HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity/County Planning Board Minutes 07.06.2000PRESENT:
MINUTES
CITY-COUNTY PLANNING BOARD
· July 6, 2000, 7:00 pm
Council Chambers
Gerald Shay, Chairman
Kate Stevenson, City Rep.
Ed Thurner, City Rep.
Laurel Haggart, City Rep.
Bud Johnson, City Rep.
Ziggy Ziegler, County Rep.
Kurt Balmisch, County Rep.
Tom Robertus, County Rep.
OTHERS PRESENT:
Cal Cumin, City Planner
Cheryll Lurid, Secretary
Bill Niebaur, Aquaneer/ng
Minutes of the June 2, 2000 meeting were reviewed, and approved with corrections.
The Planning Board meeting was closed and the Zoning Commission convened to hear
the zone change request.
Zone Change - Saddleback Ridge Subdivision
This zone change was presented in June of 2000 but the board delayed the decision fof 30
days until it was sure all neighbors within the 300-foot area of the request were notified.
The Chairman asked if any board members objected to allowing the property owners to
speak regarding the zone change.
Ed Thumer objected, and then withdrew his objection because of misunderstanding of
what was said~
Bill Niebauer spoke as the agent for the zone change request. It is a request to go from
Agricultural Open to R7500. The lot sizes would be approxhnately 20,000 square feet,
which is less than a ½ acre. State law allows densities of less than one acre only if a
centralized water and/or sewer are available. The water system planned is a public water
system, with individual septic systems.
The chairman asked if there were any other proponents that wished to speak.
There were no written protests received on this application.
Bud Johnson spoke regarding the zone change. He reminded the board that the issue at
hand is the zone change and the decision on whether or not tkis is an appropriate use of
this land. The other issues being talked about will be discussed more at length during the
subdivision review process.
Laurel Haggart spok~iregarding the comprehensive plan. She states that in the
comprehensive plan t~is property is stated to be prime agricultural property. It also states
that this area is not suitable for septic systems.
Gerald Shay states that he knows the property and it is definitely not prime agricultural
land.
It is once again stated that the board needs to consider the zone change issue, not the
septic and water issues. That is done through the subdivision review process.
Cai read some of his written recommendations into the record (see attached). Cai
recommends approval of this zone change.
Bud Johnson spoke regarding the zone change. He states that in the draft of the West
Bi/lings Plan it states, "nowadays agriculture can no longer be considered an economical
choice for the long-term use of the land" (this is speak/ng specifically about the small
tracts of land between Laurel and Billings). As much as Bud has a hard time
acknowledging that could be true, it tins begun to make sense to him in regards to where
we would choose to have housing placed. It's a choice that we have to make. He feels
that the zone change application shows a reasonable use of this iand and, if done
correctly, makes a viable use of it. In the past Bud has been solidly opposed to
development that was not brought into the city and hooked up to city services. He no~v
looks at it differently with the question of would we rather see one home for 20 acres that
has a septic tank and individual water well, or would we rather see central servides '
installed..
Laurel Haggart is wondering why she is being told not to discuss the subdivision, when
Cal's comments are all based on facts about the subdivision. She is confused.
Kurt Baltrnsch states that from the board's standpoint at this time, we are trying to decide
whether or not the land use should be changed fi:om agricultural to residential. In order
to consider the zone change we will hear all of the concerns but must realize that some of
the issues will be addressed at the subdivision review.
Cai states, addressing Laurel Haggart, that all board members have a right to speak on
any issue that they want to bring up. In the interest of expediting the issue some issues
pertaining to this application are more appropriately considered during the subdivision
review process.
-2-
Motion by Bud Johnson seconded by Kurt Baltmsch to recommend approval of
the zone change from agricultural open to residential 7500 on Saddleback Ridge
Subdivision. Motion carried with a 4-3 vote.
The Zoning Commis~!on was closed and Planning Board reconvened.
Preliminary Plat- Saddleback Ridge Subdivision
Bill Niebauer spoke in'regards to the preliminary plat:
The proposed subdivision is 36 iots. Two of the 36 lots will become a storm water/water
storage pond. All other lots have had perk tests done on them and have passed. They
have plans to place septic systems on each lot for the fntst phase, and for phase two a
septic tank pump system is planned, pumping sewage to a central treatment system.
A public water system is being proposed. Them is one well that has been drilled and has
there is plenty of water (but not a good quality water). There are plans to put a reverse
osmosis system on that well, off of which each property owner will pump water that will
go into individual cisterns.
The City Fire Dept. has requested that a water flow of 250 gallons a minute for 2 hours
be available. (see attached letter from Jim Stevens, Fire Chief) They were not planning
on that at all. They were planning to have 4,000 gallons on water available at each home
site. They will have a 6-inch line nmning through the first phase and then extending to
the west for the second phase.
Traffic will be access onto one road with a temporary cul-de-sac.
The road north of the bridge will be a small access road serving that end of the
subdivision. They are not sure what they will be doing with that road in the future.
Opponents:
Dick Stahl; of the Laurel Golf Course; spoke and said he was not an opponentbut:
questioned the access that would be used. Will it be offof Golf Course Road? He is also
concerned with the access for phase two and the drainage to phase two. The Club is
concerned that the old abandoned road to the west of the golf course will be re-activated.
If the abandoned road is used it would border along the golf course.
Mr. Stahl's concern with the drainage is that the number 7 fairway is the low spot and is
already a major concern. If there is more drainage allowed that fairway could become a
ditch.
Gary IGndsfather is also concerned about the abandoned road. If the road is accessed it
will run very close to his house.
-3-
Blaine Kindsfather is concerned as to how the property owners w/ll irrigate their lawns.
Are they going to use the irrigation ditch, or cisterns, and do they have water rights?
No one answered thei~uestion
Motion to close the public heating.
Cai spoke regarding his recommendation for this preLiminary plat. He stated that he has
many concerns regarding this application, and has listed them out in bis letter to the
Planning Board dated July 6, 2000. Cal added to section 2 (i) the following: A master
plan of the subdivision needs to be submitted.
Cai recommends that the board delay their decision on this preliminary plat until next
month's meeting and told the applicant to submit the information discussed in his written
comments as well as the additional issues raised at the hearing.
It was also suggested that the name's of the roads be reconsidered because of the fact
that Laurel has an existing Kidge Drive, and having a High Ridge Drive could cause
some confusion.
Motion by Tom Robertus, second by Bud Johnson, to delay the decision on the
Saddleback Ridge Estates subdivision preliminary plat until the August 3, 2000 meeting
of the Planning Board. Motion carried 7-0.
Discussion. There are many issues regarding this preliminary plat that the board is
concerned, but primary in importance are fire suppression, long-range access, and what
the status is of the "abandoned road" that skins the property.
Cai's Contmat -July 1, 2000 to June 30, 2001
Motion by Bud Johnson with a second by Kate Stevenson to approve Cai Cumin's
contract for $15,000 for July I, 2000 to June 30, 2001. Motion carried 7-0. (see attached
contract)
Question on changing Zone Change/Land Use application wording to read "Owner or
Agent" on applications. Bud Johnson contacted the City Attorney and he said to just
change the wording on all of the applications.
Council Agenda Items:
The board recommends to the City Council that they advertise the recommendation of the
Planning Board regarding the Saddleback Ridge Estates subdivision zone change and
schedule and advertise a public hearing thereon before the City Council.
It was suggested by the Planning Board that the City present the past Chairman, John
Sm/th, with a nice memento and recognition for his many years of service as chairman of
the Planning Board.
Bud Johnson brough~e West Billings Plan and suggested that anyone who wanted a
copy contact the Secretary after the meeting.
The meeting was adj0umed at 8:15 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Cheryll Lurid, Secretary
05/26/00 FRI i4:g7 PAX 406 245 664S Cat Cumin ~00!
MEMO
SUBJECT:
TO:
FROM:
DATE:
Findings and Conclusions Rzgardmg Proposed
Saddleback Ridge Es'tams Subdivision (Leonard and
Anita Vending) Zone Change Request
Laurel Zoning Commission
Cai Cumin, Lanre] Planning D/xe~tor
M~y 26, 2O00
LEGAL COMMENTS
The Laurel MunJcilml Code (17.72.050 ((3)) requires that. "The planning director shall
report Ms findings and conclusions in writing to the r~zoning commission, which report
shall be a mattzr of public record."
State code (MCA 76-2-304) requires that local govemmcnts ?akc into consideration
during delibztmions on proposed zone elm~es the 'Purposes of zoning': (1). Such
regulations shall be made in accordance with a comproAmnsive plan and designc<l to
lessen congestion in the $Ireets; to secure safety fi'om fire, panic, and other dang0rs; to
promote headth a~d the general welfare; to provi& adequ~*_e light ~.a air; to prevent th?
overcrow~iing of land; to avoid uudu~ coucvntmtion of'population; to facilitale the
adequate provision of ~rtafion, water, schools, parks, and other public
requirements. (2) Such rcgulafiom shall be made with reasonable consid~ratiol~ anlong
other things, to the character of the dislfict and its peculiar suitability for particular us~s
and with a view to exmr~ving tbe value of buildings and encouraging the most
appropriate ~ of land throl}ghout such mtmjcipality.
State code CMCA 76-2-305(2)) provides that when a protect against a proposed zone
change is signed by the ownem of 25% or mom of the area of the lots w~thln 150 feet
from the subject zone change, such amendment shall not be come effective excepl by the
favorable vote oftwo~thffds of att thc members of the city council; there is such valid
legal protesr~
SPECIFICS OF ZONE CHANGE REQUEST
Thc applicant~ have requested a zone change on portions of the South one-half of the
South one-half of Section 6, (T2SR24E, PPM), a specific area of land generally north of
th~ Laurel Golf Course mgl south of tim Cove Ditch; specifically it is 94.6992 acres
bounded by the Cove Ditch on the north and the south section line of Section 6 .qll of
05/26/00 FR! 14:$S FAX 406 ~45 5843 Ca1 Cumin ~]002
which is contained within Section 6; a small portion of this area bounded bythe Section
linc and ditch, 16.2987 acres, and located in the northeast part of*this area is nol included
in this zone change re~lUest.
Thc City of Lattrel exercises extra territoriul zen/ne one mile b~yond its municipal limits.
The request i$ to change the zoning fi'om Agriculture Op~n Space to Residential 7500.
Thc developers plan to d~vclop lots with a c~ntral water system which will allow them to
market lots as small as 20,000 square feet Since laurel does not have a hal£-acre
residential zone, thc closest zone that will accommodetc their needs is ~e R-7500 Zone,
even though they are nut planning to go thai small. An R7500 Zone means that you have
to have at least 7500 square feet before you can build a residence. A Residential Tracts
Zone, the next s/ze up in Laur~l's Zoning Code requires that each lot be a minimUm of
one acre m size (43 Jt0 square t~et).
PURPOSES OF ZONING
In refer~mce to 'purposes of zoning': Laurel's Comprehensive Plan shows this area as
agricultural. The area is. however, obviously not prime agricultural land, Furthermore, it
is at the north end of what may become thc prime north-south arterial highway (Goff
Course Road). There are enrre~tly subdivisions proposed or in the planning siag~ that
abut this property on its southeast corner. This is obviously the direction r~sidemial
development is inking in Laurel, and there are no reasous to prevent this naturally
developing pattern. The main concern is oen~rali~ed water and/or sewer systelns thai will
allow new subdivisions to be mom compact and, thus, help alleviate sprawl. This
proposal co,taint such a c~ntralized system (water) whictt--along with th~ proposed
s~v~ge treatment precis-will be fully analyzed during the subdivision rcwiew stage of
this development-if it is granted a zeno change. The proposed zoning is not d~stgned to
lessen congestion in tho str~.s; however, iftbe project develops, the traffic eirculal~on
system will be designed to accommodate traffic in accordance with appropriate design
standards. A Traffic Aocessability Study will also be required as pan ofth~ subdivision
process. Thc same applies to cousiderations for uncl~e concentration of population and
ade4xmt¢ water, schools, parks, and otber public requirements.
Regarding r~rsonablc consideration to tbe churner of the district and its peculiar
suitability for single-family housing: I feel such housing is a good use of this land and,
developed properly, will make an atlractiv~ addition lo Laurel,
CONSIDERATIONS
The next st~p in development, if zoning is granted by thc City Council, is to go through
the subdivision process. Subdivision is the detailed plalming that is required for actual
platting of the land. During the subdivision planning process, all of the issues impacted
by locating housing on thc si~ must be .n-lyzeck ducumcnted, and prcsanted to the
planning Board~ the pl~[io, ~nel the Colmty Commissioners of YcUowstone County for
review and diSCussion-and a0D~oval. If the dovelol~rs propose, somehow, to annex to
08/25/00 FRI i4:88 FAX 408 24~ 8843 Cai Cu~ln [~003
the City of Laurel, it will be the City and not the County Commissioners who have
rcv/¢w and approval authority. Thc size and location of lots, blocks, and streets must be
engineered on a pre]iminaty plat. This plat requires that all of the lo~s and slreets be
surveyed and drawn i~ detail (az differing from the more genea'alized sketches of a
proposed mazt~r plan~_ The preliminary plat preparation must include an cavironmenta/
impact assessm~t that shows the impact of the proposal on cve~hing from schools to
fire and wildlife to subsurface conditions. A Traffic Accessibility Study must be
pry-pared that will show the street design stundards nccessmy W properly serve the
subdivision as well as the imoact on Golf Course Road.
An important lmrt of the pla~ing process is the p~aaration of ~ submi~i~ by ~
dcwlo~ ora S~sion ~v~ A~mont (S~). T~s is a con~ ~
the CiW or Co~ ~d ~e ~ o~e~ s~lling out e~fly w~t im~ov~, such
~ ~ ~d si~, ~c r~ wh~ such im~v~en~ ~ ~ bo ~
~ how s~e m to ~ fi~ ~e S~, ~c~ ~p~ ~ thc 1~1 gov~ is a
b~ng co~ on ~e devel~s.
During the preliminary platting process, the adjacent property owners are notified by
mail of the public hearing before the Planning Board at which the plat is presented. The
Laurel-Yellowstone Ci~-Conmy Planning Board is the bo~d design~ted by the City
Council in Ordinance 16.56.060 (if the site is to be annexed to Laurel) and by the
Yellowstone County Commissioners (if it remMns in the County) to conduct tho public
hearing required under State law. At the public hearing, which is advertised in the Lmcrel
Outlook, people can speak their minds about the proposal pro or con_ The decision as to
whether ~o approve, condlrionully approve~ or deny tl~ subdivision is up to the City
Council-or the County Commissioners--after the latter receives the recommendat/ons of
the Plavning Board. ~
RECOMMENDATION
I recommend that this application ~o change the zunmg be approved. The Planning
Board should not mix issues and should not try and link, for oxamplc, approval of the
zoning subject to annexation or some other condit/cm (Do not lxy and put conditions on
zoning!)
LAUREL PLANNING BOARD MEETING OF JULY 6, 2000
TO: Planning Board Members
FROM: Cai Cufnin, Planning Director
The folloWing are notes and considerations for tNs evening's meeting. There will be
others that come up during the meeting.
1. Zoning Commission must be convened to decide on zone change request. This
does not involve a public heanng.
This proposal does not conform to the adopted Comprehensive Plan. Approving
the zone change changes the adopted Comprehensive Plan from prov/ding this area as
agricultural land to making it residential. I address this in my comments. It is not a
problem, but I want the record to show and you all to be aware that the process of change
is occurring.
Close Zoning Commission after a decision is made and reconvene Planning
Board.
Saddleback Ridge Estates Subdivision: Open public hearing with presentation by
developers. (If zone change has been dan/ed, the preliminary plat cannot move forward.)
Planning Director's comments:
available.
Findings of Fact as reqnired by State law have been prepared and are
b. Subdivision Improvements Agreement (SI.A):
1. Confusion between references to building all imPr°vernems Via
private contract and the use of special improvement districts; this needs to be cleared up.
2. Water distribution system is still unclear. It is not shown on the
preliminary plat--and needs to be.
3. Reference to "Septic Tank Effluent Pump collection system" piping to be installed
during first phase; this needs to be clarified.
4. Consideration needs to be made to pave Saddleback Ridge Drive
sometime and provide sidewalks---perhaps after 25 homes are built (?). 5. Are utilities going to go underground?
6. County Commissioner signature block needs to be updated.
7. What provision is pNnned to provide another way into th/s
development in the future?
c. Plat drawing:
1. What is length of the temporary cul-de-sac Saddleback Ridge
Drive? If it is over 600 feet, a variance will have to be requested.
2.
3.
4.
5.
as shown.
~'Who is landowner to north?
~qhy isn't the water distribution system shown?
The adjacent zoning is wrong.
Laurel's Subdivision regulations require 2-foot contours, not 5-foot
d. Bylaws of Homeowners' Association: Why signed by others than
developers?
submitted.
There has been no Environmemal Impact Assessment prepared and
f. The proposed cash-in-lieu of park land must conform to the recently
adopted method for detenmning such value.
g. What is purpose of High Ridge Drive?
h. Golf Course Road should be paved to Saddleback Ridge Dr/ye.
CI~¥ HALL
I15W. 1ST ST.
PUB WORKS: 628-4796
WATER OFC: 628-7431
C Old~_T: 628-1964
FAX: 628-2241
City Of Laurel
P.O. Box 10
Laurel, Montana 59044
June 21, 2000
DEPARTMENT
LAUREL URBAN FIRE SERVICE AREA:
BOARD OF DIRECTORS:
In reviewing the proposal of the Saddleback Ridge Estates Subdivision, the Laurel
Volunteer Fire Depa~m~ent recommends the following issues be addressed to adequately
service this Subdivision. The issues of Premises Identification, Road Identification Signs,
Access Roads, Road Dimensions, Road Surfacing, Turning Radius and Dead Ends should
be addressed.
This property has approximately 37 building sites available for sale with plans for future
expansion. With the need to service th/s subdivision in the Laurel Urban Fire Service
Area the Laurel Volunteer Fire Department is recommending a water system capable of
delivering 250 gallons per minute or more for a period of two hours for residential
homes. With the additional onsite storage of water to service this subdivision the Laurel
Volunteer Fire Departments ISO rating should be maintained. If the water system is n0~
developed, the Lam'el Volunteer Fire Department is recommending that NFPA 13D
sprinkler systems be installed in all residential homes to protect lives.
These recommendations need to be addressed before the approval of the Saddleback
Ridge Estates Subdivision.
Respectfully,
City Of Laurel is an EEO Employer
Equal Housing Opportunity
RSSOCIFITES ,,7 ,.e..e
CUMIN
Billings, ML §91 n~ USA · 4~6/245-5843
ADD~
SUBJECT:
Addendum to Existing Contract Between Cumin
Associates and Laurel-Yellowstone City-County
Planning Board
DATE: July 6, 2000
It is hereby agreed that Cumin Associates shall be retained by the Laurel-Yellowstone
City-County Plarming Board for the period extending from July 1, 2000 to June 30, 2001.
Such retention shall be subject to the stipulations and conditions delineated in the existing
contract between the parties hereto. The remuneration to Cumin Associates shall be
$'15,000 for the said timeframe.
Approved, 'l~aurel-Yellowstone
City-County,,Planning Board
Cumin Associates