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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes PLAN COMMISSION MINUTES February 21, 2012 PRESENT: David Borsuk, Jeffrey Thoms, John Hinz, Dennis McHugh, Robert Vajgrt, Karl Nollenberger EXCUSED: Ed Bowen, Thomas Fojtik, Steve Cummings, Kathleen Propp, Donna Lohry STAFF: Darryn Burich, Director of Planning Services; David Buck, Principal Planner; Jeffrey Nau, Associate Planner; Steve Gohde, Assistant Director of Public Works; Chris Strong, Director of the Department of Transportation; Deborah Foland, Recording Secretary As both the Chair and Vice-Chair were not present for the meeting, David Borsuk was elected pro-tem to Chair the meeting. Chairperson Borsuk called the meeting to order at 4:00 pm. Roll call was taken and a quorum declared present. The minutes of February 7, 2012 were approved as presented. (Vajgrt/Hinz) I. GRANT PRIVILEGE IN THE STREET AT 755 DEMPSEY TRAIL University of Wisconsin Foundation, Inc. requests a privilege in the street permit to install an underground methane gas connection to the Wastewater Treatment Plant located at 233 N. Campbell Road. Mr. Nau presented the item and reviewed the site and surrounding area as well as the zoning classifications in said area. He explained that the University was requesting the privilege in street to utilize excess methane produced by the Wastewater Plant that is otherwise unused or burned off. He reviewed the conditions recommended for the request which are standard for privilege in the right-of- way. Mr. Thoms questioned the purpose of the biodigester as he was under the impression that it would be creating methane on its own. Mr. Burich responded that the Wastewater Treatment Plant also has excess methane which is not always utilized and could be put to use in the operation of the biodigester facility. Mr. McHugh stated that he thought that the biodigester was proposed to generate 20% of the University’s electricity and questioned what percent of electricity would be utilized. Mr. Burich indicated that the City supports the University’s efforts of being able to generate energy from this facility but he does not have exact figures on percentages other than the methane can be used as a power source. Steve Gohde, Assistant Director of Public Works, added that the Wastewater Treatment Plant burns methane to generate heat and will not be supplying it to the biodigester at times when they are utilizing it themselves. __________________________________ Plan Commission Minutes 1 February 21, 2012 Mr. McHugh also questioned if the University would be bearing any and all costs related to the privilege in street. Mr. Burich responded that the project would be constructed with the coordination of the Department of Public Works but any costs would be the responsibility of the University. Motion by Nollenberger to approve the privilege in the street for property located at 755 Dempsey Trail with the following conditions: 1.Placement of the methane gas piping shall be coordinated with the Department of Public Works to prevent conflicts with existing underground utilities. 2.The methane gas piping is installed in a manner that is approved by the Department of Public Works with no modification or changes in construction procedure without prior approval by the Department of Public Works. 3.If no longer needed, the methane gas piping be properly abandoned and removed in accordance with City standards and under the direction of the Department of Public Works. 4.Any problem that may arise as a result of placement of the methane gas piping be the responsibility of the petitioner/owner to correct in coordination with the Department of Public Works. 5.All appropriate permits be obtained prior to the start of placement of the methane gas piping. 6.The methane gas piping be modified or removed immediately upon request of the City. 7.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. 8.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 the right-of-way permit within ten (10) days of notice. 9.The petitioner/owner execute a hold harmless agreement with the City. 10.The facility be part of and documented with Digger’s Hotline system. Seconded by Vajgrt. Motion carried 6-0. II. THREE-LOT LAND DIVISION/CERTIFIED SURVEY MAP AT 4200 POBEREZNY ROAD The owner/applicant is requesting a three-lot land division/certified survey map from one existing parcel containing a total of 23.97 acres. Sizes of the proposed lots are as follows: Lot 1 = 14.76 Acres Lot 2 = 7.28 Acres Outlot 1 = 1.93 Acres Mr. Nau presented the item and reviewed the site and surrounding area as well as the zoning classifications in said area. He explained the purpose of the request was to split off the existing vocational school site (Lot 2) from the base parcel with the possibility of Fox Valley Technical College acquiring Lot 1 based on the outcome of an upcoming referendum for future school development. He further explained that wetland delineation is usually required on the CSM but this process is being delayed until the purchase of the site by the Technical College is confirmed. He stated that the land division is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan and reviewed the conditions recommended for this request. __________________________________ Plan Commission Minutes 2 February 21, 2012 Mr. Gohde stated that City utilities are not available to any of these parcels at this time and will not be for quite some time. Motion by Thoms to approve the three-lot land division/certified survey map at 4200 Poberezny Road with the following conditions: 1. Drainage easement shall be placed along both navigable streams per Winnebago Shoreland Zoning Ordinance. 2. Access easement to Outlot 1 be shown on final map. Seconded by McHugh. Motion carried 6-0. III. ACCESS CONTROL VARIANCES AT 732-742 WITZEL AVENUE The petitioner is requesting three access control variances for the development of a credit union with drive-through facilities at 732-742 Witzel Avenue. Access control variances requested are: (a)Permit two driveway approaches to Witzel Avenue where one is permitted; (b)To permit a driveway to an arterial street located approximately 3 feet into the intersection of Idaho Street where 175 feet is required; and (c)Permit a 36-foot wide three-lane Class II Driveway where a maximum of a 30-foot wide two- lane Class II Driveway is permitted. Mr. Buck presented the item and reviewed the three access control variances being requested. He reviewed the site and surrounding area as well as the zoning classifications in said area. He also reviewed the original site plan for the credit union facility and also the revised site plan that was submitted to address the one condition recommended for this request regarding the alignment of the driveway with Idaho Street. He noted that the 40-foot wide driveway referenced in item (c) in the staff report was in error and should be 36-foot. Mr. McHugh inquired what the daily volume of traffic that would be generated from this site. Mr. Buck responded that the petitioner indicated that the credit union would have 12 employees and an estimated 2,850 transactions per day. Mr. McHugh then inquired what impact this would have on the traffic on Witzel Avenue particularly the City trucks that access this area on a regular basis. Chris Strong, Director of the Department of Transportation, indicated that 10-20,000 vehicles access Witzel Avenue on a daily basis and the additional traffic movements would increase the opportunity for conflicts. Mr. Thoms questioned if there were conflicts when Cub Foods grocery store was operating at this location. Mr. Strong replied that the City data regarding crashes at this location does not go back that far. Mr. Buck added that he obtained crash data from the Police Department for the period of 2011 through 2012 and there were six accidents in the area in that time period. Mr. McHugh then questioned what the impact of the traffic from the biodigester facility had on this area. __________________________________ Plan Commission Minutes 3 February 21, 2012 Mr. Buck responded that the biodigester facility would not affect the traffic in this location as the access drive is on Dempsey Trail not Witzel Avenue. Motion by Vajgrt to approve the access control variances at 732-742 Witzel Avenue with the following conditions: 1.The westernmost driveway is relocated to align with the Witzel Avenue and Idaho Street intersection, as approved by the Transportation Department. Seconded by Nollenberger. Motion carried 6-0. PLANNING DIRECTOR’S REPORT Mr. Burich reported that neighborhood meetings were held for both the potential zone change in the Grand Street area and the City’s Central Garage redevelopment to obtain input from adjacent property owners. Mr. Burich distributed copies of the League of Wisconsin Municipalities Legislative Bulletin that described a number of legislative actions passed or being considered recently to keep Commission members informed on these matters. He stated that AB 562 limits the ability of municipalities to impose temporary moratoriums on development which may be harmful to communities at large and his concern for our city was it would limit flexibility. He also briefly discussed two other legislative actions in process dealing with non-conforming structures and municipal quotas for retail liquor licenses. He stated that he would be looking into these matters further and would keep the Commission informed as to the status of these bills. Mr. Thoms stated that he was aware of another city that had issues with apartments being constructed in excess of the community’s needs and questioned if the City has an inventory of the rental stock in our community. Mr. Burich responded that the City is aware of the rental property stock in our community. There is an appropriate ratio variable and the area is subjective, however there is some concerns with older neighborhoods in the community. Commission members discussed the benefits of knowing the impact on the market with the approval of projects and discussed issues experienced in Wausau’s housing market and subsidized housing. Mr. Burich stated that a workshop should be held on the matter at a future meeting and the legislative materials were distributed for informational purposes only. Mr. Thoms stated that he would like to discuss the City’s Central Garage redevelopment plans at a future meeting. There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at approximately 4:39 pm. (Vajgrt/Hinz) Respectfully submitted, Darryn Burich Director of Planning Services __________________________________ Plan Commission Minutes 4 February 21, 2012