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City of Falcon Heights • Planning Commission Minutes May 24, 2005 PRESENT: Commissioners Lukermann, Harris, Lageson, Ryan, Council Liaison Lindstrom. Also present were City Administrator Heather Worthington and Staff Liaison Deb Jones. ABSENT: Heideman, DeLeo (with notice), Tracy. Commissioner Ziebarth tendered her resignation before the meeting. The meeting was called to order at 7:02 p.m. The Commission roster being at seven members, a quorum was present. MINUTES: The minutes for February, 2005, and March, 2005, were approved. PUBLIC HEARING: Proposed Ordinance Amending Portions of Chapter 9 of the City Code Concerning Nonconformities Commissioner Ryan, Planning Commission Chair, opened the public hearing. Zoning and Planning Coordinator Deb Jones summarized the staff report as an introduction. Falcon Heights presently places severe restrictions on how much alteration, repair, restoration and improvement can be done to structures that do not conform to City Code. The Falcon Heights provisions are inconsistent with new Minnesota statute, passed in August, 2004. New • wording proposed by the City Attorney would bring the Falcon Heights zoning ordinance into line with State law. The change would give owners of some nonconforming structures the opportunity to make improvements, restoration and even, in some cases, additions, without bringing the structures into full compliance with the code or getting a variance. Staff recommends approval of the new ordinance. Commissioner Harris asked what it means to not increase the nonconformity, with reference to a variance on Asbury granted last year. Jones explained that, for instance, if the house is too close to the property line on the west but has room on the north or south, the owner could extend the house in those directions as long as the structure was not extending it in the direction of the nonconformity, to the west, and as long as an additional nonconformity was not introduced. In the case of the Asbury variance there was a new nonconformity with respect to lot coverage, so that owner would need a variance in any case for the addition that was proposed. Commissioner Harris also asked about the "use" and "occupancy" wording used in the proposed amendment. Would subsequent owners be required to make the property conform? Ms. Jones described the distinction between a nonconforming structure and nonconforming use. In the ensuing discussion, Commissioners expressed a desire for some clarification on this distinction and other issues of wording in the proposed amendment. City Administrator Worthington told Commissioners that if a use is nonconforming, for instance, if the use came into being before the present legal uses were defined in the code, the City could not make the • owner give up that use, as long as the use was not expanded. She also recommended that the Commission get the clarification needed before taking a vote. City of Falcon Heights -Planning Commission Meeting of May 24, 2005 -Page 1 of 2