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HomeMy Public PortalAboutPlanning and Zoning Minutes 11-14-2016RICHLAND HILLS PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING NOVEMBER 14, 2016 REGULAR MINUTES Roll Call: Members present: Members Absent: Athena Campbell, Chairman Jonathan Mercer, Place 2 Kyle LaPointe, Vice Chairman Lisa Skier, Place 5 David Baker, Place 3 Staff Rachel Powell, Administrative Assistant Jason Moore, Assistant City Manager 1. CALL TO ORDER Vice Chairman LaPointe called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. 2. ROLL CALL AND DETERMINATION OF A QUORUM Vice Chairman LaPointe, constituting a quorum, at which time the following business was conducted: 3. APPROVAL OF THE JULY 11, 2016 MEETING MINUTES Motion: Motion was made by Member Lisa Skier, and seconded by Member Jonathan Mercer to approve. Motion carried by a vote of 3-0. 4. Election of Board Officers-Chair Motion: Motion was made by Member Lisa Skier and seconded by Member Jonathan Mercer to postpone to the next meeting. Motion carried by a vote of 3-0. 5. WORK SESSION: Jason Moore, Assistant City Manager, gave a presentation on various sections of the current zoning ordinance that staff requests direction and clarification on from the Commission. A. Work Session to consider amending the zoning regulations for the following: a) Potential Overlay District Staff presented the latest Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) plans for the 820/121 interchange, which includes a pedestrian bridge that terminates in front of the vacant lots west of the Public Storage facility. Member LaPointe commented that these plans will prohibit businesses from accessing the land. Staff made a recommendation to look at an overlay district to open up the zoning beyond just retail. Member Skier would like to keep the current type of businesses in the zoning district. Member Mercer agreed as well but would like to make sure we don't restrict the business's ability to bring in revenue. General consensus was provided by the members for staff to proceed with efforts on creating an overlay district as the TxDOT plans develop. b) Section 4.02.01(c) -Non-Residential Carport Staff recommended adding a clarifying statement, as a fourth point, to codify that carports are not permitted in non-residential zoning districts. Members agreed with Staff to add clarifying language that carports are not allowed in non-residential districts. c) Section 4.02.01-Accessory Structures Staff recommended that we discuss the non-residential districts as accessory structures relate to their proportion of floor area to the primary structures. Staff presented an example of a 50,000 sft primary building that recently completed a 25,000 sft accessory structure. Staff wanted to know if this was the intent. Members discussed and agreed that staff should revisit the text but to consider variations to the proportionate area with respect to each zoning category within the non-residential districts. For instance, Industrial zoning districts might have different requirements than Retail areas. d) Sections 4.02.02-Swimming Pools Staff explained that swimming pools are listed in the accessory structure section, and as such, could be located in a side yard. Commission members did not have an issue with that since swimming pools require a fence by state law. e) Section 91-100- Screening and Fencing Staff recommended that we clarify masonry construction, per the definition, to prohibit construction related materials due to one recent example on Scruggs. Members generally agreed that we need to specifically prohibit the use of materials that are not of true masonry intent. . f) Article 8 Defitions; including, but not limited to definitions related to accessory structures, floor area, corrugated metal siding/roofing, masonry construction, and carports. Staff recommended that we clarify our definitions as they relate to accessory structures, floor area, corrugated metal siding/roofing, masonry construction, and carports. Staff will continue to research these areas and provide additional suggestions at a future meeting. Members agreed with staff that we needed to add more specific language on these points. g) Re-Zoning of Bertelsen Addition Staff requested the commission's input on rezoning the Bertelsen property from a Single Family Estate zoning category to a higher density like SF-10 or SF-7. Members provided general consensus that higher density would be fine but no commercial uses would be an option. 2. Appendix a Fee Schedule Amendment- Planning Fee's Staff presented several areas from a plan review standpoint that currently take a lot of staff time for review, etc., that we currently do not charge for because there are no codified rates/fees. Most surrounding cities charge fees for these items and staff is proposing we add them but remain more competitive than our neighbors. Member LaPointe agreed with staff that we would need to take a look at fee schedule. 3. Chapters 14 and 38- Building and Fire Code Amendments. Staff made mention that they would be seeking Council approval on adopting the 2015 Building and Fire Codes. Commission members discussed the verbiage provided in the current fire code, and specifically the local NCTCOG amendments, that require buildings over 6,000 sft to have a fire sprinkler system installed. There was debate on whether or not this requirement affected the city's ability to promote redevelopment in Richland Hills due to smaller, older buildings. 4. Chapter 62- Sign Code; including, but not limited to size, materials and placement, definitions and electronic message centers. Staff discussed that the existing sign code does not specifically mention material requirements and proposed that we look at adding some in the near future. Additionally, staff recommended that we consider only allowing pole signs on major arterials like Boulevard 26 and perhaps Baker Blvd, but not on Glenview, and other minor arterials or major collectors. Commission members agreed that we need to look at the sign code and give it an update. Motion: 6. EXECUTIVE SESSION: None at this time. 7. SET THE DATE AND TIME OF THE NEXT REGULARLY SCHEDULED COMMISSION MEETING. Monday December 12, 2016 at 6:30 p.m. 8. ADJOURN Motion: Motion was made by Member Lisa Skier and seconded by member Jonathan Mercer to adjourn Motion carried by a vote of 3-0. ATTEST C R chel Powell, dmin. Assistant APPROVED ~~ K LaPointe, Vice Chairman _~ ~ ~~~ f- ~c--~ ~-~, ,.c _