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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutesPLAN COMMISSION MINUTES February 18, 2020 PRESENT: Mamadou Coulibaly, Lynnsey Erickson, Thomas Fojtik, Michael Ford, Derek Groth, John Kiefer, Justin Mitchell, Thomas Perry EXCUSED: John Hinz, Lori Palmeri, Kathleen Propp STAFF: Mark Lyons, Planning Services Manager; Allen Davis, Community Development Director; Justin Gierach, Engineering Division Manager / City Engineer; Jeff Nau, Associate Planner; Alexa Naudziunas, Associate Planner; Steven Wiley, Assistant Planner; Brandon Nielsen, Assistant Planner; Mina Kuss, Recording Secretary Chairperson Fojtik called the meeting to order at 4:00 pm. Roll call was taken and a quorum declared present. The minutes of February 4, 2020 were approved as presented. (Ford/Kiefer) I. EXTRATERRITORIAL TWO -LOT LAND DIVISION/CERTIFIED SURVEY MAP AT 2888 CLAIRVILLE ROAD IN THE TOWN OF ALGOMA Site Inspections: Report: No commissioners reported visiting the site. Staff report accepted as part of the record. The petitioner is seeking approval of a two -lot land division/Certified Survey Map (CSM) from one existing 1.489 acre parcel. The site is located at the southeast corner of W. 20th Avenue and Clairville Road, approximately 100 feet west of the Oshkosh city limits. Sizes of the proposed lots and right-of-way dedication are as follows: Lot 1 = 64,873 sq. ft. (1.489 Acres) Lot 2=19,250 sq. ft. (0.442 Acres) Mr. Nau presented the item and reviewed the site and surrounding area as well as the land use and zoning classifications in this area. The property is developed with a single family residence at the northern portion of the property with the southern 190 feet remaining undeveloped. The property was formerly impacted by 100-year floodplain, however, the recent FEMA Letter of Map Amendment removed the entire property from flood hazard status, contingent on Winnebago County's acceptance of Flood Storage Districts outside of the city limits. The property is located in the Zone C City Expansion Area per the City of Oshkosh/Town of Algoma Cooperative Plan. Town properties located within the Zone C Expansion Area will be attached to the City on March 1, 2023. Both proposed lots exceed the R-1ETZ minimum lot size requirements in regard to width, depth and area. The applicant states in the submitted application that the purpose of the land Plan Commission Minutes February 18, 2020 division is to allow the creation of a single family lot from the parent parcel. It is assumed the newly created lot will be put on the market, however, the owner did not indicate when the new lot will be listed for sale. The Department of Public Works has reviewed the proposed two -lot Certified Survey Map and shared the same concerns regarding the floodplain. He said staff recommends approval of the two -lot land division/Certified Survey Map at 2888 Clairville Road as proposed. Mr. Mitcliell arrived at 4:02 pm. Mr. Fojtik opened technical questions to staff. Mr. Kiefer asked if the size of Lot 2 would change with Clairville Road expanding. Mr. Lyons said as the area becomes urbanized and comes into the city, the half -acre lot already vastly exceeds the minimum lot requirements. Mr. Nau stated Clairville Road is a collector street and is currently a 66 foot wide right-of-way. He said it is unlikely the city would require any additional right-of-way from either side of Clairville Road. Mr. Fojtik asked if there were any public comments and asked if the applicant wanted to make any statements. Steve Foust (applicant), 2888 Clairville Road, stated Lot 2 has been raised up and is out of the floodplain. He said the only area that has not been raised up is the north lot line where he developed a swale to drain the area to the southeast. Mr. Lyons explained the improvements the city has made with updating the floodplain ordinance. He said the updated is the pink area on the map. He said as part of the update, there were flood storage districts included in both the city and the county. He said the County has yet to adopt the flood storage districts. He explained what would happen if the County adopted or denied the flood storage districts. He stated as a property owner, this information would be of interest to Mr. Foust. He said there will be a Winnebago Planning and Zoning meeting to discuss this on March 31st at 6:30 pm. He explained if it is denied, Lot 2 would be completely in the floodplain and would have to meet floodplain standards and flood insurance. Mr. Nau told Mr. Foust an option for him would be to have a floodplain survey done just for his property. Mr. Foust stated Lot 2 has been physically raised by 2 feet but he has not had Martenson and Eisele file the paperwork. Mr. Lyons explained if the County approves the flood storage districts, Martenson and Eisele wouldn't have to file a Letter of Map Amendment. He said if they do not approve it, Martenson and Eisele would have to do a Letter of Map Amendment. Plan Commission Minutes February 18, 2020 There were no other public comments on this item. Mr. Fojtik closed public comments and asked if the applicant wanted to make any closing statements. There were no closing statements from the applicant. Motion by Kiefer to adopt the findings and recommendation as stated in the staff report. Seconded by Erickson. Mr. Fojtik asked if there was any discussion on the motion. Mr. Coulibaly asked what a flood storage district is. Mr. Gierach replied they are zoning regulations put on properties that habitually flood currently. He explained what the flood storage district would do is it would not allow fill to be brought into those areas to raise the elevation of it without giving compensation elsewhere. Mr. Kiefer asked if this was just for the Sawyer Creek watershed. Mr. Gierach replied affirmatively. Mr. Lyons added it is essentially a 1:1 ratio within the same property. He said there are a limited amount of properties this effects. Mr. Coulibaly inquired more about the flood storage districts. Mr. Lyons explained where the flood storage districts are located. He pointed out that the pink on the map would be the new floodplain if the flood storage districts were approved. He said if the flood storage districts were not approved, the purple on the map would be the floodplain map. Motion carried 8-0. II. APPROVAL OF THE SAWDUST DISTRICT MASTER PLAN Site Inspections: Report: N/A Staff report accepted as part of the record. The Community Development Department is requesting approval of the Sawdust District Master Plan, which describes the future goals and objectives for land use, development and transportation in the district. The plan focuses on the area south of the Fox River bound by Lake Winnebago to Plan Commission Minutes February 18, 2020 W. 17th Avenue running along S. Main Street with some sections going as far west as Nebraska Street. Ms. Naudziunas and Mr. Lyons presented the item. The Sawdust District Master Plan was developed in collaboration with consultant Houseal Lavigne Associates, city staff and the Sawdust District Advisory Group. The area was originally identified in the Imagine Oshkosh Master Plan as an opportunity area on the south side of the Fox River. The Sawdust District Advisory Group was established to offer input and guidance throughout the process. Additional public input was received through individual stakeholder interviews. Staff hosted a public open house on January 29th, 2020, which included approximately 30 attendees from the public. The purpose of the plan is to provide guidance for the district as redevelopment opportunities. The district is divided into six sub -areas each with their own unique character and land use plan recommendations. Each sub -area includes a description of desired conditions that the City should work towards and are organized into several categories including desired land uses, transportations, placemaking and design and development. The Sawdust District Master Plan will assist in planning and implementing the future development in the area. Ms. Naudziunas said staff recommends approval of the Sawdust District Master Plan as requested. Mr. Fojtik opened technical questions to staff. Ms. Erickson questioned why there were no bike lanes in the roadway visuals. Mr. Lyons replied one of the things they analyzed through this process was if it was appropriate to have bike lanes on S. Main Street. He said in the Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan, there are already parallel routes. He explained it would have been difficult with some of the southern areas of the district to add bike lanes due to right-of-way constraints. He stated it was a better option to have parallel routes instead on bike lanes on S. Main Street. He added another concern was there was no parking on S. Main Street which was the biggest need. Mr. Fojtik questioned how the bridge fits into this though it is not in the district. Mr. Lyons replied the bridge that is going to be redeveloped is the Jackson Street bridge. Mr. Fojtik said his question still holds as the bridge would be a nice component to the district. Mr. Davis commented he believes the Oregon Street bridge is the first one to be replaced which will be somewhere in the next ten years. He said the Main Street bridge could be anywhere from 25-50 years out but does not have a timeline. He explained with the Fox River Corridor Plan, at some point they would like the Riverwalk to go under the bridge instead of crossing at grade. Mr. Mitchell asked if the Plan were to be approved, if it could still be amended afterwards. Mr. Lyons replied it is a guiding plan. He explained any developments that come in will be evaluated based on the merits of the developments. He said staff is looking at Planned Development zoning for most of the area for development in the future. Plan Commission Minutes February 18, 2020 Mr. Ford asked what changing or replacing 9th Avenue would look like. Mr. Lyons replied it would be the extension on 911, Avenue. He explained the current thought would be taking it and wrapping it into the existing railroad crossing where Pioneer Drive is today. Mr. Kiefer commented it is a very nice plan and thanked everyone for their hard work. He asked what is going to draw people to the area. He said for people going to the Pioneer, if there is going to be an opportunity to have businesses along the riverwalk. Mr. Lyons replied the goal is to create S. Main Street similar to N. Main Street. He said they are looking at building on what the Arena already has with some more entertainment type event spaces or uses. He said the River North district is looking to add more rooftops whether it is apartments, condos or mixed -use development. He explained there is a focus to get more residential into the area as well as focusing on service and commercial uses that they are going to want in the area. He said another way of trying to get people into the area are the two trail heads to the north and south. Mr. Kiefer asked if there would potentially be kayak or paddle boat rentals at the south trail head. Mr. Lyons replied one of the focuses is river and lake oriented business and activating those waterfront uses. He said people have brought up adding a water taxi to the area. He said the developers of Pioneer Island are also looking at adding some of that. Mr. Mitchell stated some of the Plans that were used to create with the Sawdust District Plan have very strong language in regard to encouraging the city to implement natural, native plantings and landscaping relative to the proximity of the water. He said the DNR states that about 85% of the State's endangered species are endangered due to removal of their habitats close to shore in which they need for survival. He asked if there could be language included regarding native plantings. Mr. Lyons replied the focus of this Plan was land use and transportation. He said the language could definitely be added but said it may be better suited for the Zoning Ordinance where it would carry more weight. Mr. Mitchell mentioned in the Comprehensive Plan that there is a whole section about agriculture and natural resources. He said it states that the City will implement natural shoreline buffer areas. He said he knows it is not the focus but thinks it would be a real loss if there was nothing done to counter the damaging impacts on endangered species. Mr. Lyons reiterated it was not part of the scope of this Plan and said it would be better suited to add to the Zoning Ordinance. Mr. Davis commented Pioneer Drive is basically all concrete for the entire right-of-way. He said they are looking at getting rid of all that concrete and putting in the natural features of the Plan Commission Minutes February 18, 2020 vegetation as well as the removing and restoring of the shoreline. He said it is hard to say much more about other parts of the district because it will be on a case by case basis. He said most of the area is environmentally impacted one way or another and expects the DNR and EPA to be involved in terms or remediation. He said there will be a lot more plants in the Pioneer and railroad right-of-way corridor. He said it would be a great opportunity for native plantings and swales for storm water management. Mr. Lyons commented this Plan does not override previous Plans the City has done. He said the other Plans are still vitally as important. Ms. Erickson asked staff to expand on what other opportunities residents or business owners had to give input. Ms. Naudziunas replied there were stakeholder interviews where staff met with each stakeholder one on one to get input. Mr. Lyons added they also sent a notice to every property owner that owned property within the District. Ms. Naudziunas said they did a mass mailing for the whole area twice. She said they invited them to the Open House. She added they met and presented to the Chamber and the Chamber's Economic Development committee. She said they are also going to present at the Rotary and League of Women's Voters. Mr. Mitchell asked for the timeline of the presentations. Mr. Lyons replied presenting at the Rotary and the League of Womeri s Voters will be in April. He said they met with the Chamber in January and February. Mr. Mitchell asked what would happen if there was a recommendation after these meetings to amend the Plan. Mr. Lyons replied staff was asked to present to the groups but if there is input from the meetings to amend the Plan, there is no reason why the Plan couldn't be amended. Mr. Fojtik asked if there were any public comments. There were no public comments on this item. Mr. Fojtik closed public comments. Motion by Ford to adopt the findings and recommendation as stated in the staff report. Seconded by Coulibaly. Plan Commission Minutes February 18, 2020 Mr. Fojtik asked if there was any discussion on the motion. Mr. Mitchell asked if the Parks Advisory Board has had any input given the amount of park space in the area. Mr. Lyons replied staff is meeting with the Park's Director later this week or early next week to discuss implementation of park space. He said at some point they may need to work on a park plan with the Board. Mr. Mitchell asked if the Sustainability and Advisory Board has had an opportunity to give input on the Plan. Mr. Lyons replied staff could take it to the Board but in the past they Board has not weighed in on this type of plan. Ms. Naudziunas added they were all invited to the Open House as well. Mr. Lyons stated all Boards and commissioners were invited to the Open House. Mr. Ford asked when redeveloping Pioneer Drive, if the item would come back to Plan Commission or if there would be any public hearings. Mr. Lyons replied he does not believe so because Pioneer Drive is technically a city -owned property. Mr. Ford commented this is a great Plan and hopes they consider fishing areas as well. Mr. Lyons said the Fox River Corridor Plan and the Riverwalk Plans already identity public improvements to the area. Mr. Davis added specifically for fishing. Mr. Coulibaly asked if there were any safety measures in terms of the railroad crossings. Mr. Lyons replied there has been discussions about a raised crossing, which are relatively expensive, but nothing has been decided on. Mr. Fojtik thanked city staff. He stated the complexity and length of the vision statement illustrates how much of a challenge it was to bring 55,000 partners together to create something. He said what staff has come up with is really a solid plan and also offers flexibility. He said compared to five years ago, the area already looks better. Mr. Lyons said as development starts to occur, it is likely to be in the Planned Development Overlay zoning which will go through Plan Commission and Common Council for approval. Plan Commission Minutes February 18, 2020 Motion carried 8-0. There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at approximately 4:41 pm. (Kiefer/Erickson) Respectfully submitted, Mark Lyons Planning Services Manager Plan Commission Minutes February 18, 2020