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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMN-P&DB-1995-04-17 L�tc� C'ler/ PLANNING COMMITTEE April 17,1995 Regular Meeting, 7:30 p.m., Common Council Chambers MINUTES Present: Committee Members: John Schroeder,Chair; Rick Gray; Pam Mackesey; Diann Sams. Non-Voting Committee Member: Benjamin Nichols,Mayor. Staff. H. Matthys Van Cort, Director, Planning and Development; Herman Sieverding, Deputy Director of Planning and Development; Pat Kennedy,Assistant City Attorney. Others: Dick Booth, Common Council; Steve Ehrhardt, Board of Public Works; Allen Cohen; press. • Agenda Review. At Van Cort's request,the issue of Park&Ride was added to the agenda. The Mayor told Committee members that he had money in his budget which could be used to hire a student for the summer. He proposed that he hire Colin Forth, a planning student who has previously worked in the Mayor's office, to make specific recommendations regarding modification to the Zoning Ordinance which would tend to make housing more affordable. The Committee endorsed the Mayor's proposal, and agreed that Mr. Forth's summer study should be discussed at a future Planning Committee meeting. I. Report of Task Force on Traffic Issues. A resolution to adopt certain recommendations of the Task Force on Traffic Issues, as modified by the Board of Public Works, was distributed to the Committee. Ehrhardt explained the intent of the resolution. An underlying principle of the work of the Traffic Task Force was to make modifications in the City's traffic system as fair as possible so that no extra burdens would be placed on heavily traveled streets. The resolution also called for an examination of the costs and benefits, particularly in terms of environmental impacts, of any proposed modifications. Mackesey said that it was her impression that it would be very difficult to make any changes in the system without having a negative impact on some residential streets. Ehrhardt said that the Traffic Task Force Planning Committee Minutes 2 April 17, 1995 Meeting recommended that traffic-calming efforts be focused on streets where the need is the greatest,that is on high-volume streets. A discussion ensued regarding the possibility of amending the second part of the resolved clause to add the words"where possible"before"will take steps to mitigate" or to add the words"any significant"before the words"negative impacts." Schroeder said he thought it was important that the BPW resolution and the Council resolution were identical so that there would not be an ambiguity about the City's traffic policy. With that in mind, the Committee referred the resolution back to the BPW for consideration of these proposed wording changes. The motion to refer was passed unanimously. As a final note, Ehrhardt said that the Task Force also recommended special treatment for what they termed"gateway streets", that is those streets which were major traffic carriers at the edges of the city. It was the Task Force's recommendation that modifications be made to these streets which would let motorists know that they were leaving a rural highway and entering a city residential neighborhood. Sams asked that the Disability Advisory Council be involved in the formulation of traffic policy. II. Review of Charlie Barber Inventory of City-Owned Property. Sieverding explained that the Barber Report cataloged all city property transactions between 1930 and 1989 which involved City land but were not recorded in the City Clerk's Office. These transactions included easements, encroachments, rights-of-way, as well as transfers of title. It is proposed that the Planning Department retain a student to do further research on city-owned properties and to develop a list of properties which-- after consultation with the appropriate City department--the City might consider selling. The Committee approved the staff's proposal, and agreed the Economic Development Committee would oversee further work on this topic. "EL Location of Southern Boundary of FW-1 Zoning District. Mackesey gave an introduction to the subject explaining that a line had been established near the southern city border which separated the FW-1 zone (originally the F zone) from the B-5 zone. The location of this line was established by the City in the 1960s in conjunction with Army Corps of Engineers plans for the flood control channel and the levee. After Wal-Mart made an application to the Building Department for a zoning interpretation or variance, the Board of Zoning Appeals granted a conditional variance using a location for the line further back from Elmira Road than the line location as shown on the current City zoning map and as shown on the Flood Plain Zoning Map referred to in Section 325-27 of the Municipal Code. Mackesey said that she wanted the Common Council to affirm that the line begins at the "elbow" of the levee, as shown on the current zoning map,the line thence traveling roughly west southwest towards the city line. Planning Committee Minutes 3 April 17, 1995 Meeting A spirited discussion followed which centered on the question of whether the Common Council could affirm the location of a zoning line or whether any affirmation or interpretation was within the sole province of the Board of Zoning Appeals. After some discussion, participated in by Dick Booth and Assistant City Attorney Kennedy, the conclusion was that Common Council enacts zoning amendments but that the authority to interpret the ordinance has been delegated to the Board of Zoning Appeals. Therefore, the Council cannot interpret or affirm the location of the zoning line. It was also the recommendation of the Committee that the Planning Board should not interpret where the zoning line is since the Board does not have authority to do that but instead should decide on a proposed site plan that mitigates all relevant environmental impacts. IV. Items from City Attorney's Office. a. Regulation of "Adult" Bars. Booth said that it was his understanding that there was a proposal to open an adult bar which may include full or partial nudity. He said that while the Supreme Court has defended, as protected speech, the right to operate such establishments, they have, however, allowed significant restrictions on their location through zoning. Generally, the approach has been either to scatter these uses widely, not allowing any one area to experience a heavy impact from them, or to allow them to concentrate in a small area. The latest variation of which Booth is aware is a modification to the New York City Zoning Ordinance which prevents a concentration of such uses while also prohibiting their establishment in many zones in the City, as well as within a certain distance of residential zones,churches,educational institutions,etc. After some discussion,the Committee recommended that a draft amendment to the ordinance regulating adult entertainment be prepared for consideration at next month's Planning Committee meeting. The suggested approach was to limit this use to the industrial zones, and no closer than perhaps 500 feet to churches, schools,parks or residential zoning districts. b. Expiration of Nonconforming Uses. Kennedy explained that zoning law, until recently, had prevented cities from enforcing ordinances which required the phasing out or expiration of nonconforming uses. Recent cases in New York State which have gone to the highest court in the state, however, allow the phaseout of uses which become nonconforming because of zoning. Kennedy noted that there was a distinction between a nonconforming use and a use which was allowed by variance. Variances may survive changes in zoning. Kennedy also noted that this was a new area of the law, and it was unclear how far a community could go toward requiring the elimination of nonconforming uses. There were two approaches that could be used. One gives an owner a certain number of years in ti Planning Committee Minutes 4 April 17, 1995 Meeting which to amortize the use; the other requires the use to terminate on transfer of the property. Van Cort suggested that any such provision might have significant impacts, both positive and negative, on City neighborhoods. He felt that the area around the university might benefit from such changes, but he cautioned that extreme care should be taken in drafting the ordinance so that it will pass constitutional muster. Van Cort said that he would discuss with Doug Foster of his staff how difficult it would be to provide a database that would display all nonconforming uses in the city. He will report back to the Committee regarding the time requirements for this research. c. Regulation of Gas Stations in Residential Neighborhoods. Kennedy said that the City has lost a case regarding the modification of the hours of operation at a nonconforming gas station which was permitted by variance. The court had found that the use could not be modified under the terms of the variance but suggested that the City has a right to regulate gas station hours in all zones. Kennedy said there were four or five gas stations in the City that were either in residential districts or on the border of residential districts. After some discussion, the Committee asked that Kennedy investigate the possibility of amending our ordinance to regulate the hours of gas stations and the illumination of such enterprises. Kennedy is to report back with her recommendations. V. Park &Ride. Van Cort explained that a group had met prior to final approval of the Route 96 project to discuss the possibility of making park&ride a part of the mitigation for the project to be funded by NYSDOT. He explained that these facilities were ultimately not added to the approved project. Recently a subcommittee of the Route 96 Mitigation Task Force has met to again discuss park & ride. The recommendation of this committee is that an attempt be made to construct park & ride facilities on Route 89 possibly in Cass Park north of the skating rink, on Route 96 near the hospital and on Route 13 near Shady Corners. There is interest on the part of the City to investigate the possibility of constructing a facility near EcoVillage in the Town of Ithaca on Route 79 as well. Mackesey asked how people can be convinced to use a park&ride facility. Van Cort said that that is one of the dilemmas in starting up park &ride programs. Usually park &ride works where the trip is somehow made more desirable through the use of a park & ride facility. This usually means cheaper or shorter. In addition, park &ride facilities seem to do better if they are coupled to another use like daycare or shopping. Committee members asked that the group investigate the possibility of establishing a park &ride facility at Wegmans or Tops. They also asked that a cost comparison be prepared examining the alternatives of additional bus service to Trumansburg in lieu of construction of park & ride facilities. Van Cort asked that the committee give him some direction A Planning Committee Minutes 5 April 17, 1995 Meeting regarding city participation in the design and construction of these facilities. Committee members unanimously agreed that the efforts should continue, and that staff should report back when there is further progress. VI. Southwest Park Wetlands Delineation. Schroeder said that the question of the wetlands delineation had been referred to the Planning Committee at the last Council meeting. He asked Van Cort whether staff could provide a description of what it considered to be a favorable outcome of the delineation process. Van Cort said that it was his opinion that a favorable outcome would be one which did not obligate the City to spend a great deal of money to make changes in Southwest Park. Other than that, he felt that an accurate and complete delineation of the wetlands in the park was all that was sought. The Committee concurred and adjourned at 10:45.