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06-19-2012 PCMMINUTES HUTCHINSON PLANNING COMMISSION Tuesday, June 19, 2012 Hutchinson City Council Chambers 1. CALL TO ORDER 5:30 P.M. The meeting was called to order by Chairman John Lofdahl at 5:30 p.m. with the following members present: Raymond Norton, Bill Arndt, Dean Kirchoff, Dave Johnston and Chairman Lofdahl. Absent: Christie Hantge and Jim Fahey Also present: Dan Jochum, Planning Director, Marc Sebora, City Attorney and Bonnie Baumetz, Planning Coordinator 2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 3. CONSENT AGENDA a) Consideration of Minutes dated May 15, 2012 Mr. Arndt moved to approve the consent agenda as submitted. Seconded by Mr. Johnston, the consent agenda was approved unanimously. 4. PUBLIC HEARINGS a) CONSIDERATION OF AN AMENDMENT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE SECTION 154.063 (C) ALLOWING TATOO ESTABLISHMENTS BY CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT IN THE C -3 (CENTRAL COMMERCIAL DISTRICT) REQUESTED BY DOUGLAS MOULTON, APPLICANT Chairman Lofdahl opened the hearing at 5:31 p.m. with the reading of publication #7939 as published in the Hutchinson Leader on June 6, 2012. Mr. Jochum explained the applicant is requesting an amendment to the Zoning Ordinance to allow tattoo establishments by conditional use permit in the C -3 (Central Commercial) district. This district is basically the downtown area and does extend one to two blocks to the east and west of Main Street. Mr. Jochum reported planning staff had mixed thoughts on whether this request should be approved or not. Some staff members felt tattoo establishments were not appropriate downtown, while others felt if they are regulated it wouldn't be an issue. He reminded the Planning Commissioners that tattoo establishments are allowed by conditional use permit in the 1 -1 and 1 -2 districts. Mr. Jochum explained that in reviewing the proposed amendment, the Commission should consider the proposed use with the purpose of the zoning district. The purpose of the C -3 (Central Commercial District) zoning district is "The C -3 central commercial district is intended to provide an area for the grouping of general retail sales establishments, offices and services which serve city residents and the surrounding area. The C -3 district provisions and boundaries are intended to promote compatible land use relationships among diverse types of uses and encourage well - planned development or expansion in accord with the approved Comprehensive Plan. Only those uses which substantially interfere with the overall function of the general commercial area will be excluded. On -site parking is not required in this district." He reported that he reviewed the present Comprehensive Plan and there was no guidance on this use. This is an appropriate use in the two districts which presently allows the business. Minutes Planning Commission — June 19, 2012 Page 2 Mr. Moulton, applicant, stated he will be moving to the community and has had positive response to the business being in the downtown area. He explained that times have changed and tattooing is popular now. He stated it is good to keep business downtown. Mr. Moulton explained he is licensed by the State. Discussion followed on signage. Discussion also followed on the staff logic regarding two districts that have tattooing. Mr. Moulton stated the only retail will be jewelry. He stated he has looked into renting buildings in the 1 -1 and 1 -2 and they are too large and too expensive. He mention his business will bring business downtown. Discussion followed on the location to the theater. Mr. Jochum reminded the commissioners that this amendment is for the entire district not just an exact site. Ms. Valerie Pricert, explained they will not be selling adult theme items. There are controls in place for adult entertainment items. Atty. Sebora reminded the commissioners that if the amendment is adopted the use will be by conditional use permit and will have to come back to the Planning Commission and City Council. Mr. Moulton stated they must be a licensed shop and the body art technicians must be licensed. He stated they cannot tattoo minors in the State of MN and must follow State regulations. He explained tattoos are an art form and not adult entertainment. Mr. Kirchoff made a motion to close the hearing. Seconded by Mr. Norton, the hearing closed at 5:46 p.m. Mr. Kirchoff made a motion to recommend approval of the request with staff recommendations. Seconded by Mr. Norton, the motion carried with a vote of 4 aye to 1 nay with Mr. Arndt voting nay. Chairman Lofdahl stated this item will be placed on the City Council regular agenda at their meeting held June 26, 2012, in the Council Chambers at 5:30 p.m. b) CONSIDERATION OF A ONE LOT PRELIMINARY AND FINAL PLAT OF LYNAUGH'S NORTHVIEW ADDITION SUBMITTED BY MATT AND TERRI LYNAUGH, PROPERTY OWNERS Chairman Lofdahl opened the hearing at 5:48 p.m. with the reading of publication #7939 as published in the Hutchinson Leader on June 6, 2012. Mr. Jochum reported the property owners have requested a one lot preliminary and final plat to combine two lots into one at 455 and 457 Northwoods Ave. N.E. for the construction of a 28'x 32' garage on the lot. He explained the garage cannot be placed on a lot without a principle building. He stated there is an electrical easement on the eastern edge of 515 Northwoods Avenue NE. The easement cannot be vacated as there are services in place within the easement. The building must not be placed in the easement and the preliminary plat does indicate that the building will be located along the east edge of the easement. Mr. Jochum explained staff has reviewed the plat request and would note that the drainage issues must be addressed. The applicant has been working with the Engineering Department to ensure drainage will be adequate. All drainage and engineering requirements must meet specifications set by the Engineering Department. Staff recommends approval of the request with the following recommendations: 1. The applicant shall record the final plat prior to issuance of any building permits for the project. 2. The proposed garage may not encroach into the drainage and utility easement that runs through the lot. 3. A private 8" drainage pipe must be installed to run Northeast. 4. The catch basin must remain in the driveway. 5. Drainage for the property to the north must be maintained after construction of the garage. 6. All drainage, grading, and engineering for the site must be reviewed by the Engineering Department. Minutes Planning Commission — June 19, 2012 Page 3 Discussion followed on the utility easement and drainage to the NE would drain through a swale to the catch basin on the east side. There will also be a catch basin in the driveway. The neighboring property drainage will remain as it is today. Discussion followed on past drainage problems in the area. Mr. Arndt made a motion to close the hearing. Seconded by Mr. Kirchoff, the hearing closed at 5:55 p.m. Mr. Arndt made a motion to recommend approval of the request with staff recommendations and to change wording in item number 6 from approved to reviewed. Seconded by Mr. Norton, the motion carried unanimously. Chairman Lofdahl stated this item will be placed on the City Council consent agenda at their meeting held June 26, 2012, in the Council Chambers at 5:30 p.m. c) CONSIDERATION OF AN AMENDMENT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE SECTION 154.064 (C) AND SECTION 154.004 ALLOWING DOG DAYCARE BY CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT IN THE C -4 (FRINGE COMMERCIAL DISTRICT) AND ADDING THE DEFINITION OF DOG DAYCARE TO SECTION 154.004 REQUESTED BY ADULT TRAINING AND HABILITATION CENTER, PROPERTY OWNER Chairman Lofdahl opened the hearing at 5:56 p.m. with the reading of publication #7939 as published in the Hutchinson Leader on June 6, 2012. Mr. Jochum explained that the applicant, Adult Training and Habilitation, is requesting an amendment to the Zoning Ordinance to allow dog daycare services by conditional use permit in the C -4 (Fringe Commercial) district. He commented on what a dog daycare is. The business would be housed in a building owned by Dr. John Froning at 405 California St. S.W. which was a veterinary clinic. The definition the applicant proposes for a dog daycare is: "The boarding and regular care for dogs during daytime hours (no holidays or weekends) inside a structure with enclosed runs. There would be no more than 12 dogs on the property, including outside runs, at any one time." He reported that after discussing the item, staff recommended approval of the request with the recommendations that the hours of operation be 7 a.m. - 10 p.m. with no overnight kenneling and a definition of outside runs must be provided. Staff also felt it was important to note that this request was recommended for approval because the lot size in the C- 4 district are larger and can more easily accommodate a use such as this as compared the C -3 zoning district which is mostly located downtown and features a much denser development pattern. This is important because an ordinance amendment to the C -3 district for a dog daycare was recently recommended for denial by staff because of incompatible land uses due to the dense nature of downtown. Discussion followed on enforcement of the dog barking ordinance. Mr. Jochum stated that situation would be handled as in any present situation, it is an enforcement issue. There was discussion on the definition. Staff will clean up the language before the City Council meeting. Discussion followed on veterinary clinics boarding dogs. Mr. Jochum stated we could consider amending the ordinance for veterinary clinics. Mr. Arndt made a motion to close the hearing. Seconded by Mr. Johnston, the hearing closed at 6:04 p.m. Mr. Arndt made a motion to recommend approval of the request with staff recommendations. Seconded by Mr. Johnston, the motion carried unanimously noting staff will review the definition. Chairman Lofdahl stated this item will be placed on the City Council consent agenda at their meeting held June 26, 2012, in the Council Chambers at 5:30 p.m. d) CONSIDERATION OF A VARIANCE TO REDUCE FRONT AND SIDE YARD SETBACK TO ALLOW CONSTRUCTION OF AN ATTACHED GARAGE ADDITION AT 529 MONROE ST. S.E. REQUESTED BY ROGER JOHNSON, APPLICANT Minutes Planning Commission — June 19, 2012 Page 4 Chairman Lofdahl opened the hearing at 6:05 p.m. with the reading of publication #7939 as published in the Hutchinson Leader on June 6, 2012. Mr. Jochum stated the Mr. Roger Johnson, applicant, is requesting a variance to allow construction of a 22' x 24' attached garage to the nonconforming house at 529 Monroe St. S.E. The variance request is to construct a garage that will be 2 feet from the interior property line and 23' from the front property line. This is an existing nonconforming building. The ordinance requires a 25' front yard setback and 6' side yard setback in the R -2 (Medium Density Residential) district. The applicant noted the attached garage will secure home based business equipment and vehicles and allow a safer drop off and pickup area for customer's equipment. The home based business is a copier repair business. The applicant states the practical difficulty for the variance is that customers will have a safe area to drop off or pickup their equipment and vandalism and theft would be less likely if items and vehicles are in a secured attached garage. He states the unique circumstance of the lot is that other properties along the same street do not meet the 25' front setback. Mr. Jochum explained that variances may be granted when the applicant establishes that there are practical difficulties in complying with the official control as noted in Section 154.167 of the Zoning Ordinance. There must be criteria to measure practical difficulties and unique circumstance. Staff reviewed the request at their June 4th meeting and determined it does not meet the standards for granting a variance since the unique circumstance is created by the applicant and a garage addition can be constructed to meet the side yard setback. Mr. Jochum stated there are not unique circumstances to the property that are not created by the landowner because the lot is virtually the same size as all the adjacent lots. The applicant indicates the unique circumstance is that there are homes on the block that do not meet the 25' foot front yard setback, however that circumstance does nothing to address the requested 2' side yard setback, which is 4' short of meeting the required setback. In addition, approving the variance would be allowing the expansion of an existing non - conforming setback. The non- conforming lots, uses, and structures section of the zoning ordinance (section 154.150 A 2) indicates that one of the intentions of the ordinance is to: "It is the intent of this chapter to phase out these nonconforming uses within a reasonable time period while retaining full economic value. These uses are declared by this chapter to be incompatible with permitted uses in the districts involved. It is further the intent of this chapter that nonconformities shall not be enlarged upon, expanded or extended, nor be used as grounds for adding other structures or uses prohibited elsewhere in the same district." Discussion followed on other alternatives. Mr. Jochum stated he has discussed other options of making the garage smaller with Mr. Johnson. He commented on letters received from neighboring property owners that are not in favor of the project. Mr. Jochum noted only one letter had an address and was signed. Roger Johnson gave background on moving his business to 529 Monroe. He stated this is an 18 year business and he would like to continue the business in Hutchinson. He presented his findings of neighboring setbacks and stated there is one 2 stall garage on Monroe Street. He noted resale would be increased with an attached garage. There was discussion on the economic conditions does not constitute a hardship. Discussion also followed on the drainage on the property. It was explained setback requirements are for fire code and possible utilities placement if needed. Mr. Jochum commented on the five criteria for granting a variance. He explained if one criteria is no, the variance should be denied. Mr. Jochum stated there were two criteria to which the staff would answer "no ". Discussion followed on the size of a garage and Minutes Planning Commission — June 19, 2012 Page 5 the possibility of maintaining a 6 foot setback. Mr. Johnson stated he would like walk- in customers to come through the front not the side. Discussion followed on keeping the garage at 23' instead of 25'. Mr. Kirchoff made a motion to close the hearing. Seconded by Mr. Johnston, the hearing closed at 6:29 p.m. Mr. Kirchoff made a motion to recommend denial on the request due to the existing nonconforming structure and not meeting the five criteria to approve a variance. Seconded by Mr. Norton, the motion carried unanimously. Chairman Lofdahl stated this item will be placed on the City Council consent agenda at their meeting held June 26, 2012 in the Council Chambers at 5:30 p.m. e) CONSIDERATION OF A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT TO ALLOW CONSTRUCTION OF A 578 SQ. FT. ADDITION TO AN EXISTING 581 SQ. FT. DETACHED GARAGE LOCATED AT 529 MONROE ST. S. E. FOR A TOTAL GARAGE AREA OF 1,159 SQ. FT. REQUESTED BY ROGER JOHNSON, APPLICANT Chairman Lofdahl opened the hearing at 6:30 p.m. with the reading of publication #7939 as published in the Hutchinson Leader on June 6, 2012. Mr. Jochum reported the applicant, is requesting a conditional use permit to allow a 578 sq. ft. addition to an existing 581 sq. ft. detached garage for a total garage area of 1,159 sq. ft. The maximum square footage for a detached garage is 1,000 sq. ft. Garages over 1,000 sq. ft. require a conditional use permit. There are two detached garages on the property and he is requesting to remove the older and smaller non - conforming building and add onto the remaining garage to use as a workshop and storage of equipment for his home based business, which is a copy machine repair business. The proposed building meets the required setbacks. Staff finds that the request would meet the requirements of granting a conditional use permit (Section 154.170) and recommends approval subject to the findings and conditions listed in the draft Resolution, including these specific conditions: 1. City Council has considered the recommendation of the Planning Commission and the effect of the proposed use on the health, safety, and welfare of the occupants of the surrounding lands, existing and anticipated traffic conditions, and the effect on values of properties in the surrounding area and the effect of the use on the Comprehensive Plan. 2. The Council has determined that the proposed use is in harmony with the general purpose and intent of the Zoning Ordinance and the Comprehensive Plan. 3. There may be only one access to the property off of Monroe St. 4. The driveway must be constructed of an approved surface and meet the required driveway setback. 5. Drainage cannot compound existing drainage problems on neighboring properties. Mr. Jochum commented on one curb cut per property. He explained the access concerns. The present driveway is non - conforming not meeting the setback or the approved surface. He reminded the commissioners that drainage issues cannot be compounded. There was discussion on the driveway access and the driveway setback. Mr. Johnson explained the use of the garages for the business. Mr. Kirchoff made a motion to close the hearing. Seconded by Mr. Lofdahl, the hearing closed at 6:41 p.m. Mr. Kirchoff made a motion to recommend approval of the request with staff recommendations. Seconded by Mr. Arndt, the motion carried unanimously. Chairman Lofdahl stated this item will be placed on the City Council consent agenda at their meeting held June 26, 2012 in the Council Chambers at 5:30 p.m. Mr. Norton left at 6:42 p.m. Minutes Planning Commission — June 19, 2012 Page 6 f) CONSIDERATION OF A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT REQUESTED BY THE EDA TO ALLOW CONSTRUCTION OF A FARMERS MARKET STRUCTURE AND TO RELOCATE THE DEPOT IN THE I/C DISTRICT AT 25 ADAMS ST. S.E. Chairman Lofdahl opened the hearing at 6:42 p.m. with the reading of publication #7939 as published in the Hutchinson Leader on June 6, 2012. Mr. Jochum explained the EDA is requesting a conditional use permit to allow construction of a Farmers Market pavilion and relocate the depot building at 25 Adams St. S.E. in the I/C (Industrial /Commercial) district. There are no permitted principal uses in the Industrial /Commercial district. A conditional use permit is required for a change of use. Conditional use permits must meet conditions for approval as noted in Section 154.70 of the Zoning Ordinance. He reported staff finds that the request would meet the requirements of granting a conditional use permit (Section 154.170) and recommends approval subject to the findings and conditions listed in the draft Resolution, including these specific conditions: 1. City Council has considered the recommendation of the Planning Commission and the effect of the proposed use on the health, safety, and welfare of the occupants of the surrounding lands, existing and anticipated traffic conditions, and the effect on values of properties in the surrounding area and the effect of the use on the Comprehensive Plan. 2. The Council has determined that the proposed use is in harmony with the general purpose and intent of the Zoning Ordinance and the Comprehensive Plan. 3. Any additional needs for off - street parking shall be accommodated in the City owned parking lot on the South side of Evergreen Apartments or with a written agreement with any adjacent private parking lots. Mr. Jochum stated there was one comment and that was from Econo Foods regarding concerns with using parking at Econo Foods or Liquor Hutch. He explained each vendor stall requires 1 parking stall for customers and there may need to be an agreement with adjacent private parking lots for use by the Farmer's Market. Mr. Kirchoff made a motion to close the hearing. Seconded by Mr. Johnston, the hearing closed at 6:45 p.m. Mr. Kirchoff made a motion to recommend approval of the request with staff recommendations. Seconded by Mr. Johnston, the motion carried unanimously. Chairman Lofdahl stated this item will be placed on the City Council consent agenda at their meeting held June 26, 2012, in the Council Chambers at 5:30 p.m. 5. NEW BUSINESS a) BANNER SIGN DISCUSSION - Item withdrawn. Staff will meet with Fairgrounds staff and work out the banner questions internally and present the plan to Planning Commissioners. 6. OLD BUSINESS 7. COMMUNICATION FROM STAFF 8. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business the meeting adjourned at 6:46 p.m.