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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1996-08-13 Planning MINASHLAND PLANNING COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING MINUTES AUGUST 13, 1996 CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by Chairperson Barbare Jarvis at 7:05 p.m. Other Commissioners present were Bass, Gardiner, Armitage, Howe, Finkle, and Giordano. Absent members were I-learn and Carr. Staff present were Mclaughlin, Molnar, Knox, and Yates. APPROVAL OF MINU'rES Howe moved to approve the Minutes of the July 9, 1996 meeting. Bass seconded the motion and the Minutes were approved. PUBUC FORUM Carl Oates, 776 Glendale, submitted a letter and spoke about his concerns regarding the approval of Planning Action 96-048 which was heard before the Hearings Board on April 9, 1996. He disagrees with the results of that meeting. He wrote a letter to the Tidings, Chairperson Jarvis, Planning Staff and City Council. He distributed a copy of his remarks. He is particularly concerned with the maintenance of Clay Street. PHlUP LANG, 758 B Street, spoke about the make-up of the Historic Commission and Planning Commission. He submitted a copy of his letter to the Commission. Jarvis said lang's letter and comments would be addressed at a study session. TYPE II PUBLIC HEARINGS Jarvis read the statement instructing participants of the process. PLANNING ACTION 96-101 REQUEST FOR A MINOR LAND PARTITION TO DMDE A PARCEL INTO TWO LOTS, WITH THE REAR PARCEL BEING A FLAG LOT LOCATED AT 321 ALTA STREET. A VARIANCE IS ALSO BEING REQUESTED TO ALLOW FOR A DRIVEWAY GRADE OF 17 PERCENT, FOR APPROXIMATELY 100 FEET IN LENGTH, INSTEAD OF 15 PERCENT AS REQUIRED BY ORDINANCE. APPLICANT: LESLIE BELEW Site Visits and Ex Parte Contacts Giordano Is familiar with the site and knows the applicant socially. He does not believe It would affect his ability to make an unbiased decision. The remaining Commissioners had a site visit. STAFF REPORT Knox reported the applicant is proposing to create two lots with a driveway variance. The partition being requested is off Nta, an unimproved street that is over 10 percent grade. The ordinance requires that any new lots created off an unimproved street have to be paved from the new lot to a paved street. In this case, the applicant has proposed to do the 300 foot half street improvement. The street will need to be engineered to take Into consideration storm run-off. The variance for the flag drive involves 100 feet of length. The grade is about 17 percent. If the applicant tries to meet the 15 percent slope requirement, there is a chance a redwood tree in the vicinity would be harmed by cuts. The applicant is proposing 18 percent grade near the tree (the first 100 feet) and beyond that, they can meet the 15 percent requirement by terracing. There are nine conditions of approval. Condition 8, the clearance for the tree limbs should be thirteen feet, six inches (not ten feet). Condition 9, the last sentence should read: 'inspections fees", not "administrative costs'. Staff recommends approval of this project. Armitage wondered if the back lot could be further subdivided. Knox said it could not. PUBLIC HEARING LESUE BELEW, 321 Alta, said her intention is to save the redwood tree and maintain the trees there. She is willing to pave Nta at her own expense. Howe asked Betew why she decided to request a variance on the downhill side of the property instead of puffing access in the middle of the larger lot which would be parallel to the existing driveway and in the future give better access to the back lot. Belew said they do not intend to split the back lot again. It does not seem appropriate to break it up further. They looked at the best place to locate the driveway according to the grade, not disturb people in the neighborhood, and keep the driveway less intrusive. Giordano wondered if Belew tried to form a local improvement district. Belew said they found it would take at least a year and they did not wish to wait that long. She thought the majority of property owners had signed in favor of paving. Howe asked what the half street improvement would involve. Belew said she understood she would have to install a gutter on the downhill side to catch the water. Gardiner asked what problems are created from the unpaved section to the paved section. McLaughlin said engineers will have to decide how to best direct the granite someplace else. Jarvis asked Belew what is unique and unusual about the property. Belew said the area around the access contains cypress trees on one side and the redwood on the other which creates a beautiful feeling. It would significantly alter the quality of the whole area to remove the trees, particularly the redwood tree. Belew cannot think of any negative impacts on adjacent properties. She will be paying for something the neighbors will ultimately be asked to pay for. She did not believe one extra lot would impact the neighborhood. Belew is willing to comply with Condition 8 by bonding for the hiring of an arborist. Bass hoped the new code enforcement officer would keep an eye on what is happening on the site. Staff Response Knox noted that in 1991 that the applicant processed a Minor Land Partition in a pre-applicetion showing the lot being accessed per Howe's suggestion, At the time, there was a garage that straddled the property line. Now a pad Is there with a retaining wall behind it which would mean the outs would have to be retained. COMMISSIONERS DISCUSSION AND MOTION Howe moved to approve Planning Action 96-101. Change Condition 9 by deleting "administrative costs" and adding "inspection fees". Change Condition 8 to 13 feet 6 inches of clearance instead of 10 feet. AJso, applicant agrees to bending and pre- notification of the City. Finkle seconded the motion and it carried unanimously. PLANNING ACTION 96-086 REQUEST FOR A SITE REVIEW TO MODIFY THE BUILDING DESIGN OF A PREVIOUSLY APPROVED HEALTH SPA LOCATED AT 685 'A' STREET. MODIFICATION TO INVOLVE EUMINATION OF THE MULTI-PURPOSE ROOM AND REPLACING IT WITH A PRIVATE 'MEMBERS ONLY' OUTDOOR SWIMMING POOL APPLICANT: PATRICIA MURPHY Site Visit and Ex parte Contacts Site visits were made by all. Giordano was not involved in this part of the project but had been previously, therefore, he stepped down. STAFF REPORT Molnar explained this proposal is to modify a previously approved building design as outlined in the Staff Report. Molnar outlined the history of the project. The applicant wishes to remove the multi-purpose room and replace it with a two-lane lap pool and whirlpool. The design remains the same, however, the roof would be removed and allow for a pool. The exterior walls would look very similar. Other modifications Include additional mechanical rooms near the rear of the building off the railroad tracks. There will be a small addition on the front of the pool area to allow for dressing rooms. Staff's main concerns were the change in use of the interior of the building. Will it result in impact changes (traffic)? Staff felt that by removing the multi-purpose room and having a pool that was for members would either be a moot issue or reduce the ASIILMID RANNING COl' '~IS610N REGULAR MEETIMG AUMJST 13~ 1~1 overall traffic. Generally, health spas fend to have peak traffic times that would be different than the other uses along "A' Street. Peak times would be around 6-7:00 p.m. during the week (general office and retail peak times would be in the morning). Weekend peak times would be morning and afternoon. Office and retail would have less traffic on the weekends. The Historic Commission discussed the "A' Street frontage. The packet includes three alternatives. After the Historic Commission reviewed the alternatives, Staff feels comfortable with the new design as proposed, going from a small hip roof to the two columns in front of the entrance versus extending an entire hip roof in front of the whole entrance to the building. The building wall f~cing the Railroad District park originally was approved for windows. The applicant has asked to have the window openings treated with grillwork. Staff thought the vertical grill treatment appeared to look like there was an excess concern with security. Staff has recommended approval of the design modification with the added Conditions recommended by the Historic Commission. Knox said the Historic Commission was happy with what Murphy showed as an example of the grillwork over the windows. Bass asked about the Historic Commission's comment about the trellis. Molnar said that the Commission thought when the detail work is being done, it would be good to allow some flexibility and that the trellis design might add something to the entry. Bass would add the trellis cap now. Jarvis mentioned the continuation of the rock wall. Molnar said it finishes off the last corner. On alternative 2, looking at it from the street, the wall would go to the right to the property line. PUBLIC HEARING PATRICIA MURPHY, 159 Laurel Street, went to Health Department and found there were space requirements that she was not aware of when designing the inner workings of the spa. The Historic Commission agreed with the modified design. The grillwork on the window openings won't look like prison bars but will be more decorative and intricafe. JOYCE WARD, 549 Auburn Street, designer, said the small hip on the dressing rooms is in scale with the north elevations. The wall surrounding the pool court is the same height as the major portion on the left hand wing. The window openings are exactly the same size and placement as previously. Sunlight will be seen behind the openings. She added landscaping to one of the elevations. There will be a decorative vine up and over the window on the east wing. Ward submitted landscaping plans. Murphy added there are some cypress trees on the far right where the rock wall will be. The trees will help balance the buildings. Armltage suggested the Historic Commission approve the grillwork for final design. Finkle was more concerned about how the design changes might further impact the area. What kind of membership does Murphy project? Murphy did not know. She is interested in trying to encourage local residents to uss the spa. Molnar said another Condition should be added. When the Southern Pacific property was originally subdivided and the alley created, there was a Condition placed as part of the subdivision that a fence be constructed along the rear alley frontage of lots as they are developed. Finkle wondered if there was anything required by the City Council during their review of this project that would have changed the Conditions of approval other than eliminating the curb cut? Molnar said there was wording added to the elimination of the curb cut and a reduction in the width of the opening to six feet. PHILIP LANG, 758 B Street, sees this building u a 12 foot high walls with barred windows and does not like the design or feel that it is suitable for the neighborhood. He is also concerned with traffic impacts it will creata. It is not safe for vehicular traffic on "A' and "B" Streets now. It will be drawing in more tourist traffic from the outside. Lang said the Railroad District was originally designed to take care of the needs of those living in just the district. He would recommend the developer build this as originally approved. Lang noted the original planner on this project is a member of the Planning Commission. Staff Resl~onsa Molnar had suggested wording for Condition 3. That the rock wall be extended to the east and wrap around the alley corner. Condition 4: That the final grill design be reviewed by the Historic Commission and approved by the Staff Advisor. Condition 5: That fencing be installed along the rear alley frontage of the parcel between the railroad right-of-way and City alley right-of-way and be consistent with height and materials of adjacent fencing. Rebuttal In response to Lang's comments about the design, the wall will have openings with green growing through them and the sunlight will shine behind the windows. Traffic will be somewhat slower, fewer vehicle trips, even less during certain times of the year. COMMISSIONER DISCUSSION AND MOTION It seemed to Howe that this modification would cause a significant reduotion in the parking requirement. She was hoping the spa would be for all of Ashland, not just for those living in the Railroad District. She somewhat resented Lang's implication that one area of town is off-limits to the rest of the town. The businesses on "A' belong to all of Ashland. Arrnitage moved to approve PA96-086 with the attached Conditions and added Conditions 3, 4 and 5 as proposed by Staff. Howe seconded the motion and it carried unanimously. Jarvis explained her vote by stating the she agreed the traffic is not going to be significant and will probably decrease. PLANNING ACTION 96-094 REQUEST FOR OUTUNE PLAN APPROVAL FOR A SEVEN LOT SUBDMSION UNDER THE PERFORMANCE STANDARDS OPTION 25 WESTWOOD STREET APPUCAHT: ANNA HASSELL Site Visits and Ex Parts Contacts Site visits were made by all. Glordano abstained because he Is representing other parties next to this development. He has also given counsel to the applicant. STAFF REPORT Molnar reported this proposal involves a seven lot subdivision. The application involves about five acres of the ten that she owns. Westwood splits the property. Part of the proposal involves the ultimate construction a new city street perpendicular to Westwood which would terminate in a cul-de-sac. The applicant has indicated Westwood would be paved to City standards through a local improvement district. A preliminary road design has been submitted. Wrights Creek is within the Westwood Street right-of-way. Staff's main concerns are with the details of the project and would ordinarily be reviewed as part of the Performance Standards. Those items include delineation of the building envelopes. The envelopes have been drawn in a very general nature, leaving extremely large building areas. There are some significant trees contained in the building envelopes. Staff feels the building envelopes can be fine-tuned to create a smaller envelope. Staff would like to have a more effective means of protecting trees by defining specific building envelopas which exclude significant trees. Staff also had a question about how the density was calculated for the project. The site can eventually develop from seven to eleven lots. The proposal es submitted is using approximately five and one-half acres and the numbers for density do not work. The applicant has expressed an interest in doing another phase at a later date where the private road would be extended off the end of the cul-de-sac. While the ordinance allows for phasing of developments, one cannot phase Outline Plan. Final Plans can be phased. The Staff report contains some options. If, at a later date, the remainder of the property is sold, it will be clear what the overall density is for the site. If there is an intention to do up to ten units at a later date, a common open space needs to be provided. The whole project would need to be planned at this point. ASHLAND PLANNING COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING AUGUST I~, MINUTES It should be noted that the final phase (potential three lots on the other side of Wrighrs Creek) will require a creek crossing which would require additional engineering. Staff's recommendations have not changed. There are some details that need to be worked out. Staff has recommended continuation to work out the details and the applicant can bring it back to the Commission as a complete package. In reading the ordinance, Armitage thought that Outline Plan would need to include the entire parcel. McLaughlin said if the project will eventually encompass the entire ten acres, it should be presented that way. If not, the application should state the leftover property will not be developed. Armitage asked about curbs, gutters, and paving. McLaughlin said the requirement for a subdivision Is that there be an improved street to the neerest Improved street system which means Westwood has to be fully improved (curbs, gutters, and sidewalks). The neighbors are concerned this will change the character of the neighborhood because it will be a dramatic change from what is there now. The standards are established by ordinance by the Council. The Commission has to require that the street meet the minimum city standards, but the Council makes the final decision. McLaughlin noted the efforts that have been put into the neighborhood planning process for the Strawberry/Westwood area. The applicant Is making an effort to present an a proposal that will be in line with the neighborhood plan, that is, one acre parcels. PUBLIC HEARING DAN HARRIS, 2101 Dead Indian Memorial Road, represents Anna Haasell. Hessall has had discussions with the neighbors. Their concerns have oentered primarily around the local improvement district. Harris met with Staff and talked about the finer details they have requested. The density of the project involves 15 acres, ten of which are in the city limits. The applicant decided to remove the property line completely and Lot I will go to the end of the property line as it exists now. Lot 1 will go from 1.3 acres to 10.5 acres in size. That will deal with the concern for density at this time and will allow Hassell at a future time to present Lot 1 to complete the process and deal with the problem of either getting over the creek with a road or coming from a different place north of the additional property so a crossing will not be necessary. Harris presented a new map showing smaller building envelopes which exclude the trees. RUSS BRAUGHTON, Edwards Surveying, 816 W. 8th, Medford, said he has now done a highly detailed topographical map taking in the all the Strawbeny/Westwcod area. They are working on getting all the trees on the topographical map. The dripline shown on the tentative map reflects the dripline physically shot in the field. The setback lines have been drawn to not include the trees. Harris said all the trees are now protected outside the building envelopes with the exception of LOt 1. Hassell said some the trees died during the drought a few years ago. She has been trying to save them so they have remained in the building envelopes but may be removed if they cannot be saved. Harris questioned the Staff Roport's rec~)mmendation that building permits not be issued until after paving of the street. It is his understanding after talking to Engineering that building permits can be issued after the local Improvement district is formed. They concur with all other Conditions. Jarvis said the applicant has not addressed the common ope. n space area. Harris said with seven lots, Hassell is not required to have open space. If she develops the other side, the question is, how do we account for open space? It could be addressed at that time or they could look at using the Woodland Reserve area as open space. They would prefer to put off looking at open space until the next development. At that time, three lots would be developed. He would not have a problem adding a Condition that open space be addressed at that time. McLaughlin said he would like to study the topographic survey to see how the modifications were made. They have not had sufficient time to look at the information presented tonight. Harris said the applicant is agreeable to a continuance and is receptive to the Commission's feedback. Jarvis read the following written comments from PAUL ADAMS, 189 Westwood, stating he favors the project. ASHLAND PLANNING COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 13, 1006 MINUTES ROBIN SCHWARZER, 138 Faith Cimle, Talent, said she has signed the paperwork to purchase Lot 2 of Hassell's subdivision. She has discussed with Braughton in detail that they wish to save the cedar tree on Lot 2 at whatever cost. DARLYN ADAMS, 189 Westwood, said she would like notification of any planning meetings with regard to Westwood. This proposed development could end up being 12 because two lots were just sold across the street (in front of Pinewood West). She is concerned about density. She believes sidewalks, curbs, and gutters would ruin the whole area. She would prefer chip and seal for the road. She is concerned about the culverting of Wrights Creek. Adams thought the applicant was not supposed to touch any blackberries as in 18.62.050. Armitage moved to extend the meeting until 10:30 p.m. Howe seconded the motion and all approved. DAVID SUGAR, 177 Westwood Street, said he is not opposed to the concept of the subdivision. He would like to be clear on the total size of the development. MARY EATON, 155 Westwood, agreed with Sugar's comments. She would prefer not to have the street paved. She moved there because of the rural characteristics. Staff Resr)onse McLaughlin said if the applicant did the entire ten acres as a seven lot subdivision, if they want to come back and develop the larger parcel in the future, that would be a modification of the Outline Plan. The density would be calculated on ten acres. The adjustment would be to the ten acres. With regard to Condition 2, when the street is improved, services will be extended. The Condition is to ensure that facilities are in pl~ce, and to reduce dust and erosion. They want to ensure the local improvement district is formed or the street will be paved before approving the creation of lots. Bass wondered to what extent can a ten acre subdivision be turned into ten-one acre subdivisions. McLaughlin said the applicant's long range intent was to slowly develop this at a rate that fit her development schedule. Staff's concerns is that three or four parcels have already been created which would normally be a subdivision. Staff has encouraged the applicant to come forward with the full picture. Rebuttal Harris said he will draw the other two lots onto the map and show language as to how they plan to incorporate them. They will show open space. This will be presented at the September meeting. Bass asked why the subdivision was being designed with a flag drive. Is that the only way to design it? Armitage wants to see the whole plan. He wondered if the Commission approves Outline Plan that shows the crossing of Wrights Creek, what this mean to the applicant? Does she have to go through the detailed environmental constraints work for crossing or could it be dealt with in a Phase 2? McLaughlin said the difficulty from the applicant's point of view is that the ordinance requires P&E work to be done to receive Outline Plan approval. She will not know if the designed crossing is approved unless all the engineering is completed. Harris said the applicant is willing to waive the 120 time limit. Howe moved to continue the meeting. The motion was seconded and approved. The meeting will be continued on September 10, 1996 at 7:00 p.m. No notice will be mailed. OTHER Armitage wondered what was happening on Orange Street. He noticed no fencing was up. McLaughlin said the application is under appeal and will be heard in a week. Joint Study Session - August 21, Wednesday at 4:00 p.m. at the Council Chambers. Monte Grove of ODOT will be making a presentation. A training session was scheduled for the Study Session on August 27th at 7:00 p.m. Jarvis thought it might be good to have a discussion with the Council on small infill projects. ASHLAND PLANNING COMMISSION REGULM MEETING AUGUST 1~, 1Ne MINUI~S 6 The Flearin~s Board ~ssignmen~s for ~eptember through Deoember &re: ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 10:30 p.m. Gatdiner, Hearn, and Armitage. ASHUMID PLA##I#G COMMISSION REGULAR blEEn#G IIIN~ 7