Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutZoning Commission-06-21-16 Minutes City Planning Board and Zoning Commission Tuesday, June 21, 2016 6:00 PM City Commission Chamber – 121 N. Rouse Ave. A. Call meeting to order – Zoning Commission Only Dan Stevenson – Present Erik Garberg – Present Julien Morice – Present George Thompson – Present Chris Mehl – Commission Liasion - Present B. 06:04:25 PMChanges to the Agenda – No changes to the agenda. C. 06:04:30 PM Public Comment –No Public Comment. D. Action Items - 06:04:45 PM 1. Simmental Zone Map Amendment, Application 16206 (WerBell) Recommended Motion: Having reviewed and considered the staff report, application materials, public comment, and all information presented, I hereby adopt the findings presented in the staff report for application 16206 and move to recommend approval of the Simmental Zone Map Amendment, with contingencies required to complete the application processing. 06:05:00 PM Mitch Werbell enters his staff report into the record and begins presentation on the Simmetal Zone Map Amendment. 06:09:15 PM Questions for staff. 06:09:25 PM Chris Mehl questions if there’s any more information on the connectivity concerns from engineering. Mr. Werbell responds in detail. 06:10:39 PM Applicant Brianna Baker from Madison Engineering begins short presentation on the project. 06:11:23 PM Questions for applicant George Thompson questions the connectivity issue. Applicant responds that they would need to do a traffic study. Board discusses if connectivity impacts decision regarding connectivity. 06:13:09 PM Public Comment for Simmental – No public comment. 06:13:22 PM Julien Morice moves: Having reviewed and considered the staff report, application materials, public comment, and all information presented, I hereby adopt the findings presented in the staff report for application 16206 and move to recommend approval of the Simmental Zone Map Ammendment, with contingencies required to complete the application processing. Second by Dan Stevenson 06:14:01 PM Mr. Morice states that he supports the change because it seems to support the goals long term and mirrors what everyone wants. Mr. Garberg states he feels the discussion was largely completed when this project last came to the board, so it’s an easy decision. 06:14:48 PM Board approves unanimously. 06:15:02 PM Board takes a recess while we wait for the other planning board members to arrive. E. 06:34:37 PM Call meeting to order – Bring Planning Board to Order Brianne Dugan – Present Henry Happel - Present Dan Stevenson – Present Chris Mehl – Present Erik Garberg – Present George Thompson – Present Paul Spitler – Present Julien Morice – Present Laura Waterton – Present Jerry Pape - Present 1. Amend the Bozeman Municipal Code to create a cottage housing residential type. 06:35:53 PM Recommended Motion: Having reviewed and considered the proposed ordinance, public comment, and all the information presented, I hereby adopt the findings presented in the staff report for application 16146 and move to recommend adoption of Ordinance 1952 06:36:03 PM – Chris Saunders begins presentation of the cottage housing ordinance. Mr. Saunders states that there has been no formal public comment on the ordinance specifically. But they have received comments in conjunction with the UDC update. Mr. Saunders indicates that homes are increasing as number of individuals per household is decreasing. 06:39:54 PM Mr. Saunders states that we are on the cusp of a trend for a demand smaller homes. 06:41:08 PM Mr. Saunders states that we are creating a variation on single family homes and it is completely optional to do it. However, if developers opt for cottage housing, there is a requirement to include affordable housing. 06:42:38 PM Mr. Saunders explains definition of “cottage” and “cottage housing”. 06:42:59 PM Mr. Saunders stated that they are proposing these in all residential districts, except in residential suburban districts. Continues to explains why it is not included in RS. 06:44:05 PM Mr. Saunders states that there are some projects in town that look similar to cottage housing, but not exactly. They were all developed as condominiums and provides images of these examples from town. 06:45:41 PM Mr. Saunders explains that the benefit of not developing these as condominiums is that home ownership for fee-simple properties is easier. 06:46:23 PM Mr. Saunders discusses primary and dependent lots. 06:48:28 PM Mr. Saunders discusses how Cottage Housing mirrors other subdivisions. Mr. Saunders explains building code requirements that get us to minimum square footage for a home in Bozeman. 06:50:52 PM Mr. Saunders discusses the unique elements to Cottage Housing that differ from other subdivisions. Expedited review, individual ownership (not condominium), design standards, concurrent construction with infrastructure, dwelling size restrictions (max house size), has a subdivision exemption option and requires affordable housing. 06:54:13 PM Mr. Saunders discusses design standards and provides layout examples. 06:56:04 PM Mr. Saunders states attention to detail makes or breaks the projects. Details on home appearance and how the homes interact with one another. Provides examples of types of designs they are trying to avoid and samples of ideal cottage housing groups. 06:58:17 PM Mr. Saunders discusses the affordable house requirement. 06:59:22 PM Mr. Saunders explains the review process differences for these types of projects. Mr. Saunders indicates there are departures from the requirements that they will consider. 07:00:22 PM Mr. Saunders states that the design standards is the most detailed portion of the ordinance. 07:00:47 PM Mr. Saunders states that cottage housing is an allowance, it is not requires and not guaranteed. It is largely design dependent – you must be able to make it work within the requirements. 07:01:41 PM Mr. Saunders discusses the Criteria of Evaluation. Staff believes this could be a positive thing for the community and like that it offers more options for developers. 07:03:40 PM Mr. Saunders states that there has been an architect who is developing a test site and it has helped to develop the text of the ordinance. 07:05:16 PM Questions for staff George Thompson questions the required number of affordable units required. Mr. Saunders responds that the ordinance was designed for the affordable housing initiatives. There is a minimum of 4 homes for a cottage housing cluster and at least one of those needs to be affordable. Mr. Thompson questions if the other homes would be subsidizing the affordable home. Mr. Saunders explains that may not necessarily be the case. Mr. Thompson states that we have a common open space between all the units, so he questions if there was any thought given to reducing park land requirements. Mr. Saunders responds that part of the affordable housing ordinance, developers already do get a discount on how much parkland is required. Mr. Saunders responds. 07:11:50 PM Mr. Thompson questions how many homes have been built at the minimum home size to date. Mr. Saunders responds that no homes have been built to that size. The minimum is just a minimum. Home size should be consumer driven. Mr. Saunders states that this is a tool to allow for alternatives for special situations without invoking a number of variances, etc. to make a project work. 07:14:32 PM Mr. Thompson states that between 4 and 10 units on a cottage housing project, you must provide at least one affordable unit. Mr. Saunders explains that it is between 1 and 3 units – 1 at 70% AMI or 3 at 90%. Mr. Saunders explains that the homes do not need to be the same, they just need to be similar on the exterior to mix with the surrounding homes. Board continues to discuss what is or is not allowed with regards to difference between the market price home and affordable units. 07:17:20 PM Mr. Thompson questions if this ordinance would have a larger impact on the middle class if we removed the affordable housing component. Mr. Saunders states that these units are usually upper end units – they maintain high costs. 07:18:43 PM Mr. Pape states that he feels this is great work and innovative. He discusses the problems regarding financing availability for condominiums. Mr. Pape provides an example within the town that is a good example of this. Mr. Pape states that he is concerned with the availability of financing for these units – bankers he works with will likely not approve this project. He states that holding up the affordable pricing of this will impact the pricing of the other units. Mr. Pape states that we need to determine if anyone would lend on this. 07:22:08 PM Mr. Pape questions how this would have impacted projects in the past. Mr. Saunders responds in detail. Mr. Pape states that it would be essential to explore the financing available and the ramifications of making the builder go down the path of affordability. 07:24:18 PM Dan Stevenson questions if Jerry Pape was implying that the first unit would be required to be the affordable unit. Mr. Pape responds. Mr. Stevenson states that it would be ideal to present the affordable unit last to avoid any appraisal issues at the time of sale. Mr Pape agrees that would be ideal. 07:28:08 PM Mr. Garberg states that the affordable housing portion is outside of the purview of the board. Mr. Pape responds that he still doesn’t want to approve anything with some hidden challenges. 07:29:08 PM Mr. Stevenson questions fire department access. Mr. Saunders states that’s why design is key – they have to meet fire access codes. 07:30:54 PM Mr. Pape states that this will also bring up insurance questions. Mr. Saunders states that the spacing requirements were there to allow for fire standards and that if the units got closer together, then they would need to do fire rating, etc. 07:32:20 PM Paul Spitler would like more information on what about the ordinance is needed. What problems do the code have. Mr. Saunders responds it would allow fee-simple lending, in addition, the current code requires certain lot sizes which implies larger homes. This allows for a coordinated design to allow for smaller lots and smaller homes, so more flexibility. Mr. Garberg states it is also a more defined approval path. 07:34:59 PM Mr. Mehl questions the amount of time saved for this process instead of a minor subdivision. Mr. Saunders states that it will save 2.5-3 months – but up to 1 year if you require subdivision exemption. 07:36:23 PM Mr. Mehl questions why they are requiring an HOA. Mr. Saunders responds that there is a requirement for public open space and someone needs to manage and hold ownership of that – that is the HOA. 07:37:15 PM Mr. Mehl questions the set back requirements. Mr. Saunders responds that there are two sets of setback requirements. There are primary lots and dependent lots which require different setbacks. 07:39:17 PM Mr. Mehl question the roof standards and why a pitched roof is required. Mr. Saunders responds there is an increase of flat roofs being presented. He states it has to do with neighborhood feel. In addition, it will impact the massing of the buildings. 07:41:57 PM Laura Waterton questions if you could combine multiple lots in an existing subdivision and still go through the subdivision exemption process. He states you could bring them forward for this, but when platted, it will remove the original lot lines. Mr. Morice questions firewall requirements and if there are issues with the roof hanging over lot lines. Mr. Saunders responds that they have run the firewall requirements by the building division and that’s where the requirement comes from. He states that with regards to the roof the concerns they’ve addressed is that there will be cooperation between homeowners that would allow for shared space between homes. Also, drainage, someone is paying attention to the project as a whole which would account for all drainage. Clarification that foundation wouldn’t be on the lot line, the widest part of the building would be on the lot line. 07:46:47 PM Mr. Pape states that he feels these ideas will work, but he has seen these types of exploratory projects fail. He would like to know if there were provisions for amending the code quickly to refine the ordinance more quickly. Mr. Saunders responds that we could design this with an expiration date that needs to be renewed if it is successful and others want to be renewed. Mr. Saunders states other than that, it would require an ordinance to amend it. 07:50:05 PM Open for Public Comment. 07:50:28 PM Luke Howard – SWMBA – He feels that the second draft has addressed a lot of the issues presented initially. He agrees with Chris Saunders, that it would require the design community to be creative with their design. He states that the open space should be counted toward their park land dedication. He said he understands Jerry Pape’s concerns with regards to financing. He feels there are developers who may come from out of state with links to out of state bankers who are more comfortable with these types of loans. He states that with building approving the design, that there shouldn’t be a huge concern with getting insurance. He states there is a demand for these smaller homes on smaller lots. He feels this reflects the spirit of cottage housing and diversity for Bozeman. 07:55:00 PM Ben Lloyd – CommaQ Architecture – He feels it’s another tool in your tool box for good design. It allows designers more options. He states that he feels it’s innovative because of the space between the homes. He states that it provides transitional space between zones. He states that with regards to affordability, it becomes more affordable to provide a smaller affordable home than a large affordable home, if subsidizing through the other homes. 07:58:20 PM Mr. Garberg states that he thinks they have used the “cottage housing” title because there are other aspects of innovative that they may try to explore. 07:58:44 PM Close public comment. 07:58:49 PM George Thompson makes a motion for the planning board and zoning commission: Having reviewed and considered the proposed ordinance, public comment, and all the information presented in the staff report for application 16146 and move to recommend adoption of Ordinance 1952. Jerry Pape Seconds for planning board Julien Morice Seconds for zoning commission Mr. Thompson speaks to his motion. That it he appreciates the design requirements. He is challenged by the affordable housing requirements and the 800 sq ft minimum. He feels home ownership is not a right, it’s a privilege, if you’re not in a position to own a home, then the cost could burden you. 08:02:43 PM Mr. Morice states he likes this. He agrees it is another tool in the tool box. He said most of his concerns have been addressed. He states that the appraisal portion concerns him, so maybe the affordable home should be the smaller unit, or else it may drag down the cost. He is concerned about with resale price. He questions if there is these could all be rentals or if there is homeowner occupied requirements. He thinks it is potentially a great program. He feels it would be nice to do this as not an affordable option as well. He would also like to see it tested at first and see how it looks after making changes through a few samples. 08:06:35 PM Jerry Pape states that talking to an appraiser would be a good idea. He states that designating an affordable unit would be helpful. He feels the City should give the planner the ability to work backwards and refine what was written before it goes into final approval. He feels he supports this because the findings are there. He thinks there are projects like this already available in town that are similar. 08:08:43 PM Henry Happel states that he will support the motion. He likes that we’re expanding the development types available. He states that he likes that we were able to look at other communities that have developed this in the past to build our plan on. He feels the planners have thought through many of the issues. He states that he suspects there will be areas that need revision and hopes we bring forward those amendments for approval. 08:10:14 PM Mr. Garberg states that he would go to 20% and not limit it to 10% for affordable housing. He feels the City needs to be involved in the management of these in some way. He feels attached garages shouldn’t be included toward total square footage. He is concerned with the roof requirements as 08:11:58 PM Planning Board Vote: In Favor: Henry Happel, Chris Mehl, Jerry Pape, Laura Waterton, Brianne Dugan, Paul Spittler Against: George Thompson Motion Passes Zoning Commission Vote: In favor: Erik Garberg, Julien Morice, Dan Stevenson Against: George Thompson Motion Passes F. FYI/Discussion 08:13:20 PM Mr. Saunders informs the board about the strategic plan update taking place. 08:14:00 PM Mr. Saunders informed the board that Montana Department of Transportation is looking for input for their transportation plan update. G. 08:17:05 PM Adjournment For more information please contact Alicia Kennedy at akennedy@bozeman.net This board generally meets the first and third Tuesday of the month at 7:00pm Committee meetings are open to all members of the public. If you have a disability and require assistance, please contact our Interim ADA coordinator, Chuck Winn at 582-2307 (TDD 582-2301).