HomeMy WebLinkAbout1990-01-16 PZC MINUTESCITY OF ENGLEWOOD PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION
January 16, 1990
I. CALL TO ORDER.
The regular meeting of the City Planning and Zoning Commission was called to
order at 7:00 P.M. by Chairman Gerlick in the Community Room of the Englewood
City Hall.
Members present: Schultz, Tobin, Becker, Carson, Fish, Gerlick
Wanush, Ex-officio
Members absent: None
Also present: Planning Administrator Dorothy Romans
Planner Harold Stitt
Economic Development Coordinator Pam Pepper
Intern Dan Girouard
II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
January 9, 1990
Chairman Gerl i ck stated that the Minutes of January 9, 1990 were to be con-
sidered for approval.
Schultz moved:
Tobin seconded:
AYES:
NAYS:
ABSENT:
ABSTAIN:
Tobin,
None
None
Fish
The Minutes of January 9, 1990 be approved as written.
Becker, Carson, Gerlick, Schultz
The motion carried.
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Mr. Wanush introduced Dan Girouard, a Planning Intern who will be working in
the office for three months, and will be working with Ms. Pepper and Mrs. Ro-
mans. Mr. Girouard is one of the students from UCO who participated in the
Southeastern Industrial Profile Study.
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III. PROPOSED LEGISLATION FOR IMPOSITION OF LAND DEVELOPMENT CHARGES
Mr. Wanush stated that he had included in the packet a copy of proposed legis-
lation relating to land development fees which is presently before the State
Legislature. City Council has taken a position against the passage of this
Bill. The Bill was briefly discussed. Mrs. Becker asked who members of the
Commission should write to in opposition to this legislation. Mr. Wanush
stated that he would get this information for the Commission.
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1 IV. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN
Mr. Gerlick introduced Ms. Pamela Pepper, Economic Development Coordinator for
the City.
Ms. Pepper addressed the Commission and briefed members on the activities of
the Economic Development Coalition. The development of a Strategic Plan for
Economic Development is a primary goal of the Coalition, and Ms. Pepper stated
that the Coalition is making good progress in the development of this Plan.
When the Plan has been drafted, comments will be solicited from members of the
Commission and City Council prior to finalization. Ms. Pepper referred to
statistical information which was included in the packet, and additional
statistical information which she distributed to members, and stated that this
database is being used in development of the Plan. Ms. Pepper reviewed the
statistical information, and pointed out that prior to the closure of Buyer's
Club, Englewood was below the average retail vacancy rate in the Denver Metro
area; since the closure of Buyer's Club, the City is slightly above the
average vacancy rate. Ms. Pepper stated that the redeveloped commercial area
in the City came on the market just as the retail market slumped, and
economists are predicting that 1990 will remain a fairly "flat" year for
retail activities.
Ms. Pepper stated that the Coalition has developed a list of assets/resources
and a list of liabilities/needs. During a four-hour brainstorming session
today, strategies for Economic Development were developed, and the Coalition
will need to prioritize those strategies. If members of the Commission have
additions to either list, Ms. Pepper asked that they contact her.
In response to a question from Mr. Fish, Ms. Pepper identified the composition
of the Coalition membership. Ms. Pepper distributed copies of goals and ob-
jectives for the Economic Development Program to the Commission. She asked
that the members review all the information which has been submitted to them,
and submit any comments or suggestions to her. Ms. Pepper stated that the
Coal it ion wants to work with the Commission and Council and not at cross-
purposes. The Coalition will address all facets of development in the City,
industrial as well as commercial/retail. Ms. Pepper stated that Mr. Girouard
will be assisting in analyzing the northwest industrial area much as was done
in the southeast industrial area.
Mr. Girouard stated that the staff is beginning a program for the Fire Depart-
ment whereby they can gather information on the number of employees and iden-
tify a use by an SIC (Standard Identification Code) at such time as they do
their annual inspections, and this information can then be put on the
computer.
Mr. Fish asked where demographic information is obtained. Mr. Wanush pointed
out that some information is obtained from Census information, even though the
Census is 10 years old; other information is gleaned from the Donnelly Market-
; ng Company, and some from DRCOG. Mr. Wanush pointed out that DRCOG hasn't
produced much demographic information since 1986. Information on sales tax
comes from City records and from the State. Discussion ensued.
Large employers in the City were noted, and Mr. Carson pointed out that Burt
Chevrolet, Subaru, Hundai and Dihatsu were not listed. Ms. Pepper stated that
possibly the dealerships were listed separately, and not as one entity which
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might account for the individual dealerships not being listed as "large" em-
ployers. Ms. Becker asked if, when referring to the "bank", does this mean
employees of the Bank itself, or all people employed within the bank building
in the various smaller businesses leasing space from the bank. Also, on em-
ployers such as King Soopers and Safeway, does the figure take into account
the actual number of full-time employees, or employees who may be part time
and have minimal hours per week. Further discussion ensued.
Discussion then centered on statistical data obtained on the housing stock in
Englewood. A random survey was done on owner/occupied vs. rental units, and
75% of the single-family structures in Englewood are owner/occupied. The
average value of single-family homes sold in Englewood in 1988 was $73,000.
Mr. Fish referred to a document which was submitted by the School District,
which report indicates that 50% of the children are from rental dwelling
units. It was pointed out that a rental dwelling "unit" is not necessarily a
single-family home.
The housing types in Englewood were further discussed. Concern has been ex-
pressed that there is a need for more middle-to-higher-income housing stock to
encourage relocation of professional people to Englewood. Mr. Wanush pointed
out there is a lack of land available to build the larger, more expensive
homes that professional people are buying today. If we are to address this
problem, we must look to ways to make land available.
Mr. Fi sh asked if the Economic Development Coalition is contacting other
groups, or function i ng on its own. Ms. Pepper stated that Englewood is a mem-
ber of the Metro Denver Network, and through the Network has access to a com-
puter network of businesses interested in locating in the Denver area. The
objective is initia l ly to attract people to the Denver Metro area; once a pro-
spective business has expressed interest in the generalized area, the indi-
vidual entity steps in to try to persuade the business owner of the benefits
of locating in their specific jurisdiction. Ms. Pepper stated that a majority
of the contacts that are coming into the office are businesses which are lo-
cated just outside of Englewood who want to relocate within the boundaries of
the City, and this is when the staff can offer encouragement to assist such
relocation. Ms. Pepper pointed out that retention of existing businesses is a
very important factor of economic development. There are a number of busi-
nesses that are presently located in Englewood who are interested in expanding
their operation, but may not have the space at their present location. Staff
is trying to assist these businessmen whenever possible. Discussion ensued.
Ms. Pepper pointed out that potentially available land in the industrial area
is already developed with older buildings that are vacant; however these sites
are higher priced than raw land in undeveloped areas. Mr. Gerlick stated that
there are a number of smaller businesses that want to move from Denver, and
suggested that perhaps the City could capitalize on this.
Mr. Gerlick inquired whether the owner/occupied vs. renter occupied statistics
were true throughout the City, or were the statistics obtained from a concen-
trated area. Mr. Wanush stated that random blocks were chosen from all census
tracts. He pointed out, however, that the closer to Broadway the block was,
the higher the concentration of rental units. He also stated that there was a
difference from Census Tract to Census Tract. Ms. Becker suggested that if
the City determines to expand the commercial zoning along Broadway to the cen-
terline of South Acoma and South Lincoln, the higher concentration of rental
units might result in less opposition to such expansion.
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' Mr. Schultz asked Ms. Pepper what success she has had in communicating with
Cinderella City. Ms. Pepper stated that she has a very good relationship
with Cinderella City management. Ms. Pepper stated that the location of
Citicorp and GeoTech in Cinderella City has been very successful. Ms. Tobin
stated that in her opinion the bi-level parking at Cinderella City is a very
definite plus; people can park on the lower level out of the elements, but
there does need to be improved lighting in the lower level . Ms. Pepper stated
that she and Mr. Wanush would keep the Commission up-dated on Cinderella City.
Ms. Tobin asked if the information used by the Economic Development Coalition
would be combined with other committee reports, such as the Housing Task Force
recommendation that a brochure be prepared promoting reasons to relocate to
Englewood . Ms. Becker suggested that the educational programs and recreation-
al programs should be promoted. Ms. Tobin stated that the parks system should
also be promoted in the brochure.
V. LAND USE PLAN
Mr. Wanush referred to a copy of the 1979 Comprehensive Plan. He pointed out
that the primary purpose of 1979 Plan, and what is being considered for the
1990 Plan, is to establish a "Policy" plan setting forth policies and goals.
Mr. Wanush then displayed a copy of the 1979 Generalized Land Use Map, and
discussed the various development designations depicted on that map, such as
residential, commercial, and industrial. Mr. Wanush stated that the single-
family residential development area had two designations, one being a "preser-
vation and incentive area" whereby consideration was given to providing for
administrative approval of issues such as minor encroachments into setback for
residents wanting to remodel or redevelop their residential properties. Mrs.
Romans stated that there was also consideration given to ways to making a sub-
standard residential lot available to encourage redevelopment . Two ways con-
sidered were for the City to purchase the substandard site and clear the lot
for purchase and development by a builder, or to increase the density in lieu
of clearing the lot. Mr. Wanush stated that the proposal of the City purchas-
ing the lots and clearing them for resale is currently being pursued.
Other development designations on the Generalized Land Use Map were discussed.
The mixed-use area designated between Hampden Avenue and U.S. 285 was dis-
cussed. Mrs. Romans stated that a Special Permit System (SPS) was also con -
sidered for that area.
Mr. Wanush stated that there is not much that he would recommend changing in
the 1990 Generalized Land Use Map from that depicted on the 1979 Map. There
are one or two areas that need "fine tuning", but no major revisions.
Mrs. Becker asked if the Ordinance was in place to allow for the administra-
tive decisions referred to by Mr. Wanush . Mr. Wanush s tated that it is not.
Mrs. Becker suggested that perhaps the enactment of such legislation should be
a Commission goal.
Mr. Wanush suggested that adjoining areas such as Sheridan and the Santa Fe
corridor/South Platte River corridor should be shown and addressed in the Com-
prehensive Plan. Discussion ensued . Mr. Fish stated that he felt commission
liaisons with adjoining jurisdictions as was suggested at the last meeting
should focus on Sheridan and Littleton. Brief discussion ensued.
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VI. COMMISSION WORK PROGRAM
~ The work program which was drafted by the Commission during the late summer of
1989 was considered. Mr. Wanush stated that a lot of the items that were set
forth in the work program are in progress. The Waste Management Task Force is
moving forward with their charge, and the Housing Task Force has nearly com-
pleted its duties. The Traffic Task Force has not been progressing because of
lack of attendance and has been placed on hold. Discussion ensued. Mr. Fish
expressed his concerns on the composition of the Traffic Task Force and sug-
gested there is need for re-evaluation of the Task Force membership and for
community input. Brief discussion followed.
Ms. Tobin stated that the Housing Task Force will be meeting on January 29th
to consider the final draft of their report, which will then be referred to
the Commission.
Mr. Schultz stated that the Waste Management Task Force had met earlier this
evening, and received the Governor's Preliminary Report on solid waste.
Mr. Fish inquired on the member composition of the Waste Management Task
Force, and if this membership seemed to be "working". Mr. Schultz stated that
the Task Force membership is working together to this point in time, and em-
phasized that they are still in the process of gathering as much information
as possible before settling down to devise a Waste Management Plan for the
City.
The goals for the next meeting were then considered. Mr. Wanush stated that
there will be a Public Hearing on Title 15, which is the Environmental Or-
dinance, and references to environmental issues contained in the Comprehensive
Zoning Ordinance will be deleted. This Public Hearing will be at 7:00 P.M. on
February 6. Mr. Wanush stated that he anticipated a fairly lengthy hearing,
and suggested that this be the only item on the agenda for that meeting.
Mr. Gerl i ck stated that if new members are appointed to the Commission (we
have three vacancies and one term expires 2/1/90), perhaps consideration
should be given to appointing task forces to study additional phases of the
Comprehensive Plan.
The meeting of February 21 (Wednesday evening), was considered. Mr. Wanush
stated that staff is asking that someone from DRCOG or RTD attend the meeting
to discuss their programs with the Commission. Mr. Wanush also suggested in-
viting members of the Housing Task Force to the meeting on February 21 to dis-
cuss the Housing Report.
VII. PUBLIC FORUM
There was no one present to address the Commission.
VIII. DIRECTOR'S CHOICE
Mr. Wanush stated that he had nothing further to bring before the Commission.
Mrs. Romans reminded members that the dates of the meetings in February are
the 6th and 21st, which is a Wednesday rather than a Tuesday.
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IX. COMMISSIONER'S CHOICE.
There was nothing brought up for discussion under Commissioner's Choice.
The meeting was declared adjourned at 8:45 P.M.
Ger~·Ldvf~
Recording Secretary
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