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HomeMy Public PortalAbout03-15-2018 Minutes PB Regular MeetingPB Minutes 3/15/18 Page 1 of 5 Minutes Hillsborough Planning Board 7 p.m. March 15, 2018 Town Barn, 101 E. Orange St. Present: Chair Dan Barker, James Czar, Lisa Frazier, Chris Johnston, Doug Peterson, Jenn Sykes and Toby Vandemark Staff: Assistant Town Manager/Planning Director Margaret Hauth and Town Attorney Bob Hornik Item 1: Call to order and confirmation of a quorum. Chair Dan Barker called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. Planning Director Margaret Hauth confirmed the presence of a quorum. Item 2: Consideration of additions or changes to the agenda There were no changes or adjustments to the agenda. Item 3: Approval of minutes from December 2017 regular meeting and February 2018 joint public hearing Czar requested a correction to Page 20 in the agenda packe t, in the February minutes, to say that he said photos would have to be taken before blasting to document existing conditions before blasting. Motion: Sykes moved to approve both sets of minutes with changes to the February minutes. Czar seconded. Vote: Unanimous Item 4: Future Land Use Plan amendment and rezoning request from Orange County impacting 21 acres at 1020 U.S. 70 West (with access to West Hill Ave North). The request would amend the Future Land Use Plan to change the designation from rural living to suburban office. The rezoning would be from agricultural residential to economic development d istrict. Hauth reviewed the request and reviewed that comments from the public hearing were included in the agenda packet. She reminded the board that this is a legislative decision, so there is a low threshold of evidence to grant approval or to deny the request. It is unlike the process of considering a special use permit, where there are findings of fact and sworn testimony. Barker asked Town Attorney Bob Hornik what the board can consider. Hornik said everyone knows what is proposed but the Planning Board should consider the suitability of the property for all the uses allowed in the economic development district. PB Minutes 3/15/18 Page 2 of 5 Czar said he agrees but the county plans to put some of the worse uses that could be proposed on that property. Hornik said Planning Board members have to do their best to sort that out and to look at this with a broader brush. The optimal use is irrelevant. Hauth added the focus of a discussion of uses should be whether the proposed uses are acceptable and not whether they are optimal. A member of the audience asked to speak. Barker denied the request because the public hearing had been closed. A member of the audience requested to give the board literature. Barker refused because the public hearing had been closed. Czar said he did not wish to spend a long time debating this decision. He did not think the proposed uses were appropriate and therefore the Planning Board should not recommend rezoning the property. Planning Board Member Chris Johnston agreed. Czar said once the property is developed by the county, future land development is not possible. The proposal is not congruous with what is the main entranceway to Hillsborough from the north side of town. Czar said he could not foresee any reason why this property would go from agricultural residential to an economic development district. Sykes said she would agree. She does not see justification that this county development would spur further economic development in the area. Czar said he does not think the proposal is appropriate. He does not see any benefit for the residents and the town. Planning Board Member Doug Peterson said he was conflicted because the county needs the facility but he knows that is not what the board is asked to decide. Czar said because the county needs a new facility does not mean the county needs a new facility in this location. He added that the Planning Board is primarily concerned with the way the town develops. The Planning Board is tasked with advising the Board of Commissioners on how the citizenr y thinks the town should develop. As an advisory board member, Czar does not think it makes sense to locate the multi-purpose county campus here. Looking at the county’s currently proposed plans, it is nothing but a downside to the town. Planning Board Member Lisa Frazier said she agrees that the county needs a new facility. However, she said, this area is rural and agricultural and she thinks it would have a detrimental impact to the surrounding area. Planning Board Member Toby Vandemark arrived at 7:13 p.m. Barker said the Hillsborough Unified Development Ordinance states that a county facility is an allowed use by right, and he asked whether there is anywhere in this town that would be reasonable. Czar said that is not what the board is discussing and right next to the courthouse is an obvious location. Sykes said the county has alternative sites. The south side of Hillsborough seems more optimal to her. Czar suggested that the board not start discussing possible alternative locations. PB Minutes 3/15/18 Page 3 of 5 Vandemark said she lives downtown and lives across the street from the courthouse and the jail. To her, it is not a terrible thing. It may or may not affect the surrounding areas, depending on if there are buffers. She noted there was more proposed for the county campus than just the jail. Czar said the county is proposing a pre-engineered metal building to put parks maintenance operations in. It sounds like what the county is proposing is similar to the yard in Calvander. There was brief discussion that there were photographs of the parks operations facilities provided by county staff in the agenda packet. Czar said that portion of U.S. 70 is the main entrance to Hillsborough for anyone who lives on the west side. It will develop as more people move to the north side of town. He would not be happy to see the parks maintenance shed at the main entrance to Hillsborough . He added that the North Carolina Department of Transportation maintenance yard on South Churton is an eyesore. Barker said this is not a site plan review but a consideration of whether all the uses in the proposed zoning would be reasonable for that location. Czar said again, this is by righ t, so there would be no review. Hauth said the plans would be reviewed by staff to meet requirements of Section 6 of the Unified Development Ordinance with no waivers. Czar said there would be no public comment. Sykes said this would not encourage economic development. Czar said the Planning Board is an advisory board, a group who tells the commissioners what regular citizens think. He thinks this tract of land will move out of the agricultural residential use down the road. We would be putting a big spike on that land, and I don’t think anything would really want to develop around it, he said. I don’t see any positives for the town by allowing that use. Barker asked for the board’s opinion on changing the future land use plan designation from rural living to suburban office. Czar said for right now, it can stay zoned agricultural residential. Sykes agreed. Vandemark asked if the town would benefit in any way from approving the county campus. Hauth answered the town would benefit from the land where the jail is currently located downtown being sold and placed back on the tax rolls. If the land downtown is sold, both the county and town benefit from the land returning to the tax rolls. Sykes said that gets into alternative sites. Czar said if the jail moves next to courthouse, its current location can be sold. Barker asked if anyone wants to speak in favor of changing the future land use plan designation to suburban office now. Czar said it is a discussion for a later date. He does not see a compelling reason to make it suburban office at this point. Johnston said the compelling reason is the county has a need and has found a parcel of land. Sykes said we are considering a question that is short-sighted in nature. The better solution for what the town needs is to leave the land as it is for now. Barker agreed and asked for a motion. Motion: Czar moved to recommend to the Board of Commissioners that the future land use plan remain unchanged. Sykes seconded. Vote: Unanimous PB Minutes 3/15/18 Page 4 of 5 Barker asked whether there was further discussion about the zoning. There was none. Motion: Sykes moved to recommend to the Board of Commissioners that the zoning remain unchanged. Czar seconded. Vote: Unanimous Item 5: Future land use plan amendment to add 84 acres (portions of 16 parcels) south of Interstate 40 into the urban growth boundary and designate the future land use as suburban office to be consistent with the Water and Sewer Management and Planning Boundary Agreement and Central Orange Coordinated Planning Agreement with Orange County. Hauth said town and county staff are recommending the designation suburban office. The town has no jurisdiction in this area at this time. The county is planning to process amendments to match the town’s but not rezone the property because the homes located there would then be nonconforming and the homeowners would be paying commercial taxes. Czar thinks suburban office is a logical extension to Hillsborough. Sykes said this is the most reasonable transition between the rural buffer and the town. She wishes the town would get some taxes from it. Hauth said when a property owner asks for services f rom the town, the town can choose to agree, with the condition that the property owner seeks annexation. Vote: Peterson moved to recommend approval of the future land use plan amen dment. Frazier seconded. Vote: Unanimous Item 6: Rezoning request from Habitat for Humanity of Orange County to rezone 1.61 acres on Odie Street from Residential-20 to Residential-10 to match the surrounding zoning. Hauth reviewed that this rezoning will allow Habitat for Humanity to reconfigure the lots to fit more homes on all the property it is developing on that street. Also, the project is replacing mobile homes with stick-built homes. Motion: Sykes moved to recommend that the Board of Commissioners approve the rezoning. Vandemark seconded. Vote: Unanimous Item 7: Rezoning request from the Town of Hillsborough to remove the zoning boundary that crosses a parcel and zone the entire 14.39 parcel at 890 N.C. 86 North as light industrial. Hauth reviewed that this request affects the property that the town uses for flee t operations. Barker asked whether Hauth had received comments or had been contacted by anyone. Hauth answered no, the neighbors across the street from this property came to the public hearing but did not offer an opinion. Motion: Czar moved to recommend that the Board of Commissioners change the existing zoning to light industrial. Vandemark seconded. Vote: Unanimous PB Minutes 3/15/18 Page 5 of 5 Item 8: Unified Development Ordinance text amendment to remove the use and definition for “low impact school” and amend Section 5.2.45 to add a spacing requirement of 2,000 feet for schools located within the economic development district. Hauth reviewed that this text amendment was a result of Pinewoods Montessori School wishing to expand on Millstone Drive. The amendment would allow the school to expand but would prohibit another school locating within 2,000 feet of it . This is an effort to control school-generated traffic. Motion: Vandemark moved to approve the text amendment as presented. Frazier seconded. Vote: Unanimous Item 9: Unified Development Ordinance text amendment to Section 6.18.6.1 to refer to the town code requirement for clear pedestrian passage in the location of sandwich board signs Motion: Frazier moved to recommend that the Board of Commissioners approve the text amendment. Johnston seconded. Vote: Unanimous Item 10: Election of officers and appointments to Board of Adjustment and Parks and Recreation Board Hauth informed the board that Chris Wehrman , who was absent this evening, was willing to continue to serve as the Planning Board’s representative on the Parks and Recreation Board. Nomination: Vandemark nominated Barker to continue to serve as chair. There were no other nominations. Vote: Unanimous Nomination: Czar nominated Vandemark to continue to serve as vice chair. There were no other nominations. Vote: Unanimous Nomination: Sykes nominated Czar to continue to serve as the Planning Board representative on the Board of Adjustment. There were no other nominations. Vote: Unanimous Nomination: Czar nominated Wehrman to continue to serve as the Planning Board representative on the Parks and Recreation Board. There were no other nominations. Vote: Unanimous Item 11: Adjourn Motion: Sykes moved to adjourn at 7:51 p.m. Vote: Unanimous Respectfully submitted, Margaret A. Hauth Secretary