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Planning Commission Minutes 12-03-1996 . . Minutes Regular Meeting Planning Commission Tuesday, December 3, 1996 . 7 p.m. Members Present: Dick Frie, Richard Martie, Jon Bogart, Richard Carlson, Rod Dragsten Staff Present: Jeff O'Neill, Steve Grittman, Wanda Kraemer 1. Call to order. Chairman Frie called the meeting to order and noted the presence of Bill Fair, mayor elect. 2. Approval of minutes ofre~ular meetin~ held November 6,1996. COMMISSIONER BOGART MADE A MOTION SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER MARTIE TO APPROVE THE MINUTES FOR THE MEETING OF NOVEMBER 6, 1996. Motion carried unanimously. 3. Consideration of addin~ items to a~enda. Commissioner Bogart added discussion on the potential multi-family on the vacant lot across from the public works buildings. Chairman Frie added discussion on the parking along Broadway. Jeff O'Neill, Assistant Administrator, reported he had been in contact with Virgil Hawkins, Wright County Highway Dept. and also suggested the school be informed. Chairman Frie requested staff to send a letter to Ms. Douglas, Principal Pinewood Elementary School, and Mr. Johnson, Superintendent of Monticello Schools, for their input. 4. Citizens comments. There were no citizens comments. 5. Public Hearing--Consideration of special home occupation permit which would allow ~unsmith services in an R-1 zone. Location is Lot 9r Block 1, Klein Farms Addition. Applicant, Daniel Wermer. . Jeff O'Neill, Assistant Administrator, reported that Daniel Wermers requests permission to operate a special home occupation in his home at Lot 9, Block 1, Klein Farms Addition. The home occupation consists of repairing and refinishing firearms. In his description of the activity, Wermers reported that there will be Page 1 . Planning Commission Minutes - 12/03/96 some retail activity which will consist of assisting clients in ordering goods through catalog services. He does not plan to have inventory for sale at the site. He also indicated that there will be no other individuals working on this property. No mechanical equipment not customarily found in the home will be used, and no more than one room will be devoted to home occupation. On his application, he noted he was planning on utilizing the garage but has since changed his mind. According to Steve Grittman, City Planner, it is quite common for gunsmith services to be found operating out of residences. Many other communities do allow this type of operation to occur as long as the operation abides by the rules of every other home occupation allowed in residential districts. Gunsmith services are also licensed and monitored by the federal govemment. O'Neill stated he had been contacted already regarding the status of this particular home permit. Chairman Frie opened the public hearing. Dan Wermers, applicant, stated he has been in the business for many years and has been licensed for 14 years. He had just built a new home in the Klein Farm Addition and had a complete security system installed. . Chairman Frie closed the public hearing. The Commissioners discussed the requirement of a security system and agreed it should be a requirement for the permit even though Mr. Wermers already had one installed. Also, staff was directed to take immediate action, according to the City Code, if a violations is noted. COMMISSION BOGART MADE A MOTION SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER CARLSON TO APPROVE THE SPECIAL HOME OCCUPATION PERMIT ALLOWING GUN SMITHING SERVICES IN AN R-1 ZONE. THIS IS BASED ON THE FINDING THAT THE GUNSMITH SERVICE AS PROPOSED OPERATING UNDER CONDITIONS IDENTIFIED BY ORDINANCE WILL BE VIRTUALLY TRANSPARENT OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND, THEREFORE, WILL HAVE NO EFFECT ON THE RESIDENTIAL CHARACTER OF THE AREA; THEREFORE, THE OPERATION IS CONSISTENT WITH THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN. THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS ARE REQUIRED: 1. A SECURITY SYSTEM MUST BE INSTALLED. 2. THE SITE CANNOT BE USED FOR RETAIL SALES. 3. INVENTORY OF FIREARMS FOR SALE WILL NOT BE ALLOWED. . Motion passed unanimously. Page 2 . 6. . . Planning Commission Minutes - 12/03/96 Public Hearing--Consideration of amendments to the zoning- ordinance governin~ radio/cell phone communication towers. Steve Grittman, City Planner, reported the City is anticipating an increase in requests for wireless communication antenna towers as this technology continues to advance, and the federal government issues additional licenses for service providers. In order to avoid an unsightly clutter of freestanding antenna towers around the community, Grittman put together a draft ordinance and a discussion of ways in which this issue has been addressed by other communities. The proposed ordinance attempts to encourage wireless service towers in designated zone. The City does not have the authority to totally regulate the zones but can require conditional use permits (CUP) and extensive review. The intent is to encourage the applicant to seek permitted sites, and avoid the processing requirements of the CUP Jeff O'Neill, Assistant Administrator, inquired if the City could require that companies lease property on the water tower or public land and also can the number of towers be limited? Grittman answered the City is cannot require private companies to lease city sites. At this time, there is not a controlled number of towers that can be built in an area. Most communities are using the approach to encourage construction in designated areas. Wright County has a moratorium on any construction of towers until an ordinance can be adopted. Chairman Frie opened the public hearing. Gregory Korstad, attorney for American Portable Telecom (APT), explained his firm was hired by APT to encourage cities efforts to address expanding technologies within the framework of the Zoning Code. He presented a letter that explained the general comments relating to the draft ordinance amending Section 3-12 of the Monticello Zoning Ordinance by Establishing Antenna Regulation. Korstad requested the opportunity to work with staff to develop specific language to accommodate the concerns and to respond to any questions or comments. In the letter he presented to the Commissioners he outlined four main topics: 1. Functional Engineering - the two main components that should be evaluated are structural issues and performance of transmission and reception equipment. 2. Transmission Line Loss and Ground Equipment - the signal strength is directly related to antenna height and distance from transmitting equipment. The higher the antenna the greater the signal. Compliance with screening requirements will adequately eliminate the need for a building to surround Page 3 . . . Planning Commission Minutes ~ 12/03/96 the ground equipment. 3. Tower Locations and Height - APT has designed its towers to be 165 feet in height. This will allow few towers, greater siting flexibility, and improved ability for co-location. 4. Site Availability and Industrial Setbacks - It is important for APT to have flexibility in developing its site. One of the most significant consideration is the placement of a tower. It is required that a provision be made for modifying setback where appropriate based on existing improvements and their locations within a property. Jeff O'Neill, Assistant Administrator, inquired if the City had to allow towers on City property and also if the number of towers could be limited? Grittman answered the City is not obligated to lease property to private business but are encouraged to use a sensible approach in encouraging towers in certain areas. Bill Fair, newly elected mayor, inquired about the provisions for removal if the tower is abandoned. Grittman replied it would be within 12 months and will be stated in the ordinance. Commissioner Frie closed the public hearing. The Commissioners discussed the tower regulations and decided to table the decision until the next meeting. This will allow staff time to discuss the comments in the letter with Mr. Korstad and report to the commissioners for the next meeting. COMMISSIONER BOGART MADE A MOTION SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER MARTIE TO CONTINUE THE PUBLIC HEARING ON THE CONSIDERATION OF AN AMENDMENT TO CHAPTER 3, SECTION 12 BY ESTABLISHING ANTENNA REGULATION. Motion passed unanimously. 7. Continued Public Hearing--Consideration of ordinance amendments governing fence desi~ and location. Chairman Frie opened the continued public hearing. The Commissioners questioned if the ordinance was too restrictive and discouraged the planting of trees. It was suggested to go back to the basics of only addressing Page 4 . . . Planning Commission Minutes - 12/03/96 fences and/or structures because so many variables could occur it would be impossible to list everything. If the visibility at the intersection is blocked staff should first inform the landowner. If there seems to be an increase in visibility problems then restrictions can be added to the current ordinance. The Commissioners directed staff to rewrite the ordinance to only include fences and structures not trees and shrubs. COMMISSIONER BOGART MADE A MOTION SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER MARTIE TO REWRITE THE ORDINANCE TO INCLUDE FENCES AND/OR STRUCTURES AND ELIMINATE TREES AND SHRUBS. Motion passed unanimously. 8. Updates. A. Review Sherburne County Planning Commission action on the Bridge View PlatlRon Hoglund development. Jeff O'Neill, Assistant Administrator, reported he had attended the meeting at Sherburne County regarding Bridge View Plat and had submitted a letter stating the City's concems with this plat. The developers may be submitting a request for a fee study at the January 13, 1997 City Council meeting. B. City Council moratorium placed on issuance of building permits in designated redevelopment area. Jeff O'Neill, Assistant Administrator, reported the City Council placed a moratorium in the area north of 7th Street to the River, and two to three blocks east and west of Highway 25. The moratorium is for the issuance of building permits in the area pending completion of redevelopment studies necessary to determine land use designations in the study area. He noted that normally this item would have been reviewed by Planning Commission beforehand but in this case, time did not allow. C. Amendments to setbacks regulating location of storage buildings/Fruth situation. Jeff O'Neill, Assistant Administrator, reported Fruth's storage building is in violation of our current ordinance but added the ordinance does need to be changed. This will be discussed further at the January meeting. 9. Review Monticello Community Partners/Hoisin~on Koegler workshop #3 . J eft' O'Neill, Assistant Administrator, reviewed the workshop with the Page 5 -- .- Planning Commission Minutes - 12/03/96 Commissioners. He explained that Michael Schroeder, Hoisington Koegler, presented many detailed ideas and concepts. After the presentation, each group was asked to select three projects they felt were priority. This information will be used 10. Consideration of callin~ for a public hearing- on rezoning- of the Klucas property from R-3 to R-1 or R-2 zoning- district designation. Jeff O'Neill, Assistant Administrator, explained the City may have had more opportunity for multi-family homes than needed and the location of the areas eligible for multi-family may be inconsistent with the goal of revitalization of the downtown area. The PZM areas should be reviewed for rezoning. He stated staff could inventory the present multifamily housing and report back to the Planning Commission. At a future meeting the Commissioners can determine which areas would serve the multi-family homes the best. 11. Adjournment. COMMISSIONER DRAGSTEN MADE A MOTION SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER BOGART TO ADJOURN THE MEETING. Motion passed unanimously. Respectfully submitted, I I ~ {llatt:d j{UjJ~/l Wanda Kraemer Development Services Technician . Page 6