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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1986-04-15 PZC MINUTESCITY OF ENGLEWOOD PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION SPECIAL MEETING April 15, 1986 I. CALL TO ORDER. Chairman Carson called the Special Meeting of the City Planning and Zoning Commission to order at 7:05 p.m. He welcomed the members of the City Council and the property owners of the areas under consideration for annexation. II. INTRODUCTION: Mr. Carson asked that everyone present introduce him/herself. Members present: Carson, Magnuson, Mesa, Barbre, Beier, Allen, Mulhern. (Mr. Gourdin entered after the meeting was in progress.) Members absent: Maunakea. Staff present: D. A. Romans, Assistant Director of Community Development Susan T. King, Senior Planner Owners present: Council Members James Broman, Fire Chief Bob Moore, Police Representative Sharon Winkle, Library Director Leon Kuhn, Parks and Recreation Acting Director Walter Groditski, Building and Safety Administrator Rick Kahm, Acting Director of Engineering Services Kells Waggoner, Public Works Director Charles A. Atler, 4425 South Santa Fe Drive Alyce T. Atler, 4425 South Santa Fe Drive Marlene Stohn, 1530 and 1520 West Tufts Avenue Barbara Zylstra, 1510 West Tufts Avenue Don McAndrew, 4515 South Santa Fe (Santa Fe Properties) Dorcie Bowey, 5161 South Carson Court Don Bowey, 5161 South Carson Court (Arapahoe Rental) Melvin Zabel, 1955 East Noble Place William R. Eldredge, 1450 West Tufts Zona Eldredge, 1450 West Tufts Bill J. Eldredge, 1450 West Tufts Cliff Jones, 4515 South Santa Fe Drive Don Noyes, 4590 South Windermere Don Guetz, 1225 West Belleview (Home Lumber) Arlo Nielson, 1225 West Belleview (Home Lumber) Pat Duggan, 4495 South Santa Fe Drive (Duggan Petroleum Co.) present: Joseph V. Bilo, Jr., At Large Gary L. Kozacek, District 4 III. ADVANTAGES OF ANNEXATION TO ENGLEWOOD. The Chairman turned the meeting over to Randy Magnuson, Vice Chairman of the Planning Commission, who identified some of the advantages of annexing to -2- the City of Englewood, including more efficient response from police and fire, better services to the citizen through recreation, parks and library services, and a lower mill levy. A handout was distributed to those present which also listed advantages of annexation. Mr. Duggan asked what was meant by the statement that the City would take steps to withdraw annexed areas from Special Districts. Mrs. Romans said it meant that the City would, following any annexation, begin the formal process of withdrawing the property from the Special Districts. Mr. Duggan said that, as a business rather than a resident, he would not receive many of the advantages described. Mr. Atler asked what added taxes he would have to pay. Mrs. Romans said they would have to pay the City of Englewood property tax and businesses would have to collect sales tax. She continued, saying that Englewood is a full-service city with no Special District taxes. Mrs. Romans said that in Area 2 on the west side of Santa Fe north of West Union Avenue, the City does not have 2/3 contiguity, so annexation would require a petition to be filed. Area 3, near Tufts, Windermere and Mariposa, has several isolated parcels. In this area it is difficult to provide emergency services to the residents because no one knows who has jurisdiction. Both areas 2 and 3 have been in and out of Englewood in the past. The unincorporated areas are completely surrounded by the City, and can be annexed without petition. IV. CITY SERVICES. Mr. Carson asked that the Department Representatives say a few words concerning ~ City services, and he said they would answer questions. Chief Broman said that the Englewood Fire Department operates out of four stations. No area in the City is more than a mile and a third from a fire station. The average response time is three minutes from the time of the call to vehicle arrival at the scene of the emergency. There are 20 men on shifts at all times; and they supply fire, paramedic and ambulance services. There is currently no charge, although Council is considering a charge for ambulance service. He said that the "Save Rate" for emergency medical care when a patient has stopped breathing is about 40% in Englewood compared to a national average of 20%. The Fire Department inspects all businesses once a year and is rated as a Class 4 on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 the best rating. County ratings are usually 10, and a two-point improvement should show noticeable results on insurance rates. Mr. Allen stated that he had a friend in the unincorporated area whose house burned down while the various jurisdictions were called and the correct department was being found. Chief Broman said that, while they would like to provide service to everyone, the Department's first responsibility is to the citizens who pay for the service; and Englewood only responds out of the City in life-threatening emergencies. Bob Moore, Representative for the Englewood Police Department, said that ~ Englewood provides 24-hour service within the City limits only. They have patrol cars out at all times, never less than four at a time. With cars in the field, the response time is very rapid. The County, because it covers such a large area, cannot respond as quickly. Englewood responds in 30 seconds • -3- to a minute and a half, and can respond with more men if necessary very quickly. They work for crime prevention as well. Don Bowey asked about bad checks and recovery of rental property. Officer Moore said there is a three-man check team working to recover money, and rentals which are not returned would be treated as thefts and would be investigated. Don Guetz of Home Lumber said that some Police Departments do not care about rental equipment which is not returned. Officer Moore said Englewood does care but would expect that charges would be filed if a suspect is apprehended. Councilman Kozacek said that it is his understanding that the Sheridan Fire Department makes heavy use of the Englewood Volunteer Firemen, and the Sheridan Police Chief has been asked to find other employment. Mike Woika, Representative for Utilties, stated that his Department is concerned with sewer and water. Englewood has one of the best water rights in metropolitan Denver. Englewood's connection charges are lower than Denver's and the rates are lower than most of the surrounding areas. The policy is not to provide water outside the City limits; but when Englewood does, the rates are higher. He noted the Bi-City Water Treatment Plant at Dartmouth and Santa Fe. Mr. Allen asked who provides water to the unincorporated areas. Mr. Woika said it is provided by wells, Englewood and Denver. The rates would be lower for the provision of Englewood water to areas that were annexed. Don Guetz of Area 4 asked what the plan is to service the Fairgrounds. Mr. Woika said Englewood will provide service to the Fairgrounds at the developer's expense. He said Home Lumber receives its water from a small line crossing Belleview. Having Englewood water and better connections would lower insurance rates. In response to questions from Mr. Atler and Mr. Bowey, Mr. Woika said that new connections might cost from $7,000 to $10,000, but not all annexed areas would be required to connect to Englewood water. The standard fee for water and sewer connection is $1400 for each; but if you have to go a long distance to connect, the cost would be more. When the Fairgrounds lays pipe down Windermere and Belleview, the cost to the neighbors would decrease because the lines will be closer. Sharon Winkle, Library Director, stated that the Englewood Library operates from the main facility on South Elati Street and from the Bookmobile which has 16 weekly stops in the City and another in Sheridan. There are 16.5 positions filled in the Library, eight of which require Master of Library Science degrees. There are 106,000 volumes or 3.4 books per capita. Arapahoe Library has 1.13 per capita. Englewood is a mature city with stable growth and supports the library well. About 4500 to 5,000 books are added each year, which is about 1/10 of the books published in English each year. It is supported by the mill levy, as is Arapahoe County. Englewood spends about $22 per person on the Library while Arapahoe County spends only $13. The Library provides circulation, reference and group program services for children and adults primarily to Englewood residents. She said that Englewood businesses are offered a card to use the Library. -4- There were no questions. Leon Kuhn, Acting Director of Parks and Recreation, said that there are about ~ 120 acres of parks in Englewood with some of the finest playgrounds anywhere. ~ There is a 2~ million dollar budget and the parks are well-maintinaed. There is a golf course on West Oxford Avenue and Parks and Recreations maintains, with the school district, a detention pond off of South Clarkson Street and East Jefferson Drive. Belleview park, with 14 acres undeveloped and 14 acres developed, is an excellent park with a railroad and petting zoo which were supplied by the Englewood Lion's Club. There are no fees charged at the parks except for shelter reservations. At the Recreation Center, however, there is an additional 25% fee for nonresidents. Dorothy Romans, Assistant Director of Corrununity Development, said that this Department consists of three divisions: Housing, the Division of Building and Safety, and Planning. Housing provides rehabilitation assistance, and has both constructed new houses and moved houses to provide low-income housing. The Planning Division works with land use, zoning, subdivisions, and reviews all building permits and sales tax applications. Planningprovides personal representatives to the property owners through the "buddy system" which streamlines the development process. If a property is annexed, it will be classified into a zone district within 90 days. Every effort is made to classify so that the existing uses are permitted uses in the district. If an existing use is not a permitted use in the new zone-district; it will be classified as a nonconforming use and will be permitted until the use changes, at which time some other, conforming use must replace it. The nonconforming status goes with the land, not with the owner. Newly annexed land would be subject to the requirements of the Sign Code and the Landscape Ordinance; but signs would probably be amortized for gradual compliance; and the Landscape Ordinance would apply only to new development or substantial remodelling. Mr. Atler asked if the Planning Division would help and advise before annexation. Mrs. Romans said it would. Mr. Duggan noted that a nonconforming use cannot expand. Mrs. Romans said that, while it could not be expanded , it could be kept in a safe condition; and the Board of Adjustment could grant an expansion if there were a sufficient reason. She said a rental business would be permitted in the B-2 district, for example; but the lumber yard would be a nonconforming use in that district. At Mr. Allen's request, Mrs. Romans described the functions of the Board of Adjustment and Appeals and the Planning Commission. Walter Groditski, Code Administrator for the Division of Building and Safety, said that his Division regulates building permits, does fire inspections and enforces the environmental codes. They follow the Uniform Building Codes and Uniform Fire Code and inspect all businesses annually. Two code enforcement officers are in charge of weeds, trash and derelict vehicles. County building departments do not require contractors to be licensed, but Englewood requires licensing, testing, and some demonstration of expertise before contractors are allowed to work within the City limits. • • -5- Mr. Atler asked about the Sign Code and landscaping. Susan King said that landscaping would be required ~ith a change of use or when a building permit is taken out representing over 50% of the value of the existing building. Ten percent of the site must be landscaped, and 50% of that must be in living material. Certain signs are prohibited in Engelwood, but others could be classified as nonconforming for up to ten years. Billboards have not been affected by the Code. She said that she would have any sign inspected if the property owner requested it before any annexation took place. Rick Kahm, engineers, ·inspector. visible to Acting Director of Engineering Services, said they have two a project engineer, three surveyors, one draftsperson and an They handle public improvement programs, and are not usually the citizen except with street programs and paving districts. In the last 30 years there have been 25 Englewood paving districts, and 85% of the streets are in good condition. He said that some of the areas to be annexed would need to provide public right-of-way, and later a paving district would be imposed. Forty .root roadways are standard in industrial areas and the development costs are about $62 per frontage foot. The City will maintain the roads; but after two years, the sidewalks, curbs and gutters become the owner's responsibility. Mr. Guetz asked about imp ·rovements to Belleview. Councilman Kozacek said those improvments have been delayed indefinitely. Kells Waggoner, Director of Public Works, said that his department is responsible -for street upkeep, sweeping the streets and maintaining the storm drainage systems. The Traffic Engineer is responsible for signs, signals, street striping, traffic studies, truck routes and truck limits. The rest of the responsibilities of the department are in-service. V. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS. Councilman Kozacek introduced himself as the Councilman for District 4. All of the areas considered for annexation would be in his District. He said he had taken office in January. The toxic waste site in the industrial area has been greatly improved in the last three months. He said that City Council would not require 20 feet of land to be dedicated on the south side of West Tufts Avenue if that would damage the property to the extent of having a road too close to a house. He said this Council is flexible, and might go around obstacles. He said he would represent new citizens and businessmen. He stressed that businessmen are often overlooked because they are not voters, but that Mr. Kozacek and this Council are aware of the importance of the businessmen in Englewood. Councilman Bilo said that Englewood would welcome the property owners if they choose to annex into Englewood. He said the staff had provided both sides of the annexation question, and that Council would be willing to work with the owners to make the transition smooth. Don McAndrew, 4515 South Santa Fe, asked what "petition" means in annexation. Mrs. Romans said that there can be annexation by petition of 100% of the property owners, or by election if there were not 100%, or if there were conditions imposed upon the annexation. Council action is not required. An area can be annexed without petition if the annexing City has had 2/3 contiguity for at least three years. -6- When asked if the City intended to annex the districts whether or not the owners wanted to be annexed, Mrs. Romans said that she believed the City would not have had the meeting if they intended to annex without discussing it with the owners. Mr. McAndrew asked how long annexation would take. Mrs. Romans said after a petition is received, it would take only a matter of a couple of weeks for Council to take action. If one city began the process to annex, and the residents wanted to be annexed by another City, most likely an election would be required. Mrs. Romans stated that matters of business sales tax and licenses should be addressed to the Finance Department which was not represented at the meeting. She said that owners with questions should leave their names and number and she would have them contacted. Mr. Woika returned to explain what would happen if people wanted Englewood water. He said that Area 3 would be all right. Area 4 needs a hookup, and Area 2 would be the most difficult and expensive to serve. Mr. Guetz asked if sales ~ax would have to be collected, saying at the present time his business does not collect sales tax except for the City of Denver and on deliveries. He said that annexation would require him to collect the tax es for En g lewood, and asked if he would have to collect for other cities. Mrs. Romans said that she would ask Gary Higbee to get in touch with Mr. Guetz. Don Bowey asked if he would be annexed regardless of his wishes. Councilman ~ Kozacek said he did not think Englewood would force annexation. Mr. Magnuson ~ said he would like to· annex areas which are completely surrounded. Mrs. Romans said that Englewood feels those areas are qualified to be part of En g lewood, and Englewood can provide better services and save money on property tax es. Mr. Du ggan asked about School Districts. Mrs. Romans said that annexed areas would remain in the same School District. She said she sees three choices for the own e r s : they can remain unincorporated; they can go to Sheridan, in which case they would continue to pay some of the Special District taxes; or they can go to Englewood and be excluded from all of the Special Districts, while remaining in the same School District. Mr. Allen said that his family weighed annex ation in 1954, decided on En glewood, and have been very glad. The meeting adjourned at 9:15 p.m. S~ing Secretary •