SALT LAKE CITY PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING City & County Building 451 South State Street, Room 326, Salt Lake City, Utah
A roll is being kept of all who attended the Planning Commission Meeting. The meeting was called to order at 5:33:53 PM. Audio recordings of the Planning Commission meetings are retained for a period of time.
Present for the Planning Commission meeting were: Chairperson Matt Lyon; Commissioners Maurine Bachman, Weston Clark, Emily Drown, Ivis Garcia, Clark Ruttinger, Andres Paredes and Brenda Scheer. Vice Chairperson Carolynn Hoskins and Commissioner Sara Urquhart were excused.
Planning Staff members present at the meeting were Nick Norris, Planning Director, Wayne Mills, Planning Manager, John Anderson, Senior Planner; Kelsey Lindquist, Principal Planner; Tracy Tran, Principal Planner; Michelle Poland, Administrative Secretary and Paul Nielson, Senior City Attorney.
Field Trip
A field trip was held prior to the work session. Planning Commissioners present were: Maurine Bachman, Weston Clark, Ivis Garcia, Andres Paredes, Clark Ruttinger and Brenda Scheer. Staff members in attendance were Nick Norris, Wayne Mills and Molly Robinson.
• The Commission toured various sites in Sugar House to review previously approved projects.
APPROVAL OF THE APRIL 12, 2017, MEETING MINUTES. 5:34:02 PM MOTION 5:34:08 PM Commissioner Ruttinger moved to approve the April 12, 2017, meeting minutes. Commissioner Clark seconded the motion. Commissioners Bachman, Clark, Garcia, Ruttinger, Scheer and Paredes voted “aye”. Commissioner Drown abstained from voting as she was not present at the subject meeting. The motion passed unanimously.
REPORT OF THE CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR 5:34:24 PM
Chairperson Matt Lyon stated he had nothing to report.
5:35:05 PM
John Cannon Road Zoning Map Amendments at approximately 5420 W John Cannon Drive -The Romney Group is requesting that the City amend the zoning map at a property located at the above listed address. The property is currently located in the AG Agriculture District. The proposal is to change the zoning on the property to M-1 Light Manufacturing. The applicant further requests to adjust the boundary of the Lowland Conservancy Overlay District to not include their property. The request is to facilitate the construction of a light industrial project. The property is located within Council District 1, represented by James Rogers. (Staff contact: John Anderson at (801)535-7214 or john.anderson@slcgov.com) Case number PLNPCM2017-00083.
Mr. John Anderson, Senior Planner, reviewed the petition as presented in the Staff Report (located in the case file). He stated Staff was recommending the Planning Commission forward a positive recommendation to the City Council regarding the petition.
The Commission and Staff discussed the following:
• The process of rezoning the properties in the Northwest Quadrant.
Mr. Josh Romney, Romney Group, reviewed the proposal, the review process and the benefit of the zoning change.
PUBLIC HEARING 5:42:42 PM Chairperson Lyon opened the Public Hearing. Seeing no one wished to speak; Chairperson Lyon closed the Public Hearing.
The Commission and Staff discussed the following: • The location of the subject property in the Northwest Quadrant.
MOTION 5:44:10 PM Commissioner Ruttinger stated regarding PLNPCM2017-000683 John Cannon Road Zoning Map Amendments, based on the information in the Staff Report, he moved Planning Commission forward a positive recommendation to the City Council for the proposed zoning map amendments. Commissioner Drown seconded the motion. Commissioners Bachman, Clark, Garcia, Drown, Ruttinger,
Scheer and Paredes voted “aye”. The motion passed unanimously.
5:45:01 PM
Growing SLC -A Five Year Housing Plan -Mayor Jackie Biskupski has initiated a petition to prepare a new housing plan for the City. The plan is a city-wide policy document relating to housing. The Housing and Neighborhood Development (HAND) Division has worked with the community in developing a draft. The plan will establish goals, policies and strategies relating to housing development for the next five years. The draft plan can be reviewed at http://www.slcgov.com/hand (Staff contact: Sean Murphy (801)535-6168 or sean.murphy@slcgov.com) Case number PLNPCM2017-00168.
Ms. Melisa Jensen and Mr. Sean Murphy, Housing and Neighborhood Development, reviewed the petition as presented in the Staff Report (located in the case file). She stated Staff was recommending the Planning Commission approve the petition as presented.
The Commission and Staff discussed the following: • If any changes had been made to the plan from the previous presentation.
PUBLIC HEARING 5:49:09 PM Chairperson Lyon opened the Public Hearing.
The following individuals spoke to the petition: Ms. Judy Short and Ms. Cindy Cromer.
The following comments were made:
• Worried about the money for the proposal and how far it would stretch.
• Part of the Planning Commission’s recommendation to the City Council should state they needed to find a way to make funding available for implementing the plan.
• Possibly coordinate with the homeless initiatives as a group effort on affordable housing.
• Needed to focus on missing middle housing and keep it less expensive than other housing.
• ADU’s were not affordable and do not address the housing shortage or gap in a timely manner.
• Concerned that changing the ordnance could disrupt the balance in the RMF 30 and 35 zoning.
• Needed to have language in the ordinance supporting the current affordable units and assist landlords with keeping the units affordable.
• Needed to incentivize building to the maximized density not maximizing the limits
of stick framing as is currently being done.
• Incentivize redevelopment of surface parking lots.
• Look for more strategies than what was currently in the plan to reach the end goal.
Chairperson Lyon closed the Public Hearing.
Ms. Jensen reviewed the funding for the program and stated the City was looking for a more stable source. She reviewed the research conducted to find a funding source as it was critical for the city. Ms. Jensen stated they agreed ADU’s were not the solution for affordability however, they supported the expansion of the ADU ordinance.
Mr. Murphy reviewed the issues with working with current landlords to update their facilities and keep the units affordable. He stated the focus was to address the population with the greatest need and then move forward to address other issues. Mr. Murphy stated the market drove the construction materials and right now the market did not support the use of steal in buildings hence the use of stick framing in the city. He stated parking was being addressed by the Mayor and Planning Division, the housing loss mitigation policy is currently under review to protect the number of affordable units in the city.
Ms. Jensen stated parking was a piece of the plan that needed a slow approach, almost intersection by intersection, because of the impact to neighborhoods. She stated they were working closely with the Planning Division to address parking issues long term before a large policy was enacted.
Mr. Norris summarized the RFP to hire a consultant to rewrite the parking chapter in the ordinance, review the number of stalls for each use and determine the need for parking in different areas of the city. He stated Planning recognized that if density requirements were suddenly relaxed it would be a great impact to the city. He stated they may be areas that are not zoned correctly and that would be taken under consideration as well.
The Commission and Staff discussed the following:
• Ways other cities subsidized small landlords who provide affordable housing.
• How the Housing and Neighborhood Division worked with landlords to improve
and preserve existing units.
• If the Plan defined incentives.
• The review process to determine the success of the plan.
• The data that would be gathered as the plan was implemented.
• The plan would be stronger if specific items were tracked and reviewed yearly to determine the success of the plan.
• There needed to be a goal in mind to help incentivize policy and decision makers to make tougher decisions.
• The aspects of Plan Salt Lake containing specific metrics to address housing.
• A yearly review may not be possible as the data may not be available.
• Having a concrete goal would help drive the plan forward and give the public
something to support.
• The entity that would be driving the plan forward.
The Commission discussed the following:
• The language for the motion.
• How to ensure progress was being made.
MOTION 6:33:58 PM Commissioner Clark stated regarding the Growing SLC: A 5 Year Housing Plan, based on the information in the Staff Report, the information presented, and the input received during the public hearing, he moved that the Planning Commission forward a favorable recommendation to the City Council and include a recommendation that the Five Year Plan include a section on metrics and concrete goals, to measure the success of the program during implementation. Commissioner Garcia seconded the motion. Commissioners Bachman, Clark, Garcia, Drown, Ruttinger, Scheer and Paredes voted “aye”. The motion passed unanimously.
6:35:21 PM
Civil Enforcement Text Amendment -The City is processing a petition to modify chapter 21A.20 Enforcement to bring the requirements for service of a notice of a zoning violation in line with the service requirements of court documents under the Utah Rules of Civil Procedure. The amendments also clarify the process for recovering the costs the City incurs for services it provides when abating zoning violations. Related provisions of the City Code may also be amended as part of this petition. (Staff contact: Kelsey Lindquist (801)535-7930 kelsey.lindquist@slcgov.com) Petition number PLNPCM2017-00058
Ms. Kelsey Lindquist, Principal Planner, reviewed the petition as presented in the Staff Report (located in the case file). She stated Staff was recommending the Planning Commission approve the petition as presented.
PUBLIC HEARING 6:36:56 PM Chairperson Lyon opened the Public Hearing. Seeing no one wished to speak; Chairperson Lyon closed the Public Hearing.
The Commission and Staff discussed the following:
• The changes to the noticing requirements in the ordinance.
• The public comments for the proposal.
MOTION 6:39:56 PM Commissioner Ruttinger stated regarding Civil Enforcement Text Amendment PLNPCM2017-00058, based on the information in the Staff Report, the information presented, and the input received during the public hearing, he moved that the Commission recommend that the City Council approve the petition as presented. Commissioner Drown seconded the motion. Commissioners Bachman, Clark, Garcia, Drown, Ruttinger, Scheer and Paredes voted “aye”. The motion passed unanimously.
6:41:17 PM
Northwest Quadrant Zoning Text and Map Amendments -Staff will brief the Planning Commission on the next phase of text and map amendments for the Northwest Quadrant, which will be consistent with the Northwest Quadrant Master Plan. Amendments will include the creation of a Northwest Quadrant overlay to address the development area and natural area, changes to the Lowland Conservancy Overlay, and changes to other related sections of the ordinance. The creation of the Northwest Quadrant Overlay and adjustments to the Lowland Conservancy Overlay will require a map amendment. Most of the changes will impact the area north of I-80 and west of the Salt Lake International Airport. (Staff contact: Tracy Tran at (801)535-7645 or tracy.tran@slcgov.com) Case number PLNPCM2016-00724
Ms. Tracy Tran, Principal Planner, reviewed the petition as presented in the Staff Report (located in the case file). She stated this was not an action item at this time and asked the Planning Commission for questions or comments on the proposal.
The Commission and Staff discussed the following:
• How airspace was regulated in the area and if the use of drones would be allowed. • The overlay districts.
• Public spaces, bike and walking paths that will be developed in the area.
• If the existing space for agriculture use was sufficient and would allow the current users to remain.
• The possibility of taking a tour of the area.
• The drainage and paving plans for the area.
• The importance of being environmentally friendly to the area.
• The timeline for the proposal and all other plans currently being reviewed
pertaining to streets, drainage, etc. for the area.
REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR 7:09:39 PM Mr. Nick Norris, Planning Director, stated the City Council had adopted the design standards chapter therefore, the next step was to review the different zoning districts and implement design standards if necessary. He reviewed the petitions the City Council would be reviewing in the next few months.
Mr. Paul Nielson, City Attorney, reviewed the appeal of the Madison Park Planned
Development and Subdivision and stated the Appeal’s Hearing Officer upheld the
decision of the Planning Commission. He stated an appeal for the Columbus Court petition was submitted and would be reviewed in May.
The meeting adjourned at 7:11:55 PM