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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity/County Planning Board Minutes 08.02.2012 MINUTES LAUREL CITY - COUNTY PLANNING BOARD August 2, 2012 6:00 pm COUNCIL CHAMBERS MEMBERS PRESENT: Kathy Siegrist, Chairman Dick Fritzler, County Rep. Don Brown, City Rep. Judy Goldsby, County Rep. OTHERS PRESENT: Monica Plecker, City Planner Due to the lack of a quorum for this meeting these minutes are for informational purposes only. Call to order: The meeting was called to order at 6:00 pm by Chairman Siegrist. Roll Call: Members present were Fritzler, Goldsby, Siegrist and Brown. Public Comment on non - agenda topics: No public was present at the meeting. Approval of minutes from July 2, 2012 meeting: Due to no quorum the minutes could not be approved and will be placed onto the next agenda. New Business: Zoning Compliance Permit — Extraterritorial Zoning Jurisdiction Monica included a short memo in the agenda packet giving a brief description of extraterritorial zoning jurisdiction form. Monica met with the City of Billings about some of the challenges that she has identified with planning in Laurel and wanted to see how they have tackled some of the obstacles. They shared with Monica that when it comes to an extraterritorial zoning 1 -mile outside of the city limits that it becomes really difficult to have any authority over it. The only authority Monica has over it is complaint based because there are no building permits required from Laurel or Yellowstone County. Having a Zoning compliance permit would put more authority into the City's hands. At this time the majority of the zoning within the 1 -mile jurisdiction are zoned Residential Tracts. There have been several properties that have built an accessory building prior to the residence, which is not allowed by zoning code. Unfortunately some of those property owners never built residences after the accessory building and then end up using them as storage areas or businesses. These types of issues could be solved by implementing a zoning compliance permit. Monica attached the zoning compliance permit that is currently used by the City of Billings. The fee is $43 and all that is asked is that you fill out the form and bring it into the City Planning department and explain what you are doing. It is done to make sure that whatever they are building is compliant with the current zoning. She would like the Planning Board to give input as to whether or not she should do more research on this issue and come up with an application that would fit Laurel's needs. Discussion: This would be on all property within the 1 -mile zoning jurisdictional area. Monica states that as the Board digs into the Growth Management Plan she believes there may be a need for zoning changes. So this is a good time to move forward on implementing a zoning compliance permit, if the board chooses to do so. Judy Goldsby stated that she thought this was a good thing because when the city limits line expands it will be easier on property owners if their property is already in compliance. The Billings Planners told Monica that having this permit has helped them get a handle on outside activities that they would not normally know about. At this time non - compliance zoning issues are done on a complaint basis because staff doesn't have the time to drive throughout the 1 -mile jurisdiction looking for violations. Having a zoning compliance permit would be a way to help mitigate those complaints and help get a jump start on issues and resolve them long before someone has put up a barn or garage and the city has to tell them to take it down or be taken to court. This is a mitigation strategy so that in the future when Laurel grows and the city assumes the properties as Laurels city limits expand at least we know we can deal with the problems beforehand. From a staff point of view this is something to consider. Dick Fritzler suggested that the board consider this permit after some studying of the proposed permit. Monica assured Dick that she will have the Laurel City Attorney involved in the process. Judy Goldsby questioned how the city will notify property owners in the 1 -mile zoning jurisdiction. Monica stated that she will contact the media to help get the word out. There are also a lot of people that come into the Planning office asking if permits are required. It might be a slow process getting the word out but at least the permit will give the city some leverage when issues do come up. Don Brown asked if the city doesn't issue a building permit how people will know what to do. And what if a property owner builds a 10 foot high fence. Monica stated that the application does ask for a site plan. She realizes that not everyone will check with the city prior to construction. The City won't be able to catch 100% of the property owners but she thinks they could catch 70% of the property owners prior to them building a non - conforming building. That is better than not catching anything at all. Judy Goldsby stated that she can see where this will work for large subdivisions. Don Brown thinks it is a good idea as long as people are informed of what the requirements are. He feels it will be hard to get the word out. Monica feels that with all the contractors the city has contact with on a weekly basis, the word will get out and the contractors will come into the city offices and ask questions. The city also has a website that the information can be placed on. All board members present encouraged Monica to continue with the process of a Zoning Compliance Permit. Monica stated that she will begin the process of the Zoning Compliance Permit and bring it back to the Planning Board for a recommendation. Old Business: Sam Robertus' variance. The City Council asked Monica to come to a meeting and explain the reasoning behind the conditions that the Planning Board placed on the variance request. After Monica did so the City Council approved Sam Robertus' variance request with all of the conditions that the Planning Board had asked for. Miscellaneous: Growth Management Plan (GMP) Update Monica passed out a project schedule for the GMP Update. This comes about because of the City Council wanting to know what progress the board has made on the GMP Update. At this time the committee is right on schedule and almost half way through the first draft. The maps from Yellowstone County GIS have still not been updated but the committee will still be able to review issues that don't involve the maps. Monica stated that she is looking at having the final draft of the GMP done by July 2013 after which the entire board will review the GMP. Then after the board reviews the GMP and recommends adoption of the GMP the Planning Board will hold a public hearing for public input. The Board will then recommend the GMP draft to the City Council. The City Council will then hold its own public hearing and consider adoption of the GMP. Potential Next Meeting: September 6, 2012. At this time it is unknown if a September 6, 2012 will be held. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 6:30 pm. Respectfully submitted, Cheryl) Lund, Secretary