PL PACKET 08172021 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Planning Commission Regular Meeting Minutes July 20, 2021 Page 2 1 City Planner Grittman reviewed in April, the Planning Commission discussed staff-proposed 2 amendments to the R-4 Zoning District during a work session and agreed that the proposed 3 amendment, with some additions and modifications, was ready to proceed to consideration at 4 a public hearing for formal Planning Commission recommendation. 5 6 From the original staff text, the Commission comments included the following changes, 7 which have been incorporated into the ordinance language, both in the comparative table and 8 the proposed ordinance itself. The changes are as follows: 9 10 Modify the proposed allowable maximum height from sixty feet and five stories to 11 fifty feet and four stories. 12 Address the proposed requirement for location of senior multi-family on a collector or 13 arterial street (due to concerns over existing facilities that may not comply with this 14 standard). The proposed language includes an alternative that the facility is served by 15 alternative transit options, either public or privately offered. 16 Adding requirements to the “General Regulations” in Section 152.105 relating to 17 building materials, landscaping and sustainability. 18 19 Included in the Commissioner’s packets is a copy of the current regulations in place, as well 20 as an updated table-form document that lists the series of potential amendments to the district. 21 As part of the table-form document, comments are provided for each proposed change 22 discussing the rationale behind the new language. The revisions from the work session are 23 highlighted for additional clarity. 24 25 The current district language was established many years ago, and reflects a more moderate 26 density, suburban style of multi-family development. Just in the past few years, the City h as 27 considered multi-family projects on four different sites (one of which did not proceed). Each 28 of those were required to utilize the PUD zoning process due to a series of modifications the 29 projects required from typical R-4 regulations, including density, setbacks, parking 30 calculations, height, and other factors. 31 32 The current R-4 District restricts density to anywhere from about 13 units per acre up to 24 33 units per acre, depending on the size of the building. Over the past two years, the City 34 considered, and adopted, an updated Comprehensive Plan that directs development in high 35 density zoning districts to between 20 and 40 units per acre. 36 37 While PUD is still a viable path for projects that exceed density or other aspects of the R-4 38 standards, it can be difficult to process when the individual aspects of the project are of 39 borderline quality or push the envelope in some way. Without baseline standards that reflect a 40 reasonable expectation for development in the district, everything is left to negotiation, which 41 can put the City in a difficult position. 42 43 The revisions to the district are intended to create a threshold for higher density projects that 44 set an expectation for development. Beyond this, the threshold for PUD consideration would 45 also then be higher, as this becomes the new baseline. 46