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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes PLAN COMMISSION MINUTES MARCH 16, 2004 PRESENT: David Borsuk, Jon Dell’Antonia, Steve Gehling, Shirley Mattox, Donald Pressley, Kathleen Propp, and Lee Bettes; Chairman EXCUSED: John Ruppenthal and Cathy Scherer STAFF: Darryn Burich, Principal Planner; Jackson Kinney, Director of Community Development; and Vickie Rand, Recording Secretary The meeting was called to order at 4:00 p.m. by Chairman Bettes. Roll call was taken and a quorum declared present. The minutes of the March 2, 2004 meeting were approved as mailed. (Gehling, Dell’Antonia) Unanimous. I: CONSENT AGENDA A: ACCEPT RIGHT-OF-WAY DEDICATION AND TWO LOT LAND DIVISION FOR PROPERTY GENERALLY LOCATED SOUTH AND WEST OF 4221 JACKSON ST. Thomas Rusch, petitioner/owner, requests the Plan Commission to approve a two lot land division/certified survey map (CSM) for an approximate 50 acre parcel of land. Included with the land division is a proposed dedication of land for right-of-way that will serve future residential development. The property is split zoned with R-1 Single Family Residence District and R-3 PD Multiple Dwelling District with a Planned Development Overlay. B: PRIVILEGE IN STREET TO ALLOW PLACEMENT OF A FIBER NETWORK Access Engineers and the Oshkosh Area Schools request the Plan Commission to approve a privilege in street to allow placement of a fiber optic network in City right-of-way. This is the second of three phases to connect Oshkosh schools to one another via the fiber network. This will also allow the City to connect its fire stations and other City facilities to one another. The network will follow routes as indicated on the attached site plan. C: PRIVILEGE IN STREET TO ALLOW PLACEMENT OF A GROUNDWATER MONITORING WELL IN THE MARION ROAD RIGHT OF WAY Sigma Environmental Services and Mercury Marine request a privilege in street to allow the placement of a groundwater monitoring well in the Marion Road right-of-way. The purpose of the well is to monitor environmental conditions associated with the adjacent Mercury Marine property located located along the south side of Marion Road. The well will be flush mounted and placed in the terrace area of the street. There was no discussion on these items. Motion by Dell’Antonia for approval with the following conditions for each item. Plan Commission Minutes -2-March 16, 2004 Item A 1. Approval by the Department of Public Works of a grading, drainage, and erosion control plan prior to any street or utility construction. 2. Petitioner or owner is responsible for normal costs associated with street construction and utility installation and enter into a development agreement with the City prior to any actual street or utility construction. Item B: 1) The conduit be installed in a manner that is approved by the Department of Public Works with no modifications or changes in construction procedure without prior approval by the Department of Public Works. 2) If no longer needed the network be properly abandoned and removed in accordance with City standards and under the direction of the Department of Public Works. 3) Any problem which may arise as a result of the placement of the fiber optic network be the responsibility of the petitioner/owner to correct in coordination with the Department of Public Works. 4) All appropriate permits be obtained prior to the start of placement of the network. 5) The network be modified or removed immediately upon the request of the City. 6) The petitioner/owner secures and submits to the City Clerk a separate insurance policy which names the City as an additional insured with a minimum coverage of $200,000 per person and $500,000 in general aggregate. 7) It is the responsibility of the petitioner/owner to file in a timely manner a new insurance certificate with the City Clerk upon expiration of an existing certificate. Failure to do so will result in the revocation of the privilege in street within ten (10) days of notice. 8) The petitioner/owner execute a hold harmless agreement with the City. Item C 1) The conduit be installed in a manner that is approved by the Department of Public Works with no modifications or changes in construction procedure without prior approval by the Department of Public Works. 2) If no longer needed the well(s) be properly abandoned and removed in accordance with City standards and under the direction of the Department of Public Works. 3) Any problem that may arise as a result of the placement of the well(s) be the responsibility of the petitioner/owner to correct in coordination with the Department of Public Works. Plan Commission Minutes -3-March 16, 2004 4) All appropriate permits be obtained prior to the start of placement of the well(s). 5) The well(s) be modified or removed immediately upon the request of the City. 6) The petitioner/owner secures and submits to the City Clerk a separate insurance policy which names the City as an additional insured with a minimum coverage of $200,000 per person and $500,000 in general aggregate. 7) It is the responsibility of the petitioner/owner to file in a timely manner a new insurance certificate with the City Clerk upon expiration of an existing certificate. Failure to do so will result in the revocation of the privilege in street within ten (10) days of notice. 8) The petitioner/owner execute a hold harmless agreement with the City. 9) Analytical test data derived from the monitoring well(s) be made available to the City’s environmental consultant. 10) Access to the monitoring well(s) to measure groundwater levels be made available to the City’s environmental consultant. Seconded by Gehling. Motion carried 7-0 II: HOMESTEAD DRIVE III ANNEXATION Thomas Rusch, petitioner/owner, requests Plan Commission approval of the Homestead Drive III Annexation for an approximate .0345 acre parcel of land and adjacent right-of-way along Homestead Drive in the Town of Algoma. The vacant property is proposed to be annexed with a temporary and permanent zoning of R-1 Single Family Residence District. Mr. Dell’Antonia questioned if this annexation would be isolated or create a town island. Mr. Burich stated the annexation would not create a town island and did meet the statutory requirements and boundary agreement with the Town of Algoma. Lawrence Pfaffenroth, 2891 Homestead Drive, stated he has lived there since 1979, and was told the parcel had been deeded to the Town of Algoma by Norman Rusch in 1980. He questioned how this had reverted back to private ownership. Chairman Bettes stated the Courts and the Township are the avenues needed to be taken to sort out the ownership issues. Mr. Burich stated that the City’s records indicate Mr. Rusch as the owner of the property. Mr. Dell’Antonia questioned when Mr. Pfaffenroth was given this information. Mr. Pfaffenroth replied he was told by the Town of Algoma Board in 1980 that the site was deeded to the Town. Ms. Mattox questioned how much land did he assume was deeded to the town. Mr. Pfaffenroth stated just that site, and he has maintained it since 1980, and according to adverse possession law the land should be his. Judy Grota, 2863 Homestead Drive, stated she has lived there since 1985 and has seen Mr. Pfaffenroth take care of the land, and has not seen Mr. Rusch there at all. Plan Commission Minutes -4-March 16, 2004 Tom Rusch, 3801 State Rd. 21, stated his dad had developed this area in the ‘60’s and that the subject parcel was originally intended to serve as right-of-way access for new developments to the south. However, when the subdivisions to the south developed they were developed to eliminate the need for the subject parcel to serve as right-of-way. He stated at this point he has decided to annex the property to the City of Oshkosh and sell it off as a lot. Mr. Dell’Antonia questioned if Mr. Rusch has title to the property. Mr. Rusch replied that he had title. Ms. Mattox questioned if the Town of Algoma knows of this annexation request and if there was legalities the City needed to look into. Mr. Burich stated the Algoma Town Clerk was provided a notice of this request. Motion by Borsuk for approval of the Homestead Drive III Annexation for an approximate .0345 acre parcel of land and adjacent right-of-way along Homestead Drive in the Town of Algoma with temporary and permanent zoning of R-1 Single Family Residence District. Seconded by Gehling. Motion carried 7-0. III: SNELL ROAD ANNEXATION Diversified Property Investments, petitioner/owner, requests Plan Commission approval of the Snell Road Annexation for an approximate 3.25-acre parcel of land located in the Town of Oshkosh. The property contains two single family dwellings and accessory outbuildings. The property is currently zoned industrial under Winnebago County zoning and is proposed to be annexed with an M-3 General Industrial District zoning designation. Mr. Gehling questioned if the site to be annexed meets the minimum level of space for an M-3 zoning designation. Mr. Burich replied it did meet the M-3 zoning requirements. Jeff Weisjohn, 240 E. Snell Road, questioned what was planned for the site. He stated Snell Road is getting busier and busier and is concerned about the amount of traffic that might be brought into the area, for example, if a McDonald’s were to be constructed there. Mr. Burich stated the proposed zoning is consistent with the types of uses in the area, and stated probably a light industrial use would consider the area. He stated they would have to meet the required setbacks and there was only one access allowed onto Snell Road. Mr. Buettner, 1531 W. New York Avenue, stated his clients were also concerned about the residential zoning districts in the area. He stated they tried for an R-4 Multiple Dwelling District but were denied by the City of Oshkosh and the Town of Oshkosh. Ms. Mattox questioned if the subject site could become part of the huge adjacent parcel to develop one larger entity. Mr. Burich stated that was a possibility if the adjacent property owner was interested in purchasing the subject site. Motion by Pressley for approval of the Snell Road Annexation for an approximate 3.25 acre parcel of land located in the Town of Oshkosh with temporary and permanent zoning of an M-3 General Industrial District. Seconded by Gehling. Motion carried 7-0. Plan Commission Minutes -5-March 16, 2004 IV: PROPERTY ACQUISITION – SAFETY BUILDING 420 JACKSON STREET City Administration requests approval of a property acquisition of Winnebago County’s share of the public safety building located at 420 Jackson Street. The approximate 3.16-acre parcel is jointly owned by the City and County. The public safety building is currently being used by the Oshkosh Police Department, County Circuit Court Branch, Court Commissioner, and Family Counseling Services offices. The sale agreement would provide for the County to continue to utilize space on the first floor for the noted uses for a given number of years. Mr. Pressley questioned why this item was in front of the Plan Commission when they have received so little information about it. Chairman Bettes replied that the Plan Commission’s job is basically a land use issue, to determine if this is a good use for the building. Mr. Pressley noted that the second floor has mainly been used for the jail and the remodeling would be quite costly. Chairman Bettes invited the City Manager, from the audience, to speak about this issue. Richard Wollangk, City Manager, 215 Church Avenue, stated the Police Department would expand into much needed space on the first floor as soon as possible, and the County would continue to utilize space on the first floor for the next few years. He stated the City would be able to use the second floor for additional storage space as well. Mrs. Propp questioned if the Police Department would be able to expand their offices immediately with out any remodeling done. Mr. Wollangk replied there would be some minimal remodeling done such as painting and new carpeting before they expand. He stated the City would use the second floor for storage during the next ten years, as this needs a stairs access and more extensive remodeling for office use. Motion by Propp to approve a property acquisition of Winnebago County’s share of the Public Safety Building located at 420 Jackson Street. Seconded by Dell’Antonia. Motion carried 7-0. Ms. Mattox stated she thought this was a marvelous opportunity to have part of the block for a City complex. She stated it would fit well together. V: VACATE RIGHT-OF-WAY – WOODLAND AVENUE BETWEEN ALGOMA BLVD. AND ELMWOOD AVE The University of Wisconsin – Oshkosh requests a vacation of Woodland Avenue right-of-way between Algoma Boulevard and Elmwood Avenue. This is an approximate 50’ x 625’ (31,250 square feet) section of right-of-way. The vacated right-of-way will be incorporated into a university parking area. Plan Commission Minutes -6-March 16, 2004 Ms. Mattox questioned exactly what they would be approving at today’s meeting. Chairman Bettes replied that they would be only acting on the Woodland Avenue vacation at this time. He explained that any other development, parking design, etc., would have to come back for the Plan Commission approval at a later date. Mr. Dell’Antonia questioned how quickly they anticipated to use the parking on the street, assuming the vacation was approved. Rick Wells, 1423 Congress Avenue stated that three years ago the University started the plan process for development of the Comprehensive Strategic Plan, with the parking plan being one of the key features of the plan. He stated parking is currently a huge problem extending into residential neighborhoods. Mr. Wells stated they are committed to becoming a better neighbor to the surrounding neighborhoods and have asked other colleges of similar size for guidance. Tom Sonnleitner, UW-Oshkosh, passed around a handout on the Campus Master Plan: Major Challenges. He stated the University’s Master Plan would be guided by property acquisition with the Oshkosh Foundation’s help with purchases and trades to acquire property. He stated they have requested State Funding, which isn’t much of a possibility. Mr. Sonnleitner stated their first challenge was to acquire four properties with the most critical being the Axle-Tech property on High Avenue, since the University is land locked by the Fox River and Industry to the west, residential neighborhoods to the north and east, and the City of Oshkosh to the south. He stated they have also agreed with the City not to create additional parking in established neighborhoods around the campus. Mr. Sonnleitner stated the second most important property they’re looking at acquiring is the Newman Center, which they expect to close on in a week or so. He stated they have been working with the City’s Planning Services and Inspection Services along with the Oshkosh Foundation for help with the purchase. Mr. Sonnleitner stated the third property they were considering was the credit union on High Avenue and the fourth was the Deltox property on Warren Road. He stated this was basically a 10-year plan in which they would be working with the City to swap buildings for parking areas and a new bridge on Wisconsin Street would also be a factor in the design for parking throughout the University area. Mr. Sonnleitner stated their second challenge would be to create a campus area. He stated the Master Plan calls for High Avenue to become a two-way street and calls for the closing of Algoma Boulevard through the campus. Mr. Sonnleitner stated plans have been submitted to the State for a “Titan Athletic Complex” to be more of an Oshkosh Athletic Complex to serve both the community and the University. Mr. Sonnleitner stated funds have been authorized by the students for a huge Student Recreation and Development Center and the first meeting with the architect will be held April 17, with groundbreaking slated for 2005. Plan Commission Minutes -7-March 16, 2004 Mr. Sonnleitner also discussed the living and learning area the University was hoping would attract tenants who wanted to be involved with the University. Mr. Sonnleitner informed the Plan Commission a full presentation would be given at a later date. Elliot Garb, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, 800 Algoma Blvd., passed around a handout on the Campus Parking Plan. Mr. Garb stated the first step in the 10-year plan would be to develop a workable and compatible pedestrian friendly plan for the Campus. Mr. Garb stated there is a shortage of approximately 750 – 900 parking spaces for permit holders, with 300 – 500 students on the waiting list for resident parking. He stated K-Mart has given out 500 parking permits and another 250 resident students purchase parking from the City Parking Utility, Oshkosh Police Department, and local businesses. Mr. Garb stated they want a parking area with green space but don’t want to encroach further into the east and north neighborhoods. He stated they want a friendly campus not one with a remote site for parking. Mr. Garb continued to discuss the traffic plans for the area by redirecting traffic from Algoma Blvd., and High Avenue onto a new enhanced Pearl Ave. Mr. Garb stated the key to the parking issue besides the Axle Tech property would be to build two parking garages. He stated at the neighborhood meeting, people had suggested the corner of High Avenue and Osceola Street, where tennis courts exist at this time, for a parking garage. He stated the second garage would be on Woodland and High Avenues, katty corner from Axle Tech. Mr. Garb stated the overall plan would create about 1400 parking spaces with approximately 150+ spaces as part of the Woodland Avenue vacation. He stated that the concept plan has already changed in that they are looking to take out the deepest parking row in the new lot to try and preserve some of the trees in that area because this was a concern of some of the residents in the neighborhood. Mr. Garb stated this plan supports a pedestrian friendly campus, with parking that is centrally located. He also stated the cost of this plan is comparable to other University’s the size of UW-Oshkosh. Mrs. Propp thanked the University Representatives for their presentation, noting this was good for the Plan Commission as well as the community, however, she was concerned with the closing of Elmwood Avenue even though it may be quite a ways off in the future. Mr. Garb stated they need to talk with the neighbors and the City Administration before any firm decisions are made. Plan Commission Minutes -8-March 16, 2004 Ms. Mattox discussed Pearl Avenue becoming four lanes and High Avenue becoming a two-way street with on street parking and questioned where the traffic was coming from. Mr. Garb stated it appears the traffic is made up of people using that route to get through the campus area. He stated they haven’t done an extensive traffic study, and much more research is needed that is critical to the parking element of the Master Plan. Ms. Mattox also noted the pedestrian friendly riverfront and questioned how access would be made across the boulevard. Mr.Garb stated the design might have an overpass over the boulevard, but they area looking to the traffic safety engineers to help solve that problem. Ms. Mattox also questioned who the architect was for this development. Mr. Garb stated Potter/Lawson and Cannon International Group are the architects. Mr. Burich stated the parking plan would be done in phases if Woodland Avenue were vacated at this time. Mr. Garb stated during the the first year parking stalls would be designed for both sides of the vacated Woodland Avenue. He stated traffic will be discontinued and they will proceed to finalize the plan for the parking lot by the summer of 2004 with completion by the fall of 2005 through Plan Commission and Common Council approval. Mr. Gehling questioned if traffic counts had been done for Woodland Avenue and Vine Street. Mr. Burich stated a traffic count had been conducted and that during school session there was about 2000 trips per day and that during spring break the count decreased to about 200 trips per day, indicating predominantly campus oriented traffic. Mr. Burich stated traffic, if approved with the final parking plan, would still be able to drive through Woodland Avenue from Algoma to Elmwood. Mr. Gehling stated he understood at the last presentation that Woodland Avenue would only be open to emergency vehicles. Discussion followed regarding the traffic issue and the need to re-educate drivers coming from newly developed developed parking lots. Mr. Garb stated there won’t be the traffic driving around looking for parking spaces as there is now, and the traffic that will be coming into or exiting the University area will most likely use New York Avenue. Mr. Wells stated the proposed 400 stall parking garage (a two year target) should cut down on a lot of traffic. He stated they need to aggressively act on this new parking and take steps to ensure it is aesthetically pleasing to the neighborhood. Ms. Mattox questioned when this vacation would happen. Chairman Bettes stated the vacation would take place as soon as it is approved by the Common Council. Mrs. Propp stated although the vacation seems appropriate, she is concerned about an increase of traffic on Vine Avenue and we should be careful when designing this area. Chairman Bettes stated he lives on Vine Avenue and sees this as a trade off. He stated on-street parking on Vine Avenue should have a settling effect on through traffic. He stated without on-street parking the traffic would be faster and not as comfortable for the neighborhood. Motion by Borsuk for approval of a vacation of Woodland Avenue right-of-way between Algoma Boulevard and Elmwood Avenue. Seconded by Dell’Antonia. Motion carried 5-1-1 Present. Nay: Gehling Present: Bettes Plan Commission Minutes -9-March 16, 2004 Chairman Bettes stated he had attended the neighborhood meeting and commended the University for doing an excellent job. He encouraged them to hold neighborhood meetings as needed, and to inform the Plan Commission of any meetings that may be held. OTHER BUSINESS Chairman Bettes encouraged attendance at the next Comprehensive Plan Update Committee meeting, March 29th, as they are still reviewing the housing element update of the Comprehensive Plan. There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at approximately 5:11 p.m. (Borsuk/Pressley) Unanimous. Respectfully submitted, DARRYN L. BURICH Principal Planner DLB/vlr