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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017-02-02-SteeringCommittee-FINALTOWN OF ULYSSES STEERING COMMITTEE FOR ZONING UPDATES MEETING MINUTES Thursday, 02/02/2017 Approved: March 2, 2017 Call to Order: 7:00 p.m. Present: Chair Liz Thomas and Committee members Michael Boggs, Rod Hawkes, Darby Kiley, Sue Ritter, and George Tselekis; CJ Randall of Randall + West. Public in Attendance: Roxanne Marino of the Sustainability Advisory Council and Benjamin LeWalter of the Town Planning Board. Agenda Review and Minutes Review (1/5/2017) Mr. Tselekis MADE the MOTION to accept the January 5, 2017 meeting minutes, and Ms. Kiley SECONDED the MOTION. The motion was unanimously carried, 5-0. Jacksonville Open House Debrief Ms. Kiley reported she met with members of the Jacksonville community yesterday. Some of their zoning comments included suggestions for design standards like no vinyl siding. Additionally, there were a few property owners in the R1 or Al districts, adjacent to the municipal water line, who requested smaller lot sizes. Mr. Tselekis said blight and housing affordability were some of the concerns voiced during the open house. Highlighting some of the comments she took, Ms. Thomas said an equal number of community members have called for both affordable housing and no low-income housing. She advised perhaps reminding community members of basic laws regarding housing discrimination and code enforcement. Mr. Boggs arrived at 7:08 p.m. Ms. Thomas said she was surprised to hear so many positive responses to design guidelines, considering they can be controversial. Ms. Ritter asked about the Jacksonville park and wondered if the Jacksonville residents expressed concerns about its isolated location. Asked about the ongoing Town negotiations with Exxon Mobil, Ms. Thomas said negotiations continue and progress is being made. She also noted recent successes involving code enforcement of dilapidated properties in Jacksonville. Referencing the zoning document, Ms. Randall said both she and David West feel it is time to proceed with the Hamlet zoning draft and bring Noah Demarest in to work on the framework for design guidelines. Rural/Ag Zoning — draft memo and revised language Zoning update steering committee 1 2 February 2, 2017 Committee members spent considerable time finalizing each section of the zoning draft memo, which the Town Attorney had recently reviewed and revised in areas. Numerous wording changes were offered and supported for definitions like "Agriculture Building", "Agricultural Commerce" and "Farm Operation", which replaced the previous entries for both "Agriculture" and "Farm". Committee Members also reached a consensus to refer to the combined rural and agricultural district as the "Ag/Rural Zone". Much discussion concerned the Permitted Accessory Uses section and a clause that allowed for additions of no greater than 50 percent on existing ag-commerce buildings. Ms. Thomas felt 50 percent was a sizable increase in a building's footprint, especially if considering an addition to a large barn. Committee members deliberated whether to change the 50 percent threshold to an actual square footage limit, like 5,000 or 3,000 square feet. Ultimately, the Committee removed the entire reference to the 50 percent threshold, making all proposals for new buildings or additions subject to site plan review. Additional wording changes were made to Section 212-29.1 "Limitations on subdivisions of parent tracts." Committee members were in agreement that a Town zoning map would be included with the draft zoning document when it is released to participating stakeholder groups next week. Additionally, the Committee reached a consensus on the supplemental memo, as written, to accompany both the draft and zoning map. Timeline was discussed. It was decided comments on the draft Ag zoning document would be due back from participating stakeholder groups by May 4, with the Committee's May 18 meeting dedicated to reviewing those comments. In regard to the Jacksonville zoning document, the Committee and Ms. Randall discussed a reasonable timetable for reviewing a draft, with both parties expecting to have an initial draft by the Committee's next meeting on March 2. Though, Ms. Randall expressed some initial concern that a few weeks may not be enough time to pull all facets of the zoning rewrite together. Mr. Tselekis said he was asked to draw up a business district plan for the south end of Town. The Committee agreed to review it at its March 2 meeting. Ms. Ritter MADE the MOTION to adjourn the meeting, and Mr. Hawkes SECONDED the MOTION. The motion was unanimously carried. Meeting adjourned at 9:15 p.m. Respectfully submitted by Louis A. DiPietro II on February 7, 2017.