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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-11-18 Croman Advisory_MIN CROMAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES NOVEMBER 18, 2009 CALL TO ORDER Vice Chair Graham Lewis called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. in the Siskiyou Room, 51 Winburn Way. Committee Members Present: Staff Present: Russ Chapman, Conservation Commissioner Bill Molnar, Community Development Director Keith Swink, Historic Commissioner Maria Harris, Planning Manager Graham Lewis, Housing Commissioner Brandon Goldman, Senior Planner Jim Lewis, Parks & Recreation Commissioner April Lucas, Administrative Assistant Larry Blake, Planning Commissioner Pam Hammond, Chamber of Commerce Representative Mary Kay Michelsen, Neighborhood Representative Absent Members: Richard Hendrickson, Airport Commissioner Eric Navickas, City Councilor David Wilkerson, Public Arts Commissioner Matt Warshawsky, Transportation Commissioner Kerry KenCairn, Tree Commissioner Paul Steinle, SOU Representative Rylan Heyerman, Neighborhood Representative Ben Bellinson, Neighborhood Representative APPROVAL OF OCTOBER 21, 2009 CROMAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES The minutes of October 21, 2009 were approved as presented. UPDATE OF NOVEMBER 10, 2009 PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING Planning Manager Maria Harris provided a presentation to the Committee and noted this is the same update that was given to th the Planning Commission at their November 10 meeting. She noted the three main questions being put forward are: 1) Are the land uses in the land use matrix consistent with the goals and objectives of the redevelopment plan? 2) Do the design standards seem consistent with the employment center envisioned in the redevelopment plan? 3) Do the sustainable design standards go too far, not far enough, or seem just about right? Ms. Harris briefly reviewed the project timeline and the public hearing package, which will consist of AMC Chapter 18.53, the Croman Mill District Standards, miscellaneous revisions to the Land Use Ordinance, and amendments to the Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Map. Mr. Harris stated the guiding principles for the plan are circulation, land use, and policies and regulations, and asked the group to focus tonight’s discussion on the Croman Mill District Standards. She also commented on the “Dimensional Standards Matrix”, which will address lot size, landscaping coverage, height, solar access, floor area ratio, residential density, and employment density. Street Standards Ms. Harris explained this is the first part of the Standards document and it addresses the central boulevard, local commercial streets, accessways and multi-use paths. She noted the accessways could be used primarily for pedestrians and bicyclists with shared access for delivery vehicles and clarified staff would like to keep this language flexible in order to accommodate a range of options. She added depending on what types of businesses go in, a standard street may not be necessary. Ms. Croman Advisory Committee November 18, 2009 Page 1 of 3 Harris reviewed where the multi-use path will be located and clarified the Street Standards section also addresses the Tolman Creek Road realignment, access spacing, shared access, on street parking, and limited auto access. Design Standards Ms. Harris explained the Design Standards cover: orientation and scale, parking and on street circulation, streetscape, building materials, architectural standards for large scale buildings, landscaping, and lighting. She added the new standards being added for the Croman site include: active edge streets, street wall height, residential buffer zone, transit facility, freight rail spur easement, commuter rail platform easement, open space, and compact development. Sustainable Development Standards Ms. Harris stated this is the last section of the Standards document and it addresses green streets, stormwater management, and parking. She added there are additional sustainable standards included in this section that came from the Crandall Arambula plan which speak to: conserving natural areas, creating diverse neighborhoods, residential buffer zones, recycling areas, minimizing construction impacts, practicing low-impact site development, and sustainable development bonuses. Ms Harris clarified if buildings receive LEED Certification, they can add anywhere from 1-4 stories. She noted this was encouraged in the Crandall Arambula plan, but the methodology was developed by staff and adapted from what other communities are doing. Comment was made questioning if the height bonus will encroach on the height limitations set by the FAA. Senior Planner Brandon Goldman explained the FAA defers to the local zoning, but the taller buildings will likely have additional requirements they need to satisfy, such as lighting. He added staff has submitted a worse case scenario to the FAA and are waiting to hear back what kind of limitations or requirements they would impose. Mr. Goldman provided a recap of the Planning Commission’s discussion of the Design Standards. He clarified the Planning Commission asked staff to look into other LEED incentives besides height bonuses and also requested some of the Low Impact Development Standards be required, and not just recommended. He stated heights in the residential area was also raised as a concern by some of the Planning Commissioners due to the exclusion of LEED height bonuses in residential areas. Mr. Goldman noted other concerns that have been raised pertain to employment densities and land intensive uses, freight access, rainwater harvesting, residential proximity, and street layout. It was noted that Crandall Arambula has been asked to prepare a street alignment impact analysis to determine what benefits an east-west layout would achieve in terms of energy savings. Blake commented that solar orientation is one of the easiest way to gain LEED points, and voiced concern with how buildings would achieve this with the original street layout. Michelsen questioned if they are doing anything to encourage green industry. It was clarified that while the plan does not specifically promote green industry, it does prohibit heavy industrial uses which typically aren’t considered green. Mr. Molnar noted the Plan’s focus on sustainable building, the Council goals, and the other movements in the community, and stated the hope is that a business will come in that mimics the values of the community and this creates a domino effect. Blake asked about the Sustainable Standards and felt the wording was open to interpretation since some are not hard and fast standards. Rather than recommendations, he questioned if there could be other bonuses or incentives to promote these standards. Ms. Harris noted that some cities are using expedited permitting, decreased SDC fees, or cash rebates to encourage LEED buildings, however monetary incentives are more challenging given the current economy. The Committee was asked for their opinions as to whether the Sustainability Standards should be recommended or mandatory. Chapman commented that the availability of recycled materials needs to be considered before this is made a requirement, and also suggested a possible price limit where builders could opt out. Comment was made that before these standards are made mandatory, they need to make sure there are products and means to attain that; otherwise it just creates roadblocks in development. Lewis suggested using alternate non-drinking water for landscaping, such as TID. John Fields, citizen, addressed the Committee and offered his input. He shared his belief that rainwater catchment wont work in our climate, and stated the cost to do it makes it difficult. Regarding solar, Fields stated the rules for residential are very different than commercial, and explained commercial buildings have very little daylighting demand and shading if often important. He commented on the LEED program and stated builders will receive huge points just for building on the site. He added in order to make this a success those structures will need to be checked periodically after they are built to make sure Croman Advisory Committee November 18, 2009 Page 2 of 3 everything is working correctly. Fields expressed his concern that they are creating a plan that is too complex and stated he is worried the costs will be so huge that no one will be willing to build here. Swink agreed with Fields’ concerns and stated they need to have incentives to help people achieve these high standards. Ms. Harris clarified that the types of buildings that are allowed off the central boulevard do not have as high of a standard as those along the central boulevard. She stated there will be higher standards for the main street, but as you go away from the center it moves into compatible industrial land and the standards would be loosened. Fields commented that the Croman site it a very difficult lot to develop, and noted 40-50 ft. of fill will need to be removed. City Council Kate Jackson addressed the Committee and stated if Ashland wants to stay small and grow at a slow rate, they need to create something that is different from what they have now. She stated Ashland is losing families and is turning into a retirement community, and voiced her support for creating jobs on the Croman site. Blake noted the range of sustainable activities that could be done and voiced his support for allowing developers to select the ones they want to do (such as completing 6 out of 10). He stated this would allow people to avoid those that are too cost prohibitive for their business. Hammond voiced support for any kind of incentives they can offers builders, and stated it all benefits the City in the end. COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS Mr. Molnar clarified staff has been tracking their comments and relaying them to the Planning Commission, and they will ultimately be forwarded to the City Council. He asked if the Committee wanted to issue a formal recommendation or just a list of the issues they have dealt with. Staff encouraged the members to come and make comments at the upcoming public hearings, and they were also encouraged to individually submit answers to the three questions that have been put forward. Vice Chair Graham stated he was not aware it was their job to make a recommendation, but rather to discuss the items they feel are important. He stated they have reached a consensus on the potential for job creation and this should be the primary focus. Lewis provided some feedback from the Parks & Recreation Commission and stated they have questions about how the open space, trails, and central park will be acquired. He noted the adopted Parks plan does not address this area and at some point they will need to amend their plan. He stated the concept of the central park is great, but Parks has concerns with the maintenance and logistics of it all. Mr. Molnar requested anyone else who represents a commission to please talk about this at their next meeting and provide feedback to staff. REVIEW NEXT STEPS/TIMELINE Mr. Molnar stated at this point, there are no future meetings scheduled. He stated as of now they are done, however they may need to reconvene at a later date. Staff clarified all of their meeting memos and comments will be included in the materials that go to the Planning Commission and the City Council, and staff encouraged the members to continue to provide feedback from their respective groups. ADJOURNMENT Meeting adjourned at 6:40 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, April Lucas, Administrative Assistant Croman Advisory Committee November 18, 2009 Page 3 of 3