Planning Commission

RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION CITY OF BELLINGHAM, WASHINGTON THURSDAY PUBLIC HEARING 7:00 P.M. December 4, 2014 CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS Video-taped www.cob.org CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order by Tom Grinstad, Chairman of the Planning Commission. ROLL CALL: Tom Grinstad, Jeff Brown, Garrett O'Brien, Ali Taysi, Phyllis McKee, Steve Crooks and Cerise Noah Present: Tom Grinstad, Garrett O’Brien, Ali Taysi, Phyllis McKee, Steve Crooks and Cerise Noah Absent: Jeff Brown Staff Present: Greg Aucutt, Assistant Director; Lisa Pool, Senior Planner; Chris Behee, GIS Specialist; and Heather Aven, Recording Secretary. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - No minutes to approve. 15 MINUTE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD: David MacLeod spoke to the International Energy Agency reports and emphasized that energy supply is still very much a concern. He provided the Executive Summary of the 2009 ERSPO (Energy Resource Scarcity / Peak Oil Task Force) Report and requested that the Commissioners use the information to inform the planning decisions of the future. Louise Bjornson expressed concern about the future quality of life in the neighborhoods. She provided some statistics about free / reduced lunch in a few specific neighborhoods and noted that those were the highest percentages in the City. PUBLIC HEARING: To receive an update on the 2016 Comprehensive Plan Update process, including draft growth alternatives for accommodating projected growth using the 2036 growth forecasts adopted by the city and county. STAFF PRESENTATION Greg Aucutt introduced staff and provided a brief overview of the material. Lisa Pool discussed the 2016 Comprehensive Plan update process goals. Chris Behee reviewed the preliminary population growth allocations that the City / County agreed to earlier in 2014, and pointed out that the projected growth of 36,918, by the year 2036, is comparable to previous years' growth projections. He shared some statistics on the growth trends for Bellingham, as well as the existing and projected mix of single-family and multi-family housing. He reviewed the four Final Copy - 1 alternatives that the city and county are studying in the environmental impact statements: 1) No Action / Current Plan; 2) Historic UGA / Non-UGA Shares; 3) Approved Multi-jurisdictional Resolution; 4) Targeted UGA boundary changes. Chris Behee stated that staff feels that Alternative 3, the "approved multi-jurisdictional resolution" approach, is the best alternative at this point in the process; however, it still leaves the City 2,000 housing units short of being able to accommodate all of the projected growth over the 22 year planning period. He reviewed the several alternatives being considered that could potentially assist in making up the difference in housing units.  Growth Alternative #1: Create a master plan with zoning and development regulations for four new urban villages: o Cordata o Birchwood / NW / Maplewood o Lakeway & Lincoln o James St Corridor  Growth Alternative #2: Make zoning changes in the UGA and in recently-annexed areas to encourage or require higher development densities.  Growth Alternative #3: UGA expansion into areas such as: o South Yew Street UGA Reserve o Areas north of the city limits, which would pose some challenges. Lisa Pool highlighted a couple of the responses to the survey, which was open online for public input between September 15th and October 20, 2014. She pointed out that there were 1,202 responses received. PUBLIC HEARING OPENED Clayton Petree submitted written comment and highlighted some of those points with the Commissioners.  Although Bellingham was successful in their first effort with "Growth Management", that success has slowly dwindled. (Capture rates: 1995-2002 = 62.4% and 2008-2014 = 31.9%)  The Bellingham UGA Reserve should be part of Growth Alternative #2, and not #3. o He explained that, according to Whatcom County Executive Jack Louws, the County considers a UGA Reserve to be more a part of the UGA of a city than other areas not holding reserve status.  He stated that a demand analysis should be performed, so that planning can occur based on what the market demand is, according to a National Association of Realtors Report. o 76% want detached home o 14% want apartment / condo o 6% want duplex / triplex / townhome  He suggested that more than just housing units should be considered when planning for the proposed growth. He pointed out that additional single-family land will be needed to accommodate the growth that will be coming in the future years. Darcy Jones, 4164 Meridian St stated that if we continue to plan for 22% single-family development and 78% to be multi-family development, people will not be coming into the City or its UGA. He questioned how the shortage went from 3,500 - 4,000 (about a year ago) to only 2,000 housing units. He noted that, in his opinion, there are some issues in the County's land capacity analysis with the setback Final Copy - 2 and buffer assumptions that lead the public to believe there is more land available for development than there really is. He spoke to Growth Alternative #2 and stated there is land in the UGA that has not developed since its inception and/or has no way to redevelop; however, we still calculate that in our land capacity. He suggested a realignment of the UGA boundaries to be more efficient. Some property owners and other are not interested in being part of the City or UGA. He also spoke to Growth Alternative #3 and questioned if those lands are really ready, willing and able to be part of the UGA. Doug Allen pointed out the need for more parks and trails in the north end of the City. He stated that any new development should be required to include green space, parks and trails. He spoke to Growth Alternative #1 and stated that if infill continues to occur with the existing infrastructure remaining as is, it will create chaos. He stated that if an Urban Village were to be developed in the Birchwood Neighborhood, the existing connections need to remain strong; green space, parks and trails need to be required, and a mix of housing, not just apartments, needs to be included. He expressed support for portions of Growth Alternatives #2 and #3 and emphasized that with good planning, these would be good solutions to the infill challenges. Matt Pascas spoke to the integrated noise model that was released, which stated that by 2030 approximately 56 acres will be encroached upon with airport noise. He commented on the land near the airport and suggested that the City partner with the Port to discuss how the land in that UGA can be best used. David Cunningham stated that demographics should be considered when looking at employment growth, especially if more and more retired citizens are moving here. He also expressed concern that density changes in the Birchwood Neighborhood could affect the quality of the neighborhood. He stated that he is in favor of infill, as long as the character of the neighborhood is retained. He noted the increase in traffic on McLeod since the round-about was built and suggested that the unintended consequences of new development a neighborhood will have to endure should be considered in the future. Issac Post noted the differences in infrastructure between the South Hill and Happy Valley Neighborhoods. He stated that the local businesses could foster a better relationship with Western Washington University to help retain students. He stated that it is important to do things to bring larger companies into Bellingham, including Downtown. He stated that the under-utilized areas of the City need to be developed before expansion occurs. He spoke to the specific housing types, such as cottages, and made some suggestions as to how apartments could be made more attractive. Perry Eskridge, Whatcom County Association of Realtors stated that, according to a realtors' community preference survey, the housing preference of the public is still detached single-family homes. He expressed his support of using the UGA for development, especially due to in city neighborhoods wanting to preserve their existing character. He spoke to the FHA requirements related to condos and requested that the Commission not ignore the market preferences. Dave provided a quote from the blog that he follows: "Urban Villages exist only in the minds of Planners". He pointed out that the housing mix included in the County's URMX zoning is 75% single- family and 25% multi-family. He also stated that growth will not come to Bellingham unless it competes with the smaller cities for it. Linda Twitchell, Building Industry Association stated that surveys show people want single-family homes with a yard. She encouraged the Commission to take a practical approach to planning for growth:  What areas are we claiming as buildable land? Final Copy - 3  o Waterfront land should not be included in the capacity unless it is really going to be developed and usable in 20 years.  Consider the financial aspect of the commercial space being required on the ground floor of some mixed-use buildings.  What is the market demand for certain types of housing?  Expand the UGA and remove the portions that do not want to be part of the City. Linda Twitchell stated that if the Infill Housing Toolkit is adopted in single-family zones, it should be limited to the edges of the neighborhood. April Barker explained what her neighborhood experiences as it relates to the over 600,000 enplanements and the noise that brings. She encouraged the Commissioners to consider that when they discuss the use of those northern UGAs. David McLeod stated that planning for 2036 should be creative and flexible. He stated that there needs to be some large lots, tiny houses, and Accessory Dwelling Units to meet the demand of the market. He noted that energy security is a real issue and will be affecting us all in 2036. Cal Leenstra stated that the demand for single-family homes outweighs the demand for condos and apartments. He noted that the land owned by those who do not want to be in the UGA should not be counted in our analysis. He spoke to the lack of development occurring in the urban village areas. He stated that the UGA changes should be considered. PUBLIC HEARING CLOSED STAFF RESPONSES Greg Aucutt talked about the process the comprehensive plan update will follow going forward, and emphasized that nothing is being ruled out at this time, and that all options are open for discussion and analysis. He also responded to public comments made regarding land in Dewey Valley, and stated that an annexation petition has been submitted for approximately 150 acres in this area. Lisa Pool noted that the housing trend figures indicating a strong trend toward multi-family development in Bellingham came from a Berk Consulting report, the firm that is working with the County and cities on the environmental impact statement. COMMISSION QUESTIONS / DISCUSSION: There was a discussion about what the Land Capacity Analysis reveals regarding the demand for housing and what it means to have "infill in existing neighborhoods".  Chris Behee clarified that the Land Capacity Analysis is based on the population forecast that needs to be accommodated. They City and UGA currently have capacity for approximately 32,000 additional residents based solely on existing zoning. He emphasized that only the 2,000 additional housing units are what need to be added to the current supply through the proposed alternatives or another solution.  Cerise Noah stated that she agrees that single-family housing with land is in the greatest demand.  Greg Aucutt confirmed that the existing UGA boundaries will be considered and analyzed during this process, some may be removed and some may be added. Final Copy - 4 There was a discussion about how vacant land and development capacity in the City was calculated. Commissioner Requests:  The breakdown of existing vacant land supply data for single-family versus multi-family housing units.  A summary of the development estimates for each urban village area.  A response from staff as to how the existing strategy in the 2006 Comprehensive Plan has worked so far, including the results that have been realized.  Discuss what the process would be to move forward with developers and property owners that are ready, willing and able to develop their land.  Discuss the potential impacts of not developing the land in the UGA near the airport.  Have a discussion on the employment growth projection. o Review what incentives could be put in place for the vacant spaces in the Downtown and other areas of the City.  Are there consequences for Downtown property owners who just sit on vacant spaces?  Has there been consideration given to expanding the Industrial land supply? OLD / NEW BUSINESS: ADJOURNED: 9:20 p.m. NEXT MEETING: December 18, 2014 - Subdivision Ordinance Minutes prepared by: _____________________________ Heather Aven, Recording Secretary Minutes edited by Planning Commission members and various Planning Staff. Final Copy - 5