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2020-06-11 PC APPROVED SIGNED minutesRegular Meeting Minutes Spokane Valley Planning Commission Council Chambers — City Hall June 11, 2020 I. Chair Johnson called the meeting to order at 6:02 p.m. The meeting was held remotely via ZOOM meeting. II. Commissioners, staff and audience stood for the pledge of allegiance. III. Secretary to the Commission Deanna Horton took roll and the following members and staff were present: Erik Lamb, City Attorney Fred Beaulac Jenny Nickerson, Building Official Walt Haneke Lori Barlow, Senior Planner James Johnson Chaz Bates, Senior Planner Danielle Kaschmitter Mike Basinger, Economic Development Timothy Kelley Manager Robert McKinley Taylor Dillard, Administrative Sherri Robinson Assistant Marianne Lemons, Office Assistant Deanna Horton, Secretary to Planning Commission IV. AGENDA: Commissioner Kaschmitter made a motion to approve the June 11, 2020 agenda as presented. There was no discussion. The vote on the motion was seven in favor, zero against and the motion passed. V. MINUTES: Commissioner Kaschmitter made a motion to approve the May 14, 2020 minutes as presented. There was no discussion. The vote on the motion was seven in favor, zero against and the motion passed. VI. COMMISSION REPORTS: Chairman Johnson reported that he has continued to attend the Spokane County Human Rights Task Force meetings. VII. ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT: Building Official Nickerson thanked the commission for adjusting to the new Zoom meeting platform. VIII. PUBLIC COMMENT: There was no public comment. IX. COMMISSION BUSINESS: a. Study Session: CTA-2020-0001: A proposed change to Spokane Valley Municipal Code (SVMC)19.180, Newly Annexed Areas Economic Development Manager Mike Basinger gave a presentation to the commission explaining the city initiated code text amendment that will amend Chapter 19.180 of the SVMC to clarify the process and criteria to annex adjacent and contiguous areas into the city and to ensure that the fiscal impacts of providing the facilities, utilities, services, and maintenance of the annexation area are adequately considered prior to annexation. Deputy City Attorney Erik Lamb provided additional information regarding annexation. He explained that the amendment will clarify the annexation process for the three types of 1 06-11-2020 Planning Commission Minutes Page 2 U6 annexation requests: voter initiated, City Council initiated and direct petition. It will outline the criteria that will be evaluated including existing and new facilities, services, expenses and revenues. It will also clearly identify the process to address zoning upon annexation. Chair Johnson asked for clarification regarding zoning for specific parcels as they request to annex into the city limits. Mr. Basinger answered that when the city annexes a property it is zoned with a designation that is the most similar to its current designation with the County. It will then be brought through the amendment process to evaluate what the zoning should be and go through the public process to make that final designation. Chairman Johnson asked for information regarding financial impact. He asked if a property would still be considered for annexation if it is found that the tax value received would be lower than the cost to the city. Mr. Basinger answered that this criteria will just be used as guidelines for the Council to consider when they make those decisions regarding annexation. b. Study Session: CTA Annual Comprehensive Plan Amendments Mr. Basinger explained that local jurisdictions are allowed to make amendments to the Comprehensive Plan once each year. There are five proposed amendments that will be considered during 2020; four map amendments and one text amendment. A public hearing will be held on June 25, 2020. Notice of hearing will be published twice prior to the fifteen day requirement, the site was posted with a "Notice of Hearing" sign, and individual notice was mailed to all residents within a 400 foot radius of the subject properties. After the public hearing, the request will move to Council where they will review Planning Commission findings, consider the public hearing, and approve/modify/deny the request. The floor was given to Senior Planner Chaz Bates to discuss the details of each proposed amendment. CPA-2020-0001: Request to change the Comprehensive Plan Land Use Designation from Single Family Residential (SFR) to Corridor Mixed Use (CMU) and to change the Zoning District from Single Family Residential Urban (R-3) to Corridor Mixed Use (CMU). Mr. Bates said that this amendment is privately initiated for the property located at 1311 N McDonald Road, between Mission and Broadway. It is owned by Land Use Solutions and Entitlement. The request is to rezone the property from single-family residential (R-3) to Corridor Mixed Use (CMU). The property to the east is zoned multi -family, the property to the south is corridor mixed use, and the west and south are zoned single family residential. Findings show there are no critical areas on the site, the site would support the redevelopment of the parcel, is supported by the transportation network, and is compatible with the surrounding uses. CPA-2020-0002: Request to change the Comprehensive Plan Land Use Designation from Industrial (1) to Regional Commercial (RC) and to change the Zoning District from Industrial (I) to Regional Commercial (RC). 06-I1-2020 Planning Commission Minutes Page 3 of 6 Mr. Bates stated that this amendment is a privately initiated request for the property located off of Sprague and Fancher and is owned by Lawrence B. Stone Properties. The request is to convert the zoning on 3 acres of land from Industrial (1) to Regional Commercial (RC). The properties to the north are zoned industrial and the property to the south and the west are regional commercial. Findings show that there are no critical areas, the site is completely paved, the change would support redevelopment of an underused property, is supported by the transportation network and is compatible with the surrounding uses. CPA-2020-0003: Request to change ll:e Comprehensive Plan Land Use Designation from Multifamily Residential (MFR) to Corridor Mixed Use (CMU) and to change the Zoning District from Multifamily Residential (MFR) to Corridor Mixed Use (CMU). Mr. Bates stated that this amendment is a privately initiated request for the property located south of Mission and west of Pines and is owned by Jay Rambo. The request is to convert the zoning of 6.24 acres from Multifamily Residential (MFR) to Corridor Mixed Use (CMU). The properties to the west is corridor mixed use, the north is industrial, the east is corridor mixed use and the south is single family residential. Findings show that there are no critical areas, the site supports redevelopment of an underused property, is supported by the transportation network and is compatible with the surrounding uses. A trip generation and distribution letter was completed by the City of Spokane Valley's Senior Engineer and shows a net increase of traffic volumes of one car during the PM peak hour. All other times of the day remain the same. Commissioner Haneke asked if the developer wants to build additional apartment buildings on the property and expressed concern about traffic flow in the area Mr. Bates answered that this zoning designation would allow for additional multifamily dwelling units or retail. Attorney Lamb responded that the analysis done for this change shows the change from multi -family to corridor mixed use, it is not for a specific proposal. The current zoning of multi -family allows for a significant amount of trips. Corridor mixed use zoning will add more flexibility of uses but according to the traffic study it should not impact the traffic flow more than one car during the peak PM period. Commissioner Kaschmitter asked about the open space requirement for corridor mixed use designation. Building Official Nickerson responded that there are different requirements in the current Spokane Valley Municipal code between multifamily versus corridor mixed use zones. Multifamily does require open space but corridor mixed use does not. If open space was still required, Mission Park would provide the multifamily open space requirement. CPA-2020-0006: Request to change the Comprehensive Plan Land Use Designation from Industrial (I) to Corridor Mixed Use (CMU) and to change the Zoning District from Industrial (I) to Corridor Mixed Use (CMU). Mr. Bates stated that this amendment is a city -initiated request to change the 9 acre property located at 3830 N Sullivan Rd from Industrial (I) to Corridor Mixed Use (CMU). The property is owned by East Valley School District (EVSD) and currently houses the district's Walker Center. This location includes the EVSD administrative services and maintenance 06-1 I-2020 Planning Commission Minutes Page 4 of 6 building. The properties to the west, north, and east are all industrial uses, and to the south are retail service and industrial uses. Findings show that there are no critical areas, supports expanded educational uses, is supported by the transportation network, and is compatible with the surrounding areas. The proposed amendment allows flexibility so that that EVSD can provide educational services in this location. Education services are prohibited in the industrial zone and EVSD would like to move their Parent/Partner program to this location. CPA-2020-0007. Amend Chapter 2 Goals and Policies to provide policy guidance for increased housing density with access to support services like transit and commercial services, and provide implementing regulations. Mr. Basinger said that this is a city initiated text amendment that will apply city-wide. It will address alternative housing types such as duplexes, cottages, and townhomes. It is policy language that will help protect residential neighborhoods by incentivizing alternative housing in areas that are supported by existing infrastructure. Staff is proposing an area -wide rezone in hopes to address concerns from the residents regarding the influx of duplex developments and provide appropriate locations for alternative housing. The objective of this amendment is to address those concerns by creating areas that can support denser housing because of its location to transit and services. The vision is that there will be a larger variety of housing types available for residents and will help with housing affordability. The proposal will rezone 1218 acres within the City limits to the new zoning district, R4. There is 57 vacant acres and 67 acres that are partially used. Studies show that there is potential for 1240 housing units which would lead to 3100 new residents. The proposed area is surrounded by multifamily and corridor mixed use zoning districts. The code text amendment will create the R-4 zone in the code and provide a description and outline permitted uses. The change specifies that duplex development in the R-3 zone shall have a minimum lot size of 14,500 square feet. There is also an additional text change in the Appendix A definitions that states that townhouses are not considered multifamily. Mr. Basinger stated that staff's analysis shows that single family development will incentivize the R-3 zone because the change will allow eight single family units per acre. The new R4 zone will promote development of alternative housing types in those areas where transit and services are available giving a greater variety of housing types in areas that can handle an influx of residents. Commissioner McKinley asked what the ultimate intent is for the amendment. Mr. Basinger answered that the vision is to offer a variety of alternative housing within the city. Staff is optimistic that due to the density change in this amendment, the City might see some cottage or townhome developments that would offer more affordable options. Commissioner Kaschmitter asked if the Appleway Trail could be extended. She also asked if Spokane Transit Authority is considering making their services more frequent in this area. Mr. Basinger answered that there are plans to extend the Appleway Trail to Dishman Hills. The Transit Authority is optimistic that they would be able to extend their services as more development happens. They feel that more demand would drive them to offer additional services. Commissioner Beaulac asked about the notification process for the properties affected by this change. 06-11-2020 Planning Commission Minutes Page 5 of 6 Mr. Basinger answered that the public hearing has been published twice in the newspaper, it will be sent to the Comprehensive Plan distribution list that includes any person that has ever signed up to receive notifications about comprehensive plan changes (approximately 370 people), it will be published on all of the City's social media platforms, and a media release will be sent out prior to the public hearing. Chairman Johnson asked for clarification about sending notification out regarding the City- wide rezone. Mr. Basinger responded that the City does not send out letters to individual property owners when a City-wide rezone is done. However, staff hopes that the additional notices on social media, press releases, and the distribution list will get the word out to the residents about the change. c. Study Session: CTA-2020-0002. A proposed change to Spokane Valley Municipal Code 19.90, Essential Public Facilities. Senior Planner Lori Barlow gave a presentation on the city -initiated code text amendment to amend regulations on essential public facilities (EPF). The proposal is to prohibit locally significant essential public facilities in residential zones. She explained that essential public facilities are facilities that are typically hard to site because of their size and the nature of their use. These facilities include state and local correctional facilities, solid waste handling facilities, inpatient facilities which includes substance abuse facilities, mental health group homes and secure community transition facilities. Pursuant to the Growth Management Act, cities and counties are required to have procedures to site essential public facilities. They can't be precluded from being allowed within the city limits. However, the City can control the zones where they are located. This request is to preclude all of the residential zones; R-1, R-2, and R-3. The reason for this change is because there have been numerous detoxification facilities proposed within the City limits in the last few years. There was a controversial public hearing held recently for a detoxification center that wanted to move into a residential zone. Staff made the decision that it would be appropriate to look at making a change to limit the zones where these types of facilities can be sited. The City regulates essential public facilities pursuant to chapter 19.90 SVMC. The current regulations stipulate that a conditional use permit (CUP) is required for all essential public facilities to address any possible impacts. Currently, essential public facilities are allowed in all zones except mixed use and parks and open space. Chairman Johnson asked if the new R-4 zone would also be included. Ms. Barlow answered that the City will probably look to exclude that zone if it is created but the current code text amendment only addresses the zones that are in the code right now. Chairman Johnson asked the timeframe for this amendment. Ms. Barlow answered that the public hearing will be held in July, the findings of fact at the following meeting and then moving onto the City Council for their review and decision. X. GOOD OF THE ORDER: The Commissioners welcomed Commissioner Haneke to the board. Commissioner McKinley asked for an update regarding opening the City Hall for in person meetings. 06-11-2020 Planning Commission Minutes Page 6 of 6 Ms. Nickerson answered that the governor's order for COVID phase three does include allowing face-to-face with customers for government facilities. However, there is no date yet for when phase three will begin. The City has begun preparations for when opening does happen and is putting protocols in place to keep people safe while they are in City Hall. XI. ADJOURNMENT: Commissioner McKinley made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 8:06 pm. The vote on the motion was seven in favor, zero against, and the motion passed. James lohnson, C r Deanna Horton, Secretary Date signed