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HomeMy WebLinkAbout081908 Planning Board MinutesMINUTES CITY OF BOZEMAN PLANNING BOARD COMMUNITY ROOM, GALLATIN COUNTY COURTHOUSE TUESDAY, AUGUST 19, 2008 ITEM 1. CALL TO ORDER AND ATTENDANCE President JP Pomnichowski called the regular meeting of the Planning Board to order at 7:03 p.m. and directed the secretary to take attendance. Members Present: JP Pomnichowski, President Erik Henyon Brian Caldwell Donna Swarthout Chris Mehl Cathy Costakis Dawn Smith Bill Quinn Staff Present: Chris Saunders, Assistant Director of Planning Shoni Dykstra, Planning Secretary Members Absent: Sean Becker (excused) Guests Present: Jim Stone David Smith Dennis Carlson Wendy Renner David Loseff Belinda Nash Bob Hietala Peter Bertylson 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 AUGUST 5, 2008. Ms. Swarthout noted on page seven she had said employer rather than employment. Seeing there were no other changes, additions or corrections to the minutes, President Pomnichowski stated that the minutes from August 5, 2008 would stand as corrected. ITEM 4. PROJECT REVIEW Subdivision Preliminary Plat Application #P-08007 (Fellowship Baptist Church MiSub) - A Minor Subdivision Preliminary Plat Application on behalf of the owner, Fellowship Baptist Church, and the representative, Gaston Engineering and Surveying, to allow subdivision of 10.99 acres into two lots for R-3 (Residential Medium Density District) and R-4 (Residential High Density District) development. The property is legally described as the Amended Plat of Annie Subdivision Phase 2, Lot 5, and is located in the Southwest ¼ and Southeast ¼ of Section 2, T2S, R5E, PMM, City of Bozeman, Gallatin County, Montana. (Skelton) President Pomnichowski stated the application had been opened and continued at the applicant’s request. She called for public comment. Dennis Foreman of Gaston Engineering sought clarification on the request. JP responded a variance had not been applied for on North 25th Avenue yet and the applicant requested an extension to submit those materials. ITEM 5. BOZEMAN COMMUNITY PLAN UPDATE 1. Presentation by the Prospera Business Network regarding the Economic Development Plan. Bob Hietala of Prospera introduced Peter Bertelsen and Cherlyn Wilcox also of Prospera. He presented a PowerPoint regarding the Economic Development Plan which the City Commission had recently approved funding for. He said ideally the plan would take six months to be developed. He noted the two project outcomes were the creation of a comprehensive economic development plan which would be utilized to incorporate information into the Growth Policy Update. He stated an advisory committee is being developed to oversee the process. He noted the first couple of months would be data collection, followed by a process of review and revision. President Pomnichowski sought clarification on the inclusion of the completed Economic Development Plan within the Growth Policy Update. Chris Saunders responded the Economic Development Plan would be included by reference, and the content of the Growth Policy Update would not be supplanted unless it was necessary. He also stated updated information could be included in the Update with a growth policy amendment. Chris Mehl noted the Board and the advisory committee should collaborate for the benefit of both. Mr. Hietala responded having input, direction, and integration were crucial. The Board thanked Mr. Hietala and others from Prospera for coming. Review and discussion of the analysis and the issues with the current/new chapters of the Bozeman Community Plan as related to Economic Development. Planner Saunders noted a professional services agreement was being developed for the Economic Development Plan. He stated economic development involves balancing a wide variety of interests and concerns. He stated that economic development was impacted by the City budget. He showed the Special Improvement Districts (SIDs) within the City. He also showed a map with annexations into the City since 1998. Brian Caldwell sought clarification on the City’s perspective on SIDs. Planner Saunders responded they usually begin by a petition from people in the area affected by the infrastructure. He noted the area is linked to beneficiaries as a way to get the improvements completed. He stated it was generally reserved for larger scale infrastructure improvements. David Smith from the Chamber of Commerce noted the Chamber has partnered with Prospera. He brought forward ideas members of the Chamber had regarding Economic Development and the contents of the Growth Policy. He stated the policy should indicate an interest and desire to recruit industries into the area. He stated manufacturers find it challenging to get through the City process especially with the entryway design standards. He stated incorporation of land has a positive impact on those looking at moving their businesses into the area. He suggested a free wireless community would be a good recruiting tool and a benefit to the tourism industry. He also stated a reliable transit system is beneficial and it needs to extend further out to places such as Livingston and Three Forks with earlier opportunities for employees getting to work on time. He also stated Bozeman lacks a conference center which could be incentivized. He encouraged creation of industrial or trade jobs as a way to provide additional education and to keep people plugged into the community. He also encouraged more collaboration between the City and MSU. Mr. Smith noted the City does not have a streamlined process and he talks with people who get frustrated with it and the lack of efficiency. He thanked the Board for their invitation and stated he does hear positive things about the City from those living outside City limits. Dennis Carlson of the Gallatin Association of Realtors noted businesses thrive on freedom. He noted the City of Bozeman should seek input from national and global business leaders to update this chapter. He stated the City should forge partnerships with private and public entities which will promote effective and long lasting workforce training. He noted Belgrade’s READI Workforce Training program can easily be replicated in Bozeman. He noted small businesses are the heart of Bozeman’s economy and more attention should be paid to smaller workforces. He encouraged the inclusion of web based opportunities and the impact it has on the economy of Bozeman. He encouraged the pursuit of increasing bandwidth and capacity to the area. He noted health insurance should be made more readily available for small businesses and individuals which could be addressed within the Update. He encouraged the implementation of a streamlined permit process. He stated lower taxes stimulate an economy and urged the application of generally applicable taxes to apply across the city population to fund infrastructure. He urged the relaxation of land use regulations in order to accommodate the needs of many different types of land uses. He also stated incentives work while mandates do not. He stated the Update should leverage the power of the individual through economic freedom for the benefit of the community. Jim Stone of the Teamsters noted he worked out of Great Falls. He stated labor is an important part of the economic chapter. He stated availability to train people in different trades is important and local labor is involved in that. President Pomnichowski opened the discussion to board members. Mr. Caldwell stated the regents denied a 2 year trade program through MSU, and the City is not always the governing authority. He also noted the City had provided for wireless connections within the Intermodal Parking Facility. He stated that viable options could be pursued between streets and the infrastructure. He noted that when improvements are a part of the CIP, they could go towards that. He noted that Core development and utilization of fees that could be a good example. Mr. Mehl thanked members of the public who had commented. He noted that examples of other Cities who had developed Economic Plans could be utilized to save time and energy. He noted that it is easier to take policies like those forward. Ms. Smith noted that she agreed with Mr. Stone. She encouraged the Prospera review to take into account the labor force. President Pomnichowski questioned Mr. Heitala about the composition and number of the advisory committee. Mr. Heitala responded he hoped to have approximately 12 people on the committee with two members from the Planning Board. He stated Chris Naumann and David Smith had already committed and he was recruiting from key stake holders, the Commission, and Planning Staff. Ms. Swarthout noted workforce training and skills development could be included in the revised economic development chapter. She stated under objective 1.5 she would add, “and that provide opportunities to expand the knowledge and skills of Bozeman’s workforce”. Under the same goal, she noted support and recruitment of various types of businesses such as e-businesses, small businesses, and green businesses could also be included. Mr. Caldwell sought clarification on the result of the Commission discussion regarding the revolving loan fund and the use of money towards retrofitting established businesses to be sustainable. Planner Saunders responded he did not know the outcome of the discussion. Mr. Hietala noted the Big Sky Energy Fund is a revolving loan fund for businesses moving to more efficient and green practices. Mr. Caldwell sought clarification from the Board with regard to building within the Core and structured parking and incentives. President Pomnichowski stated specifics should be included in the Economic Development Plan rather than in the Update. Planner Saunders responded support could take place in numerous ways. Mr. Caldwell stated he would like to see the concept called out in the Update with incentives or else structured parking will not take place. President Pomnichowski noted the vision of incentives for condensed development, efficient land use, smaller vehicle footprint, etc would fit within the chapter. It was moved by Mr. Caldwell, seconded by Ms. Swarthout, to approve language encouraging and incentivizing the efficient use of land and structured parking. Mr. Mehl sought clarification on the inclusion of structured parking in the wording. Mr. Caldwell responded he would like a goal to speak directly to structured parking and its incentives. Ms. Costakis sought clarification on the creation of structured parking or utilizing parking garages. President Pomnichowski noted stated she had reservations when structured parking was vague in reference. Mr. Caldwell responded he felt it was an essential component of land use and economic development. Mr. Henyon stated he did not think the economic development chapter was the best placement of the statement, but he liked the difference between mandates and incentives. Mr. Quinn stated the generality of the statement made did not jeopardize any other statement in the vision document. Ms. Costakis stated businesses are not building efficiently and parking should be included. Mr. Mehl stated the inclusion is not a mandate, but he would like it to say “including structured parking” rather than “and structured parking”. Mr. Henyon noted justification could include cost savings due with regard to snow removal. Planner Saunders stated that structured parking includes private garage. He stated incentives for commercial projects could include relaxed setbacks or a higher percentage of lot coverage. He stated interpretation is open and the growth policy is not a mandated policy. President Pomnichowski responded projects need to comply with the growth policy and commercial projects should be held to a high standard and she does not want any policy which would detract from those standards. Those voting Aye being Mr. Caldwell, Ms. Swarthout, Mr. Quinn, Mr. Henyon, and Ms. Costakis. Those voting No being Mr. Mehl and President Pomnichowski. Those abstaining being Ms. Smith. The motion carried 5-2. Ms. Swarthout sought clarification on language of the City’s support of business and industry. Ms. Costakis stated public and private partnerships are a great idea to utilize the different resources through partnerships. She encouraged meeting regularly with the business community and with MSU and the County. Mr. Mehl stated a part of economic development is incentivizing and attracting non profits and other different business opportunities. He stated he would like to expand goal 1.3. He further noted continuing 2.4 because we have a great quality economy, but we don’t have a diverse economy. He also noted twenty percent of businesses employed 20 or fewer people and allowing for diversity within land use benefits small businesses. Mr. Caldwell noted streamlining processes would sacrifice other aspects and the regulations were there for a reason. President Pomnichowski agreed saying that Bozeman’s entryway is unique. Planner Saunders noted Mr. Hietala had requested two Board members to serve on the advisory committee. President Pomnichowski suggested the Board vote on the membership next meeting. Mr. Hietala noted the committee would meet once a month and Friday at lunch was the tentative time set. Transportation Chapter President Pomnichowski sought clarification on referencing the various plans within the sidebar of the chapter related to the plan. Planner Saunders responded the Bozeman Area Transportation Plan would be included through reference and it could be represented in the sidebar. Mr. Mehl sought clarification on the linking of plans on the web page. Planner Saunders responded it depended on how the webpage was rebuilt. Ms. Smith stated with the regard to the street types and encouraging the proper hierarchy with regard to collectors and neighborhood streets. Planner Saunders noted the level of detail would be depicted within the Transportation Plan. President Pomnichowski stated it could be referenced within a sidebar in the chapter to encourage the appropriate use and loads on street types. Planner Saunders responded it could fit under Goal T-1. Mr. Mehl stated objective T-2.3 came across as an attack. Ms. Costakis, Mr. Caldwell, and Ms. Swarthout responded they liked the statement. Ms. Smith responded it could be restated to say “Reduce the negative impacts of the automobile”. Mr. Henyon noted the negative impacts are increasing due to growth. He stated the number of red lights in the downtown area negatively impact health and safety, and a statement should be included to make travel more efficient. Ms. Costakis responded mitigation only goes so far and then development patterns have to change to alleviate the traffic problem. President Pomnichowski stated the transportation plan addressed problem areas in detail. She stated she would like to include multimodal transportation, and coordination with different jurisdictional departments such as MDoT, the Federal Transportation Department, and the County Road Department. President Pomnichowski stated she would like to see the “completion of the grid street system” and the encouragement of infill. Public Services and Facilities Chapter Planner Saunders stated the chapter would have a related appendix. President Pomnichowski sought clarification on the sidebar regarding adopted policies and the inclusion of the CAP. Planner Saunders noted it referred to City operations and did relate to facilities indirectly. Ms. Smith sought clarification on the inclusion of ways to access public services and information. Planner Saunders responded the website would have active links to the various plans, but there is not a centralized office for the City. Mr. Henyon sought clarification on including information regarding the jail. He also stated his concern when implementation policies related to specific funding enterprises. Planner Saunders responded the budget is scrutinized on a number of levels. Planner Saunders responded that the jail would fit under Goal 2. President Pomnichowski sought clarification on the inclusion of the courts and how the city administration is handled as well as the buildings. Planner Saunders responded there were general guidelines under Goal 1, but there was not a specific plan as to how the City will operate its land holdings in general. Mr. Henyon stated the vision document should include a statement referencing the most efficient use of government and housing employees in one facility. President Pomnichowski stated she thinks things are alright as they are. Mr. Mehl stated including a telephone number to call for general information would be helpful. Mr. Henyon noted consolidating city infrastructure and city services for cost efficiency should be included. Mr. Mehl responded the Board really did not know what would be cheaper. Mr. Caldwell responded he did not think the growth policy was the document to utilize to look into it. Planner Saunders noted aggregation had been talked about, but no action had been taken. ITEM 6. NEW BUSINESS Bill Quinn noted he would be absent on the 16th of September. ITEM 7. ADJOURNMENT Seeing there were no further issues before the Board, President Pomnichowski adjourned the meeting at 9:24 p.m. __________________________________ __________________________________ JP Pomnichowski, President Chris Saunders, Assistant Director Planning Board Planning & Community Development City of Bozeman City of Bozeman