HomeMy WebLinkAbout031808 Planning Board Minutesc MINUTES
CITY OF BOZEMAN PLANNING BOARD,
TUESDAY, March 18, 2008
ITEM 1. CALL TO ORDER AND ATTENDANCE
President JP Pomnichowski called the regular meeting of the Planning Board to order at 7:08 p.m. and directed the secretary to take attendance.
Members Present:
JP Pomnichowski, President
Randy Carpenter
Erik Henyon
Brian Caldwell
Donna Swarthout
Chris Mehl
Cathy Costakis
Sean Becker
Members Absent:
Bill Quinn (excused)
Staff Present:
Chris Saunders, Assistant Director of Planning
Shoni Dykstra, Planning Secretary
Guests Present:
ITEM 2. PUBLIC COMMENT (0-15 MINUTES)
{Limited to any public matter within the jurisdiction of the Planning Board and not scheduled on this agenda. Three-minute time limit per speaker.}
Seeing there was none, President Pomnichowski closed this portion of the meeting.
ITEM 3. MINUTES OF MARCH 4, 2008
Cathy Costakis noted the following correction for the minutes of March 4, 2008, LEED MD should read LEED ND. Seeing no other changes, additions or corrections to the minutes, President
Pomnichowski stated that the minutes from March 4, 2008 would stand as corrected.
ITEM 4. BOZEMAN COMMUNITY PLAN UPDATE
Review and discussion of the analysis and the issues with the current/new chapters of the Bozeman Community Plan:
1. Introduction
2. Addressing Growth and Change
3. Community Character and Design
Chris Saunders, Assistant Director of Planning, presented the proposed changes to the first chapter of the Bozeman Community Plan Update. He noted the Clarion Report along with Staff
have suggested moving the amendment language included in the 2020 Community Plan to a
chapter of its own in the Update. He noted the inclusion of a purpose statement for the creation and benefit of the growth policy itself. He noted there are no goals associated at this
point with chapter 1. He noted most of the changes to the introduction were fine tuning rather than bigger policy issues.
President Pomnichowski sought input regarding any policy issues any of the members of the Board had relating to chapter one. Chris Mehl sought clarification regarding the location of
an executive summary within the Update. Mr. Saunders noted currently the executive summary was included in the Introduction, but the executive summary could be separated. Mr. Mehl noted
that Section 2.5 was being included in the appendix and sought clarification on what happened with the rest of the existing Chapter 3. Mr. Saunders noted some key elements may be moved
to the introduction but most of the current Chapter 3 would become an appendix. Mr. Mehl would like to see a 1500 word or less executive summary presented separate from the first chapter
so the document is less intimidating for the general public. Ms. Costakis noted she agreed with including a separate executive summary. She also noted including a clause in the vision
related to public health and safety would be beneficial. She noted Bozeman’s Motto “The Most Livable Place” relies heavily on the quality of public health and safety. President Pomnichowski
noted Chapter 3 in the Update addressed public health and safety. Mr. Saunders noted the public health and safety theme would be included in the introduction. Brian Caldwell noted that
the Sustainability Task Force was currently meeting; he noted the current plan has a passive voice in comparison to how sustainability has come to the forefront in planning and construction.
Planner Saunders noted buzz words had been intentionally left out in the 2020 Community Plan to place the focus on specific principles. Mr. Caldwell noted the Update would benefit by
addressing sustainability and sought clarification on what could be done to encourage sustainability. Planner Saunders noted the Update could share good examples of sustainable projects,
but they could not make it code to be LEED for example. Mr. Henyon noted how the executive summary and the vision incorporated public health and safety would affect the implementation
and the public perception and should be utilized as a guide in that area. President Pomnichowski stated she supported the idea.
Planner Saunders noted that the broader themes introduced in the first chapter would be fleshed out later in the Plan. President Pomnichowski sought clarification about how the Clarion
Report had been perceived by Staff. Mr. Saunders noted Staff had collaborated with Clarion during their analysis and Staff is comfortable with the summary.
Planner Saunders presented an overview of the proposed second chapter, “Addressing Growth and Change”. He noted the major issues addressed within the Clarion Report. He noted 2007 Senate
Bill 201 which included a “may” provision which enabled a higher degree of cooperation between the City and the County. He noted Bozeman is well positioned with the facilities planning
that currently takes place. He also noted the issue of neighborhood plans and subarea planning. He stated a neighborhood plan related to an area with a majority of it already built while
a subarea plan addresses an area which will see significant development. He noted two Neighborhood Plans have been completed since the adoption of the Bozeman 2020 Plan. He noted subarea
planning had not been successful, and Staff is concerned about private entities planning for property which they do not own. Planner Saunders noted many of the concerns
driving the creation of subarea plans were mitigated through the level of facility planning currently taking place. Mr. Caldwell noted that the subarea plan had been undermined when
it was brought before the Commission. President Pomnichowski sought clarification on how subarea plans were referenced in state statute. Planner Saunders noted they are considered a
neighborhood plan and are optional. President Pomnichowski noted she did not see a problem with excluding them from the Update as long as neighborhood plans were still included. Planner
Saunders noted that even if the Update did not address either neighborhood plans or subarea plans it would still comply with state statute as they are optional.
Planner Saunders noted that the goals incorporated within the chapter, and he noted they have generally worked well. He noted the annexation policy has been revised, and the annexation
map and land use inventory are being revised. He noted Staff are working on assimilating other data such as an infill map and a list of pending subdivisions. He noted Bozeman has been
increasing in population faster than area and increasing density is happening. He noted the new street map showed the build up and incorporation of 24 miles of new streets in the City
during the past 18 months.
President Pomnichowski noted the three goals for the chapter. Mr. Caldwell noted the importance of creating parking districts and structured parking in commercial areas. He noted the
development of different areas would be affected by a parking garage in various locations. Mr. Mehl noted that it might be a more appropriate goal in a different chapter. Mr. Caldwell
noted it might be more appropriate in another location, but he would like to see it as a goal.
Mr. Henyon noted including current inventory through links on the internet would be beneficial to the Plan. He noted it would be harder to incorporate into a hard copy of the Update.
Mr. Carpenter stated he felt this is the most important chapter of the growth policy. He noted that being able to see how the 2020 played out in an actuality is important. He stated
few people understand the numbers presented unless they have something to compare it to. He noted that it is important to include the success stories in the Update such as, “If the 7,272
homes had been constructed at a rural density of 1 dwelling per 5 net acres, rather than an in-town density of 6 dwellings per net acre, the extra land consumed by rural development
would have been an additional 58.7 square miles.” He also noted climate change and water issues were not addressed in this chapter. He noted the City Commission’s commitment to climate
change and he noted this would be the place to address sustainability rather than just livability. Mr. Mehl sought clarification on why Mr. Carpenter thought it would be best addressed
in Chapter 2. Mr. Carpenter noted that sustainability is a thematic issue. Donna Swarthout sought clarification on sustainability being a buzz word Staff would like to avoid. Planner
Saunders noted that sustainability was not a buzz word, as the Update can advocate for a series of principles falling under sustainability. Mr. Henyon noted that Climate Change could
be very polarizing and stated sustainability could be addressed without bringing in climate change. Mr. Carpenter noted sustainability was a major issue and he would like the issue addressed
and the phrasing could be changed. Mr. Mehl sought clarification if another goal was being proposed for Chapter 2. Mr. Carpenter responded he would like to see it be an additional goal.
Mr. Saunders noted sustainability would be thematic to the entire document and phrasing could be done at the final stages. Planner Saunders noted that the connotations and implications
of what term they choose
would be included in the document. Mr. Becker noted that sustainability and environmental concerns were integral to every topic within the Plan and the 2020 Plan was weak in those areas.
He noted having a more pronounced stance within the Update would be beneficial since it benefited the community as a whole. He encouraged the Board to take a strong stance within the
Update. He noted the Update was a tool that could be used to raise community awareness, as well as, educate the public in how interrelated all of the topics were. He noted Clarion did
not address sustainability much in their analysis.
Mr. Mehl noted he would like to keep the goals and the chapter focused. Mr. Carpenter noted water and sustainability were two overarching issues that should be included within the entirety
of the program. Planner Saunders noted the themes can come through the Update through the goals, objectives, and also in the text. President Pomnichowski noted goals could be brought
up to address these issues as it will reflect what is important in the following chapters. Mr. Henyon noted the long term economic benefit to the entire community when efficiency and
sustainability were taken into consideration through the entire development process.
Planner Saunders presented an overview of the proposed third chapter, “Community Character and Design,” which used to be chapter 4. He noted arts and culture as well as historic preservation
would be contained within their own chapters in the Update. Planner Saunders noted the correspondence he had received from Chris Naumann, executive director of the Downtown Bozeman Partnership.
Planner Saunders noted that a formal economic development plan was proposed on the FY09 budget. He noted the Design Guidelines for Historic Preservation and the Neighborhood Conservation
Overlay District and the Design Objectives Plan for Entryway Corridor had been adopted after the adoption of the Bozeman 2020 Community Plan. Mr. Henyon asked if the Update could identify
unwanted community characteristics. Planner Saunders noted that the Update could specify unwanted characteristics, but also using mitigating factors and conditions would probably be
better.
President Pomnichowski sought additional input from the Board regarding the goals outlined in the Staff report or any other comments for the chapter. Ms. Costakis sought clarification
on what community character addressed and how that played out in areas such as 19th Avenue. Mr. Henyon stated that North 19th Avenue was unique in its character rather than just the
big box stores. Ms. Costakis noted she agreed, but also felt there is room for improvement. Mr. Caldwell noted he would like to see the Update address the community character of the
next major arterial. Mr. Henyon noted he did not believe Bozeman needed another North 19th, but he would like to see more mixed use development to be more walkable and more community
oriented. Planner Saunders noted the Update could state they would like to see more efficient land use for the following reasons. Mr. Caldwell noted Residential zones have required minimum
densities, and he would like to see a corresponding regulation for Commercial land use. Mr. Henyon noted that the economic effects and feasibility would support a corresponding regulation.
Mr. Carpenter sought clarification on what mitigations could be incorporated. Mr. Mehl noted he would like to be more informed before making a decision about incorporating a new regulation.
Mr. Becker noted there was an implied standard, but noted having a formalized regulation would bring more consistency between the different boards and reviews.
Planner Saunders noted these chapters could be revisited if the need arose. He also noted he would extend an invitation to the Historic Preservation Board to attend the meeting on April
1 to discuss the Historic Preservation Chapter.
ITEM 5. NEW BUSINESS
Mr. Caldwell noted a seminar on Land Use and Growth in the Rocky Mountain Area on April 25th.
ITEM 6. ADJOURNMENT
Seeing there were no further issues before the Board, President Pomnichowski adjourned the meeting at 9:15 p.m.
__________________________________ __________________________________
JP Pomnichowski, President Chris Saunders, Assistant Director
Planning Board Planning & Community Development
City of Bozeman City of Bozeman