Encourage the development of appropriate levels and styles of housing. 9.3. Identify appropriate sites for housing development including the style of the development and amenities to be included. 9.4. Provide interested developers with a listing of available sites for development. 9.5. Encourage development of affordable apartments and condominiums for retirees. 10. To increase the availability of high -end housing. 10.1. Continue to provide developers with appropriate levels of information and service. DUBUQUE COUNTY SMART PLAN Housing Goals and Objectives 10.2. Consider developing minimum standards (height and bulk) for houses. 10.3. Explore design guidelines for residential development. 11. To continue to provide appropriate infrastructure and services to neighborhoods. 11.1. Continue incremental improvements in water, waste, and stormwater facilities. 11.2. Continue appropriate levels of service to maintain public parks and open spaces. 11.3. Continue to enforce parkland dedication requirements, and other developer -paid infrastructure development costs to ensure stability and equitability throughout the region. 12. To provide a variety of housing types, costs and locations in cities. 12.1. Promote the planning, design, and construction of a wider range of housing unit types in adequate supply for all income levels and age groups. 12.2. Encourage and promote energy efficiency in new and existing housing. 12.3. Ensure that all new housing development is protected from potential flood hazard. 12.4. Support the continuation of single - family development in appropriate municipal locations at similar density levels as experienced on a community wide basis. 12.5. Discourage scattered residential development in the unincorporated portion of the County guide new development into a compact and compatible growth pattern within or adjacent to the incorporated area and within easily serviceable watersheds. 12.6. Continue to encourage a wider range of housing types in the residential areas of the cities, including single - family and multi - family structures, in response to changing housing market demands. 13. To provide a variety of housing opportunities within the unincorporated areas in appropriate locations. 13.1. Ensure that the Future Land Use Development Map provides adequate development potential for a variety of housing types to meet the housing needs of present and future residents, encouraging housing to locate within incorporated communities. 13.2. Initiate a Housing Needs Assessment Study of the County to determine current housing condition and need, and to estimate future housing requirements. 13.3. Locate residential development in platted subdivisions with adequate public services. 13.4. Encourage residential development to locate within existing cities and establish urban fringe development areas where adequate public services are planned or can be provided. 13.5. Allow for the creation of urban density residential districts within established urban fringe development areas that follow the planned development process, and where urban services can be provided. 13.6. Limit proposed non -farm residential development on lots smaller than one acre to cluster developments or conservation subdivisions that follow the planned development process, and provide centralized water and wastewater systems, and limited access. DUBUQUE COUNTY SMART PLAN Housing Goals and Objectives 13.7. Investigate establishment of simplified development regulations to allow the division of "old" farmsteads from current agricultural operations, which does not create non - conformities, based upon the potential number of such divisions. DUBUQUE COUNTY ZONING 13047 CITY VIEW DRIVE, DUBUQUE, IOWA 52002 -9660 (563) 589-7827 FAX: (563) 589 -7868 E -MAIL: zoningadmin @dbeco.org PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT ANNA M. O'SHEA Administrator The Dubuque County Smart Planning Consortium, consisting of Dubuque County, Dubuque Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) and the cities of Asbury, Cascade, Dubuque, Dyersville, Epworth, Farley and Peosta, are planning to hold public meetings to gather input on four draft chapters of the Dubuque Regional Comprehensive Plan and to get input on the Future Land Use Map. The meetings will take place at the time and date listed below: November 1, 2011 7:00 p.m. Peosta City Hall November 15, 2011 6:00 p.m. Meadows Golf Course - Asbury November 16, 2011 5:30 p.m. Historic Federal Building -City of Dubuque November 17, 2011 7:00 p.m. Cascade City Hall November 22, 2011 7:00 p.m. Epworth City Hall November 30, 2011 7:00 p.m. Memorial Hall -City of Farley December 12, 2011 6:30 p.m. Dyersville City Hall December 20, 2011 7:00 p.m. Fire Training Center - Public Safety Way (off of Seippel Road) Information is available on the East Central intergovernmental Association (ECIA) website at www.dubuquesmartplan.org. or from Anna O'Shea, Dubuque County Zoning Administrator at (563) 589- 7827. The public is invited to attend any or all of the meetings. We would like to hear your ideas and vision for the future sustainability of our community.