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PLANNING COMMISSION CITY MANAGER
Libby Bacon Diane Schleicher
Demery Bishop
Charlie Brewer ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
Barry Brown, Chairperson Sharon Marshall
Sandy Chandler
Bill Garbett CITY ATTORNEY
Susan Hill Edward M. Hughes
John Major
Chuck Powell, Vice-Chairperson
MINUTES
Planning Commission Meeting
February 20, 2007 – 7:00 p.m.
Barry Brown called the February 20, 2007 meeting to order. Others present were Libby Bacon, Demery Bishop,
Charlie Brewer, Sandy Chandler, Bill Garbett, Susan Hill, John Major, and Chuck Powell.
Mayor Jason Buelterman swore in Libby Bacon, Demery Bishop, Charlie Brewer, Susan Hill, John Major, and
Chuck Powell as Planning Commissioners. Brewer will serve a 1-year term and the others will serve 2-year terms.
Barry Brown called for nominations for Chairperson of the Planning Commission. Sandy Chandler nominated Barry
Brown. Chuck Powell seconded. There being no other nominations, Brown called for the vote. The vote in favor of
Brown as Chairperson was unanimous. Brown called for nominations for Vice-Chairperson. Susan Hill nominated
Chuck Powell. Charlie Brewer seconded. No other nominations were made. The vote in favor of Chuck Powell as
Vice-Chairperson was unanimous.
Chair Barry Brown called for a motion on the Minutes of the January 8, 2007 agenda meeting. Bill Garbett
motioned to approve. Sandy Chandler seconded. The motion passed. Brown called for a motion on the January
16, 2007 meeting Minutes. Bill Garbett moved to approve. Demery Bishop seconded. The motion passed.
Chair Barry Brown opened the Public Hearing for Site Plan Approval for 1002 Highway 80, PIN 4-0026-11-002,
Zone C-2. The request was for a new two-sided billboard. The petitioner was Mel Gordon of Atlantis Inn. Gordon
discussed photographs of 2 other billboards. One showed a fence below a billboard. Gordon said he would like to
have a fence like it on his billboard. He said the second photo showed a border, which he would like, and also
removable letters to advertise the Inn and things on Tybee. Chuck Powell said they asked at the agenda meeting
for details of the design of the sign. He stated that the ordinance says that for the type of sign being proposed
the Planning Commission needs to see the specs and they need to know that the sign is going to meet the wind
ordinance. Gordon said he did not have a problem with that, and it would meet the wind ordinance. He offered to
get a bond or something to assure that. John Major said that signs in that zone can not exceed 192 square feet.
Gordon said they would meet that. Powell said if they had the detail of the design they would know. Gordon said
he was not trying to go beyond the ordinance. Powell said they asked for a specific design at the agenda meeting
so they would know what it would look like. Gordon asked if the pictures didn’t do that. Chair Barry Brown said
Powell was referring to specifications. Demery Bishop said that under Sign Permit Approval it says there was to
be specifications setting forth the character of the sign, all its structural parts, electrical (if required), wind
pressure, and the construction cost of the sign. Gordon said there is no way he can not do that and still get a
permit from the City. Brown told Demery that most of that would be taken care of at staff level. Susan Hill said
they have tried to make good decisions about things where people have said they were going to do this or that,
and it later falls between the cracks. Gordon said he could appreciate their position. He said his frustration was
that he built a mobile sign for over $1000 and a lot of time because the City said he could and that the City and
the DOT approved that sign. He said there is a sign ordinance that spells out how a sign must be built. Gordon
said the billboard would have to be within the 192 square feet or the City could have it removed; that comes
under enforcement. Brown asked if anybody in the audience wished to speak for or against the petition. Garbett
asked Gordon if he planned to light the sign. Gordon said he planned to light it from overhead. Hill asked Gordon
what would happen when the lot sells; there was a for sale sign on it. Gordon said he has no right beyond what
the present owner gives him. Libby Bacon said the gravel road beside the property has vegetation. She asked if
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there was enough visibility. Gordon said if the sign is placed right, the vegetation would not be a factor and the
palm tree enhances the sign. Major summed up the request as being a sign within the specifications of the
ordinance, within 192 square feet, and 15 feet back from the road. Hill asked who owned the property where a
smaller Atlantis Inn billboard is located. Gordon said he rents half of that sign from the bicycle shop. Brown
closed the Public Hearing and called for a motion. Charlie Brewer moved to approve. Major seconded. Garbett
asked that the motion specify what Major described. Brewer said the motion to approve was with the
understanding that the sign was to be no more than 192 square feet and 15 feet off the road. Voting in
favor were Bacon, Bishop, Brewer, Chandler, Garbett, Hill, and Major. Voting in opposition was Powell. The
motion to approve with conditions passed. Brown told Gordon that the petition would go to City Council on
March 8. Powell said he voted against it because it is the duty of the person presenting to bring what was asked
for at the agenda meeting. Brown said the Planning Commission does have the ability to table petitions.
Harold Yellin represented petitioner Mack Kitchens for a Zoning Variance petition for 101 Nineteenth Street,
PIN 4-0009-09-001, Zone R-2. The request was 5-foot setback variances on both sides for a new single-family
home. Chair Barry Brown opened the Public Hearing. Yellin said it was an unusual property; it was triangular. He
gave the widths of the 3 surrounding rights-of-way. He said there was no reference in the ordinance for a triangle
lot, but he believes the proposed footprint met the front yard setback of 20-feet. He said they met the rear yard
10-foot setback. Yellin talked about Tybee’s variance ordinance being applicable to an irregular, narrow, and
shallow lot that has unique conditions. He then explained that the home would be at least 100 feet from any
other structure. Yellin said he had run title on the property and Sara Butler had given the City of Tybee an option
to put a water tower on the site, Tybee opted not to, and it quit claimed the property back to Butler who has
since passed away. Yellin said Rusty Butler is now the sole owner. Yellin said he found no deed restrictions; it is
usable as a lot. He said it was a perfect candidate for a variance. Bill Garbett questioned Yellin’s interpretation of
the front yard setback. He read that the definition of a setback means the minimum horizontal distance between
the front, rear or side lot lines. Yellin asked where that line was when the lines come to a point. Garbett said a
point was not a line. Yellin explained that if the land at the very front point of the triangle was donated, there
would be a new front line and they would meet the 20-foot setback requirement. Garbett and Yellin talked further
about setbacks for triangular lots. John Major asked about a 5-foot rear setback on a survey showing the street
rights-of-way that had been received as requested at the agenda meeting. Yellin said the rear setback on that
survey was in error; it should be a 10-foot setback. Sandy Chandler asked if the triangle point was truncated
would it satisfy Garbett’s concerns. Garbett said Kitchens would have to show a front setback. Charlie Brewer
offered an evaluation of the setbacks based on the hypotenuse of the triangle. Chuck Powell said that Land
Development Code Section 3-040 (A) states that when minimum setbacks are met, then they can grant
permission for building on a substandard lot. He said that asking for the 5-foot setback puts them in a position of
not being able to approve. Yellin said substandard lots of record frequently receive variances because they need
them more. Brown said it was a pie-shaped lot, and if Kitchens were to create a conservation easement at the
point, he could meet the 20-foot setback. Major asked if decks were put in the triangles formed along the left
side of the proposed structure would the decks have zero setbacks. It was clarified that the decks would have the
same setback of 5 feet. Major asked how far the house would be from the parking lots. Kitchens said it looked
like 7 or 8 feet from the green fence. Major said he spoke to the neighbors and they are not opposed to this; they
would rather have this than a water tower or a public restroom. Major said the neighbors are afraid Kitchens is
going to put a duplex there. Kitchens described the proposed single-family house. Yellin said that Kitchens would
deed restrict the property to single-family. Garbett asked why Kitchens needed a variance to build on the
property. Yellin said a house without the 5-foot side setback variances would be around a 700 square foot
footprint. Garbett said he recognizes that is small. Yellin said a 700 square foot footprint would not be compatible
with the neighborhood. He said house to house they are over 100 feet to the nearest house. Major said that the
ordinance says that in granting variances the City Council and the Mayor have the right to impose whatever
conditions they want on the variance, and, in light of that, he was curious what Kitchens planned to do with the
front yard, and whether or not he would be willing to deed restrict that to natural vegetation; something that
whoever is looking out on that property would be looking at something that isn’t a workshop or a tool shed or a
lean-to or something. Kitchens said he would do that as long as they can do something different because what he
took out of there was thorns and thistles. Major said there were some nice oak trees. Kitchens agreed and said
he was not into cutting trees. Major said somebody was over there. Kitchens said there were not any trees there;
there were thorns and thistles. Powell said no, there were trees. Major said those were big thistles. Powell said
there were some big red bays. Major said there were some big trees there but they’re gone. Powell said they are
gone now. Kitchens said there was nothing over 6 inches. Majors asked if a tree survey was done. Kitchens said
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yes. Major told Kitchens that if the variance were granted he thinks Kitchens should clean that place up: there are
beer bottles and cans and it is a mess, and when he talked to the neighbors that’s one real problem they’ve got.
Kitchens said they are waiting for a Land Disturbing Permit. Major asked if a permit was needed to cleanup
bottles. Brown said that is a touchy subject. Majors said then they ought to touch it. Brown asked if there was
anyone wishing to speak in favor of or in opposition to the petition. He closed the Public Hearing and called for a
motion. Brewer motioned to approve. Chandler seconded. Five Commissioners voted in favor of the motion to
approve: Bacon, Bishop, Brewer, Chandler, and Major. Garbett, Hill, and Powell voted in opposition. The motion
to approve passed. Brown told Kitchens and Yellin that City Council would hear the petition on March 8.
Following discussion about the deed restrictions, Yellin stated they would stipulate in perpetuity to deed
restrict the entire property for single-family residential only and deed restrict for natural vegetation
in the triangle created by the front yard.
Clyde Johnson represented a Zoning Variance petition for 13 Battery Drive, PIN 4-0024-02-003, Zone R-2. The
request was for a variance from the 35 feet height restriction for a 60-foot flagpole. Johnson said the property is
covered under the Department of the Interior’s 1995 land use plan which was approved by the City at that time.
He said one component was that attempts would be made to grant public use of part of the property. He said
they agreed to deed 3 to 3-1/2 acres of property to the City for a park, the entry road for public use, and a
section of water property. Johnson said that evolved into how best to use it for everybody. He said that was
when Charlie Fenwick of Fort Pulaski jumped in. Johnson said Ocean Inlet Development has been doing the
improvements. He described the public part of the development. He said part of the plan is re-creation of Battery
Hallack. Charlie Fenwick, Superintendent of Fort Pulaski, said Johnson has graciously agreed to give some of this
land back to the American people. Fenwick talked about the history of the site. He talked about the Battery Drive
site allowing the more than 350,000 Fort Pulaski visitors each year to understand the Union side of the story.
Fenwick said the flagpole will be a point of observation for folks a mile and a half away on the top of the Fort.
Fenwick talked about the relighting of the Cockspur Lighthouse on March 18. He said there are no plans to light
the flag. He said the flag at the Fort is 90 feet high and sits on top of the Fort so it is roughly 120 feet. Johnson
said they have checked with aviation, and there are trees on the property that are higher than the flagpole would
be. He said the light poles are roughly 60 feet tall. He said from an aviation standpoint the rule is: 200 feet in
height or anything that is substantially higher than anything else around it. Chair Barry Brown asked about the
Coast Guard and Mosquito Control helicopters. Johnson said he had not talked to them but the flagpole would be
the same height as the trees and light poles. Sandy Chandler said it was a remarkable gesture. He talked about
whether the flag would be too large. Johnson said a large garrison flag would only be flown for special occasions,
and the flag normally flown would be 10-feet by 19-feet. He said the idea was to hold deeding the property until
the improvements have been made. Fenwick said the City and the Fort will be jointly managing it. Charlie Brewer
asked the plans for lighting of the flag. Fenwick said they do not light any of their flags and do not have any
plans to light this flag; they take their flags up and down daily. John Major said that if Johnson had already
deeded to the City, the City could have put the pole up without a variance. Johnson agreed and said that was
also true for the Department of the Interior. Bill Garbett said it was a wonderful gesture and with the National
Park Service it was an outstanding effort to have this here. He said he measured the power pole at the entrance
and it was 64 feet tall, so the flagpole would be well within the perspective of everything else. Brown asked if the
Fort was working with Tybee on shuttling people from Fort Pulaski to this area because the parking lot is not
going to hold the amount of people they are talking about. Fenwick agreed. He said the parking lot has 28 spots.
He said there has been discussion in the Tybee Tourism Council of a shuttle, and he would certainly support that.
Parking was discussed further. Johnson showed on a drawing where 2 tour buses could park. Chuck Powell
commended them and said they need to move the historic marker that is by the Welcome to Tybee sign to the
site entrance. He suggested they call DNR. Brown asked if anyone in the audience wished to speak in favor or in
opposition. Cullen Chambers said this is the type of community partnering that you love to see happen with the
developers that will leave a lasting legacy. Referring to the historic battle, he said it had international implications
for military defense systems. He said from the site you can see the Cockspur Lighthouse. He said the 60-foot
flagpole is an incredibly important frame of reference for those at Fort Pulaski. Chambers encouraged the
Commissioners to vote in favor. Brown closed the Public Hearing. Susan Hill moved to approve. Powell seconded.
The vote was unanimous so the motion to approve passed. Brown told the petitioner that City Council would
consider the variance request on March 8.
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Courtney Power of Integrated Science & Engineering (ISE) reviewed the Comprehensive [Master] Plan Process.
She talked about the completion of the first phase of the effort and the steps remaining to be accomplished.
City Council Member Wanda Doyle talked about the joint City Council / Planning Commission Workshop to be held
March 5 from 6 pm to 8 pm.
Demery Bishop motioned to adjourn the meeting. Charlie Brewer seconded. The vote was unanimous.