Minutes_Zoning Advisory Commission 1 6 16 Dubuque
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MINUTES
CITY OF DUBUQUE ZONING ADVISORY COMMISSION
REGULAR SESSION
6:00 p.m.
Wednesday January 6, 2016
City Council Chamber, Historic Federal Building
Commissioners Present: Chairperson Pat Norton; Board Members Kristin Dietzel, Laura
Roussell, Steve Baumhover, Martha Christ, Tom Henschel and Michael Belmont, Staff
Members Kyle Kritz and Guy Hemenway.
Commissioners Excused: None.
Commissioners Unexcused: None.
CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order by Chairperson Norton at 6:10 p.m.
AFFIDAVIT OF COMPLIANCE: Staff presented an Affidavit of Compliance verifying the
meeting was being held in compliance with the Iowa Open Meetings Law.
MINUTES: The minutes of the December 2, 2015 meeting were approved unanimously as
submitted.
ACTION ITEMS/SURVEY OF PLAT: Application of Brice Lubben / K& L Properties of Iowa,
LLC to approve the Plat of Survey of Lubben Place for property located at 620-628 Loras
Blvd.
Chairperson Norton and Commissioner Baumhover stepped away from the table due to a
conflict. Vice Chairperson Henschel presided.
Brice Lubben, 2669 2201° Ave., Delhi, Iowa, said that he owns the property at 620-628 Loras
Boulevard. He explained that he had received previous Zoning Board of Adjustment
approval to split the lot and was granted a Special Exception regarding setbacks. He said
his intent is to split the lot down the center of the existing duplex so that each dwelling unit
will be placed on its own lot and can be sold separately. He said the status quo would not
change regarding required parking, traffic, and density. He said that selling each lot
separately would encourage owner occupancy.
Staff Member Kritz discussed Unified Development Code minimal standards for lot size,
noting that each lot for the duplex would have insufficient lot area. He noted that splitting the
lot will not change the status of the property, and he recommended approval subject to
waiving lot area requirements for Lots 1 and 2.
Commissioners discussed the request and felt it was appropriate.
Minutes —Zoning Advisory Commission Page 2
January 6, 2016
Motion by Christ, seconded by Roussell, to approve the Plat of Survey of Lubben Place,
subject to waiving the lot area requirements for Lots 1 and 2. Motion carried by the following
vote: Aye — Roussell, Christ, Belmont, Dietzel and Henschel; Nay— None; Abstain — Norton
and Baumhover.
ACTION ITEMS/WAIVER: Application of Craig (Gerb) Smith to waive Chapter 13-4.6 of the
Unified Development Code regarding parking lot landscaping for property located at 1701
John F. Kennedy Road.
Craig (Gerb) Smith reviewed his project with the Commission, noting that the addition will
facilitate expansion of the interior office space for the business. He said the office space
would be expanded but no additional employees would be hired, so there would be no
additional traffic or demand on parking.
Staff Member Hemenway reviewed the process outlined in the Unified Development Code
for granting a waiver. He discussed the specific section being waived noting that if the
parking lot landscaping buffer standard were to be applied the business would lose
approximately 12 parking spaces. He discussed site constraints, noting that it was
impracticable to create additional parking elsewhere on the site.
Commissioner Roussell said that she felt it was appropriate to grant the waiver because
without it, the business would lose a significant number of parking spaces. Chairperson
Norton asked for clarification regarding the code section that was being waived.
Commissioners discussed the request and felt it was appropriate.
Motion by Belmont, seconded by Baumhover, to approve the waiver of Chapter 13-4.6 of the
Unified Development Code regarding parking lot landscaping. Motion carried by the
following vote: Aye — Baumhover, Roussell, Christ, Henschel, Belmont, Dietzel and Norton;
Nay— None.
ITEMS FROM COMMISSION: At the request of Chairperson Norton, Staff Member Kritz
discussed the creation and evolution of zoning regulations within the community, starting
with the 1934 Zoning Ordinance and ending with the 2009 Unified Development Code. He
discussed the code section regarding the criteria established for the reclassification of
property.
Commissioners discussed broad land use issues regarding rezoning that included traffic
generation, demand on parking and compatibility with adjacent land uses. Chairperson
Norton said that the City Council often asked him to clarify the Commission's rationale
regarding their recommendations. He thanked staff for the information.
ADJOURNMENT: The meeting adjourned at 6:40 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Kyle L. Kritz, Associate Planner Adopted