Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-06-16 PZC MINUTES• • • . Plannin g and Zonin g Commissi on Study Ses sion or Public Hearing Case #USE2009-01 l , Community Gar den June 16 , 2009 P age lo f lO CITY OF ENGLEWOOD PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING June 16, 2009 I. CALL TO ORDER ~ The regular meeting of the City Pl anning and Zoning Commission was ca ll ed to order at 7:02 p .m. in the Council Chambers of the Englewood Ci vic Center, Chair Bleile presidin g. Present: Absent: Staff: Bleile, Roth , King, Welker, Krieger, Knoth, Fish , Brick Ki nton (a lternate ) Calonder Audra Kirk, Planner A lan White, Community Development Director 11. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Jun e 2, 2009 ~ Knoth moved: Roth seconded : TO APPROVE THE JUNE 2, 2009 MINUTES Chair Bleile asked if there were any modification s or corrections. Mr. Fish asked that on pag e 3, last sentence of paragraph 7 the word consensus be changed to majority vote. Mr. Knoth and Mr. Roth accepted the Friendl y Amendment. AYES: NAYS: ABSTAIN : ABSENT: Bleile, Roth , Welker, Krieger, Knoth, Fish , King, Brick None None Calonder Motion carried . 111. PUBLIC HEARING: CASE #2009-011, COMMUNITY GARDEN ~ Knoth moved: Krieger seconded : THE PUBLIC HEARING ON CASE #USE2009-011 BE OPENED AYES: NAYS: ABS TAIN: ABSENT: Bleile, Roth , Welker, Kr ieger, Knoth, Fish , King, Brick None None Calonder • • • Planning and Zoning Commission Study Session or Public Hearing Case #USE2009-0l l , Community Garden June 16, 2009 Page 2of10 Motion carried. Ms. Audra Kirk, Planner, was sworn in. ~,Ms. Kirk stated the case before the Commission tonight is CASE #USE2009-011 . This application was submitted by the Englewood Parks and Recreation Department for a Conditional Use to allow a community garden in the R-2- B Zone District. For the record the notice of public hearing was published in the Englewood Herald on May 29, 2009 and also was on the City's website from May 19111 through June 15, 2009. The applicant has provided a certification that the property was continuously posted from June 5, 2009. Also included for the record is a copy of the staff report. The subject property is on the site of the Englewood depot located on West Dartmouth between South Fox and South Galapago Streets. The subject property is composed of three separate lots, but does function as one single lot. There are 145 feet of frontage on South Dartmouth, 11 7.5 feet on South Fox Street and 161 feet of frontage on South Galapago Street. The proposed community garden will be contained to the northeast portion of the site fronting on South Fox Street. The plan does provide for screening around the perimeter of the garden with a four foot solid fence, shrub hedges and fruit trees . The area at the northwest portion of the site that will be used for parking will be screened with a four foot fence that is already in place . Landscaped areas have been designed to City standards and the plan meets all Englewood Municipal Codes . The Planning and Zoning Commission review must determine if the request is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan and meets the five criteria found in 16-2-12 of the Unified Development Code: Conditional Use Permits. This plan does support the goals of Roadmap Englewood: 2003 Englewood Comprehensiv e Plan. Th e proposed use will create a variety of park classifications. The five criteria that must be met are: 1. The use must be permitted as a Conditional Use in the zone district in which it is proposed to be located. Table 7 6-5-1. 7: Table of Allowed Uses, a community garden is permitted within the R-2-8 zone district. 2. The Conditional Use will not create significant adverse impacts on existing or future development. The proposed project will not create any adverse impacts on existing or future developments . • • • Planning and Zoning Commission Study Session or Public Hearing Case #USE2009-0l l, Community Garden June 16 , 2009 Page 3 of 10 3. The number of off-street parking spaces shall not be less than th e requi rements of Section 16-6-4 EMC. Th ere are no specifi c requir em ents for th e numb er of spaces that a community garden must provide. How ever, there are twelv e parking spaces available on the site adjacent to the depot. 4. Meets all other applicable provisions of the Englewood Municipal Code. This project went throu gh Development Review Team and was reviewed and approved by all City departments. 5. If the application is for a Conditional Use tel ecommunications tower or antenna, it shall also conform to any additional standards and requir eme nts for such use s specified in Chapter 16-7 EMC, "Telecommunications." Not applicable, telecommunication use is not part of this application. Staff recommends approval of the request for Conditional Use to allow a community garden in the R-2-B Zone District. Ms . Kirk offered to answer any questions th e Commission might ha ve. Mr. King said he assumes the project is funded, but who will be responsible for the maintenance of the project. Ms . Kirk said funding will come from fundraising to pa y for the actual co nstruction cf the garden and after that the City is responsibl e for maintaining it. The lots wii l be leas ed and those individuals will be required to maintain them. The Parks Department will be responsible for picking up trash on a weekly basis. She noted Mr. Lee, who will be speakin g lat e r, would also be able to answer questions. Mr. Fish said the parking lot is dirt. Will that be improved and will it come from the fundraising efforts? Ms. Kirk stated th e Community Development Department is not requiring that the parking lot be paved as there is not a change in intensity or use . Technically, the site is being used as a park and is being maintained by the Parks and Recreation Department. Mr. Welker said it was his understanding the parking that is there now was designated for the Depot building. Ms. Kirk said that is true, but the Depot is currently not being used . Mr. Welker wanted to know what would happen if the Depot should be us ed as a building at sometime in the future; is there land enough for both uses. Ms. Kirk stated Staff has not researched that. To bring the Depot back to use would require huge funding since it is in such disrepair. That concluded Ms. Kirk's testimony . • • • Planning and Zoning Commis sion Study Session or Public Hearin g Case #USE2009-0ll, Co=unity Garden June 16 , 2009 Page 4of10 liMJ Dave Lee, Manager of Open Space for Parks and Recreation was sworn in. He stated Parks and Recreation is the applicant for the community garden because the City owns the property at 601 West Dartmouth. The Parks and Recreation Department became involved with the project through the Englewood Cultural Arts Commission. Denver Urban Gard ens is also involved as they are the local expert on establishing and initiating community gardens. They do it not only in the City and County of Denver, but m etro-wide. Th ey currently have 90 gardens established throughout the metro area. Parks and Recreation's role is to continue with the garden and provide any support that we can to the steering committee and the citizens. He offered to answer any questions the Commission might have. Mr. Brick asked what happens if a year or two down the road enthusiasm fades, what is the contingency plan when the gardens turn to weeds. Mr. Lee said he didn't believe they are going to turn to weeds because of Denver Urban Gardens' success rate with establishing, continuing and maintaining gardens. He also said he believes the economic climate now is right. You see a lot of newspaper ads regarding starting gardens. Part of Parks ' plan for this garden is to donate produce to local food banks and local charitable organizations. Denver Urban Gardens will also provide funding for the garden through the SCFD. Denver Urban Gardens are capable and will assist Parks with writing grants and fundraising. The Parks Department plans on providing seed money for the gardens through either Open Spac e or the Conservation Trust Fund . Mr. Fish asked about the leasing of the lo ts. Mr. Lee s2.ir:i t hey w ill lease for between $25 and $50, which will go towards paying for the water, compost or anything· that is for th e entire community garden itself. Mr. Brick asked who is eligible for a plot. Mr. Lee said anyone who wishes to apply for one, but we would like to give first consideration to city residents . He said they anticipate a waiting list for th e Englewood garden as there are waiting li sts for all the community gardens that Denver Urban Gardens oversees. Mr. King said the hours of operation are from 6 a.m. to dusk. What happens after dusk? Mr. Lee said if someone wanted to stay after dusk they could as the City's parks are open till 11 p.m., but most people will prefer to garden while there is adequate light. Mr. King asked if there were any liability issues . Mr. Lee said no more than in any other park area . Chair Bleile asked if signs would be installed referencing the garden . Mr. Lee said yes , at some point. The garden will be named and there will probably be some type of informational board for the gardeners or anybody else who comes by. Ms. Krieger asked what is typically done with the garden during the winter. Mr. Lee said basically, all gardeners who rent a plot will sign a contract saying they are responsible for the clean-up of their plot. If there is somebody who neglects their garden someone from • • • Planning and Zoning Commission Study Session or Public Hearing Case #USE2009-0l 1, Community Garden June 16, 2009 Page 5of10 the steering committee will give them a gentle reminder. Beyond that the Parks Department is prepared to go in and take care of any unsightly debris that is left behind. Mr. Welker asked if the Parks Department will be responsible for the initial tilling and preparation of the garden before the season starts. Mr. Lee said he believed the Parks Department will be responsible. There are several trees that need to be moved, the sod will need to be stripped and compost will need to be tilled in to loosen up the soil. That work will all be done by either volunteers or by the Parks Department. Mr. Welker asked who would be responsible for removal of garbage. Mr. Lee said trash cans will be placed at the site and it will be treated like any other park. Parks workers will visit the area regularly. Any other refuse will be composted. Mr. Welker asked if there had been any conversations with adjoining neighbors. Mr. Lee said there was a community meeting a week ago and approximately 22 people attended. Most were from the neighborhood. People from the steering committee and Cultural Arts canvassed the neighborhood, distributed flyers and spoke to as many people as they could that were home at the time. They asked for any concerns, interest, etc. Mr. Fish asked if any restroom facilities would be provided. Mr. Lee said not at the depot site itself, but there are restrooms located in the park across the street. Most community gardens do not have restroom facilities available so this site will be one of the few that do. Mr. Welker asked if the re had be en any thought of de si gna ting a plot for use by the schools. Mr. Lee said that has not been discussed at this point, but schools would certainly be welcome if there is an interest. Bishop Elementary, which is southeast of the proposed site, already has a garden. Chair Bleile asked the Commissioners had any further questions. They did not. He thanked Mr. Lee for his testimony. Knoth moved: Fish seconded: THE PUBLIC HEARING ON CASE #USE2009-011 BE CLOSED AYES: NAYS: ABSTAIN: ABSENT: Bleile, Roth, Welker, Krieger, Knoth, Fish, King, Brick None None Calonder Motion carried . • • Planning and Zoning Commission Study Session or Public Hearing Case #USE2009-011, Community Garden June 16 , 2009 Page 6 of 10 ~· Knoth moved: Krieger seconded: CASE #USE2009-011, CO ND ITIO NA L USE PERMIT FOR A COMMUNITY CARDEN IN AN R-2-8 ZONE DISTRICT AT 601 WEST DARTMOUTH AVENUE, BE APPROVED ~ Mr. Brick said he believes this project gives the opportunity for people to get together . Chair Bleile said he felt it would be a good use of the property as it has been sitting there for a long time. Ms. Krieger agreed . She said it is a park and you do see people walking their do gs or playing occasionally, but Cushing Park is right across the street so it's not really needed as a park. She sees this project as a higher and better use of the property. Mr. Fish said he doesn 't believe the area is over utilized at this time and doesn 't feel th e project will impact the area adversely in any way. It is a good utilization of the property and is definitely in compliance with the Municipal Code. Ms. Krieger said the only concern that the neighborhood might have is when the gardens · are lying fallow there will be dirt blowing around, but it should be no worse than any other garden area and the scree-ning will help . She doesn 't necessarily see that as a reason to not do the project. Mr. Welker said it's a very appropriate use of the park as it will serve a segment of the population. If this one is done well, maybe it will stimulate another one in a different area of the City. It can also be a good teaching experience for children. There being no further comments Chair Bleile called for a vote. AYES: NAYS: ABSTAIN: ABSENT: Bleile, Roth, Welker, Krieger, Knoth, Fish, King, Brick None None Calonder Motion carried. IV. CAPITAL PROJECTS DISCUSSION ~ Chair Bleile asked the Commissioners if they wanted to go through the spreadsheet line by line or focus on specific line items . Mr. Brick said the information contained in the meeting packet was quite an improvement in terms of visual, reading and understanding • over last year's packet. It was agreed to not go line by line. • • • Planning and Zoning Commi ssion Study Session or Public Hearing Case #USE2009-011, Community Garden June 16 , 2009 P age 7of10 Director White said he spoke to Assistant City Manager Flaherty today and asked realistically how much money there will be for new projects in 2010. There are three main sources that fund the Public Improvement Fund: 1. Vehicle use tax 2. Building use tax 3. Arapahoe County Road and Bridge tax. Year to date actual reve nue collected from those sources is approximately $500,000 . Projections are that by the end of the year there may be roughly $2 ,000,0 00. Mr. Flaherty said to use these numbers to frame tonight's discussion. Director White said things ma y turn around and we might anticipate $2,500,000 in revenue in 2010, but with multiple year maintenance projects already built into the Capital Project Budget taking up about $2,000,000, there might be $500,000 to use. Hopefully, that information will help the Commission with tonight's discussion. Mr. Fish asked if the list provided to the Commissioners was all of the capital improvements. Chair White said that was correct. It goes out to 2013. Mr. Brick asked if anything has been done regarding the Medical District sanitary sewer improvement. Director White said nothing has been done to date . Mr. Brick said that :-night be a project that could be done with a small amount of money. M~. Krieger sai d that project would be very expensive. Mr. Welker said he hopes that the City will start looking at other ways of servicing .th e iot at Highway 285 and South Clarkson Street. There is currently a sewer line across the str eet. We need a creative solution for the property. Mr. Knoth said if a user is interested in th e property they'll figure the sewer issues out. Mr. Fish said he would vote for trying to figure out how to resolve the sewer issue on that property. Mr. Welker suggest ed keeping the list prepared earlier this year by Planning and Zoning and Staff since not much money is available. Director White said now is the time to do planning, engineering and feasibility studies until the Public Improvement Fund is better funded in future years. He stated he is placing those types of studies in the Community Development budget and not asking for funding through the Capital Budget so we are not dependent on city-wide priorities to get those plans in place when money does become available and can move the construction forward . Chair Bleile asked if building permits fall under Community Development. Director White said they do not. Mr. Bleile asked if the permit tracking program was ever instituted . Director White said yes, it had been and is used by Building, Community Development and Code Enforcement. • • • Planning and Zoning Commission Study Session or Public Hearing Case #USE2009-0l l, Community Garden June 16, 2009 Page 8of10 Chair Bleile said he feels Englewood is truly a good local community. He said he doesn't see a lot of excess in the budget; these are true legitimate expenses of running and operating a city. He asked the other commissioners for input. Discussion centered on IT improvements/maintenance and the ability to now pay water/sewer bills on-line. Mr. Knoth noted he did not see a line item for bringing businesses to the City. Mr. Roth said that would not be considered a capital expense. Director White said that would be more a function of Community Development. There is one staff person dedicated to business attraction/recruitment/retention/expansion, but there is no money set aside for just that. There is, however, money set aside for marketing and we receive money from the State for the Enterprise Zone. Discussion ensued regarding incentives for businesses to move to Englewood. Director White said the City has the Enterprise Zone serving the industrial portion of the City, the Catalyst program, we have great access and transportation and the City moves people through the approval process quickly. Director White said he hasn't been able to convince City Council to talk about monetary incentives. Mr. Brick said he believes businesses do want to come to Englewood. He said he very much enjoyed hearing from Mr. Hollingsworth, Economic Development Coordinator, about 18 months ago and would like to have him attend another Planning and Zoning meeting. Mr. Fish asked if Engle woo d's vacancy ra tes '.3r:: on :'."lr:r Nith r_~·ihe r surrou n di n g Cir eas. Mr. Knoth said they are the same as the rest of the city. Chair Bleile said economically you look for the biggest bang for the buck such as Pirate's Cove. You want to put money where it attracts people. Outside of the business perspective you need to look at the economic condition of surrounding neighborhoods. If you raise the median income of a particular area it's going to attract busine sses. He said he felt the City should be strategically marketing the Medi cal and Downtown District Small Area Plan . Mr. Knoth said he wasn't sure the City would receive much sales tax from that. Mr. Welker said he would like the City to be looking for opportunities where we might further our plan for beautification and encourage development. Whether that is Capital Improvement Budget or something else, he would like to see continued improvement in the efforts to put the Medical and Downtown District Small Area Plan in front of people, especially national retailers. He said he is disappointed in what the City seems to have been able to gather in terms of redevelopment along the railroad. In the City of Littleton all up and down from Belleview through downtown there has been a considerable amount of redevelopment. There are new apartments and life in an area that was basically stagnant for a long time. We have the old Martin Plastics property that is just sitting there. It's near residential and very close to a light rail station . • • • Planning and Zoning Commission Study Session or Public Hearing Case #USE2009-0l l , Community Garden June 16, 2009 Page 9 of IO Mr. Knoth said there is too much product on the market in Englewood right now. He showed the Martin Plastics property to a multi-family developer, but they passed because they said there is too much of that product on the market already. Mr. Welker said in the 10 years we have had light rail there has been only one project built of the type we expected to get along transit, which is across the street from City offices. He would like to know why Englewood doesn't have more redevelopment like Littleton and Denver. What can be done to attract or stimulate development? Chair Bleile stated he believes Englewood doesn't have the perception of being family friendly . He said from his own personal experience from not having children until last year .... what do you do with them? He wished there were more parks to go to and things to do. Arvad a has a huge soccer field that is filled with people every single weekend; Highlands Ranch has numerous recreation centers with large pools, etc. People want to live in an area .because of the perception it is family oriented, the City is growing, etc. Mr. Welker said we have some of those things: we have Pirate's Cove and a recreation center and are both related to the neighborhoods we are talking about. Chair Bleile agreed those two amenities are great ones and should be given money for improvements, if needed. Mr. Welker also noted the City has great parks. Mr. King said t he schools are a huge problem. Ms. Krieger said it's a perception that the schools are not good, it's not that they are. Mr. King disagreed. Several Commissioners stated they hav ~ pull ed their children out of the Englewood school system and placed them in private schools. Mr. Welker said the point of all this is that he doesn't want the City to be the problem, he wants the City to encourage, support, to beautify and work on its image .... to do all it can to be attractive. Chair Bl ei le asked if there was anything els e Directo r White n eede d from the Commission. Director White asked for any recommendations the Commission might have. Ms. Krieger said she agreed with Mr. Welker and felt the priorities the Commission compiled earlier this year are still important. Chair Bleile agreed. Mr. Brick said the planning, engineering and feasibility studies Director White suggested was the way to go . Mr. Fish recommended the Commission use the priority list 1 through 6 established earlier in the year. Ms . Krieger agreed. She asked if anyone disagreed. No one disagreed. Mr. Brick asked that Community Development add to the list planning and engineering of those priorities in order to be prepared for when money is available . • •• • Planning and Zoning Commission Study Sessio n or Public Hearing Case #USE2009-011, Community Garden June 16 , 2009 Page 10of10 V. PUBLIC FORUM .If] There was no public present. VI. DIRECTOR'S CHOICE ~ Director White ha d nothing further t o report. VII. STAFF'S CHOICE lfil1 Staff had nothing further to report. VIII. ATTORNEY'S CHOICE Ms. Reid wa .s not present. IX. C OMMISSIONER'S CHOICE -~. Mr. Roth noted a meeting had been held a week ago on streetscape design for the Medical and Downtown District Small Area Pl an. He presented a flyer from th e m eeti n g. Ch air Bleile said th e flyer was a great marketing tool. Director White sa i d the results of l:h e meetin g would be available soo n. He noted th e plan is very concep tu al and you can't really build from it. !h e consulting gro up is recommending a priority list be established for .the next . ' .. ::;t e ps . The meeting ad journed at 8:10 p.m. Barbara Kreck!