Plan Commission

Village Hall Village of Lombard 255 East Wilson Ave. Lombard, IL 60148 villageoflombard.org Minutes Plan Commission Donald F. Ryan, Chairperson Commissioners: Ronald Olbrysh, Martin Burke, Ruth Sweetser, Andrea Cooper, Stephen Flint and John Mrofcza Staff Liaison: William Heniff Monday, November 18, 2013 7:30 PM Village Hall - Board Room Call to Order Chairperson Ryan called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. Pledge of Allegiance Chairperson Ryan led the Pledge of Allegiance. Chairperson Ryan asked for a moment of silence for the individuals who lost their lives and to those who had damage to their property in downstate Illinois due to the tornados yesterday. Roll Call of Members Present 5 - Donald F. Ryan, Ronald Olbrysh, Martin Burke, Ruth Sweetser, and Stephen Flint Absent 2 - Andrea Cooper, and John Mrofcza Also present: Jennifer Ganser, Assistant Director of Community Development; and Matt Panfil, Sr. Planner. Chairperson Ryan called the order of the agenda. Public Hearings There were no public hearings. Business Meeting The business meeting convened at 7:32 p.m. Village of Lombard Page 1 Plan Commission Minutes November 18, 2013 Approval of Minutes On a motion by Commissioner Flint and seconded by Commissioner Olbrysh the minutes of the October 21, 2013 meeting were approved by a 4-0 vote. Public Participation There was no public participation. DuPage County Hearings There were no DuPage County hearings. Chairperson's Report The Chairperson deferred to the Director of Community Development. Planner's Report Ms. Ganser, Assistant Director of Community Development presented the Planner’s Report. She addressed the Plan Commission date for January 2014. Due to an upcoming holiday, Staff is proposing the Plan Commission reschedule the January 20, 2014 meeting to Monday, January 27, 2014. Chairperson Ryan asked the Commissioners about the date change. The Commissioners agreed to change the date to Monday, January 27, 2014. Second, Ms. Ganser said the Comprehensive Plan Update will be brought back to the Plan Commission by Staff in 2014 for further review. Unfinished Business There was no unfinished business. Village of Lombard Page 2 Plan Commission Minutes November 18, 2013 New Business There was no new business. Subdivision Reports There were no subdivision reports. Site Plan Approvals There were no site plan approvals. Workshops Attention Getting Devices Ms. Ganser, Assistant Director of Community Development, introduced the workshop regarding Attention Getting Devices. She said this item was discussed as a workshop at the October 21, 2013 Plan Commission meeting, and that this is a continuation of the previous workshop. The following items were agreed upon at the last meeting: location of feather signs, regulations on what the sign is made of, and if feather signs should be attached to a permanent structure. Staff researched the questions brought up at the last Plan Commission meeting. Ms. Ganser referred to the two specification sheets of banners to give an idea of how tall, how wide, and the different shapes. Staff proposes allowing one “feather sign” per business for one fourteen day period per calendar year. Though the proposed time of the “feather signs” is being reduced, a business still has other options for temporary signs such as inflatable signs, pennants, and banners. Ms. Ganser asked if there were any additional questions from the Plan Commission. Commissioner Burke asked what the size restriction is. Ms. Ganser replied the current size restriction is 36 square feet. She referenced the attached specification sheets from sign companies that the signs could be up to 20 feet tall. Commissioner Olbrysh asked about the size of the Halloween feather Village of Lombard Page 3 Plan Commission Minutes November 18, 2013 signs. Matt Panfil, Sr. Planner, responded the signs were approximately 10 to 12 feet by 3 feet wide, about 36 square feet. Commissioner Olbrysh asked if this size would fall into the medium example in the handout. Ms. Ganser replied this would fall into the medium example. Commissioner Olbrysh didn’t think the signs should be any bigger. Commissioner Burke asked if in the example the large size is bigger than 36 square feet. Ms. Ganser replied the large would be bigger than 36 square feet which is what the current code allows. Chairperson Ryan said Staff should leave the code at 36 feet so it should fall into the medium category. Commissioner Sweetser said the maximum square footage would relate back to the maximum height, otherwise the sign would be too skinny and could fall. The maximum height goes with the 36 square feet requirement. Ms. Ganser asked the Plan Commission how many signs should be allowed per lot. Staff is proposing one sign per business for fourteen days. Staff did research and contacted other municipalities to verify the different rules allowing one sign per business and per zoning lot. Ms. Ganser asked if the Plan Commission is in concurrence with Staff or if the Commission had any questions. Commissioner Sweetser asked if the limit of signs is one per business regardless of the size of the lot or how many businesses are on the lot. She also asked if the business is part of a strip center if there can only be one sign at a time. Ms. Ganser replied it would be one sign per business and if the business was in a strip center there could be more than one sign at a time. Commissioner Sweetser asked if the fourteen days need to be taken consecutively or can the days be broken up. Ms. Ganser said the way Staff has it written the days are consecutive. Chairperson Ryan said it should be written as consecutive days. Commissioner Olbrysh referred to the last workshop where it was discussed if there are 15 businesses in a strip center theoretically 15 signs could be up at the same time. The landlord could control the number of signs up at a time. Chairperson Ryan said if the business knows they are going to get the sign one time a year for fourteen days and it is in a strip mall, they could be better off to take the time individually, one at a time. Commissioner Sweetser asked if the businesses would decide amongst each other or will there be a directive or guidance from Staff. Village of Lombard Page 4 Plan Commission Minutes November 18, 2013 Chairperson Ryan agreed and asked Ms. Ganser if staff understood about providing some guidelines. Ms. Ganser said they understood. Ms. Ganser asked the Plan Commission if the duration should be changed. She said Staff is proposing allowing one “feather sign” per business for one fourteen day period. Ms. Ganser asked the Plan Commission if they agreed with the duration. The Commissioners agreed with the duration. Commissioner Burke asked what zoning districts the signs are allowed. Ms. Ganser replied they would be allowed in Business Districts 1-5 and in the Industrial District. Chairperson Ryan asked if there were any further comments or questions, and, hearing none, he said we would move onto the second workshop. Industrial District Changes Mr. Panfil, Senior Planner, introduced the Permitted & Conditional Uses within the “I” Limited Industrial District Workshop. The origins of this workshop are based on the many calls and applications received for Certificates of Occupancy and by businesses and their uses within the Industrial District. Many times the uses don’t clearly fall into one of the listed categories. Staff generally needs to obtain more information and often the business has to go through the conditional use process. Staff reviewed and compared the various approaches to industrial land use regulation among other municipalities especially with substantially sized industrial zoning districts. As a result, staff developed three changes to be brought forth for further discussion by the Plan Commission. The first item is to reduce the long, but not exhaustive, list of specific permitted uses to traditional industrial, but broad, terms such as assembly, fabricating, manufacturing, processing, and warehousing. Any use that is not specifically listed as a conditional use may be permitted at the discretion of the Director; provided sufficient information is submitted in order to determine compliance with the performance standards and all other Village Code. As the Zoning Ordinance already allows for the Director’s discretion in the identification of conditional uses, staff finds it logical to provide for such discretion in the identification of permitted uses. Village of Lombard Page 5 Plan Commission Minutes November 18, 2013 The approach is to clean up some of the language and permit traditional industrial activities such as manufacturing, but also allow flexibility that recognizes that whether a business is manufacturing rope, cord, or twine has essentially the same land use impact as a business manufacturing carbon fiber. The second item is to consolidate many of the similar permitted uses (i.e. “laundries” and “dry cleaning plants”) to more inclusive terms. Finally, the third item is to add a clause regarding repair, rental, or servicing of any items permitted to be sold or manufactured within the I Limited Industrial Zoning District. This is similar to text within several of the “B” zoning districts. The thought is if you are allowed to manufacture or sell it you should be able to repair it as well. Commissioner Sweetser asked that as additive manufacturing and 3D printing is becoming ubiquitous in so many venues, if there is any thought of where this item would be classified in terms of the definitions. Mr. Panfil explained they are trying to catch everything under manufacturing, and with the information provided, see if the business would violate our standards of operation. Chairperson Ryan said that since we are allowing the discretion of the Director we don’t have to list it under each category. Commissioner Sweetser agreed and thought the discretion could be applied for technologies that don’t have to be limited to the I District. Mr. Panfil added we can look at the language but said this opens it up to a broader terminology. Since there is a limited amount of industrial zoning, we need to maintain a balance so that there are buildings available for businesses with traditional uses. Commissioner Burke questioned the servicing and renting of items manufactured in the I District. He asked if this is creating a retail function in industrial zoning. Mr. Panfil replied it is a valid concern and asked the Plan Commission about the wording. Chairperson Ryan asked Commissioner Burke if rental is necessary in the industrial district. Commissioner Burke questioned if this is broad enough and if there are visitors servicing and repairing, are we are exceeding the parking requirements. Mr. Panfil said the parking requirements would still need to be maintained or they can request a variance. Commissioner Burke wasn’t sure about the equipment rental in every industrial district. Chairperson Ryan summarized that the Plan Commission liked what Staff is proposing; it cleans up the zoning ordinance, and gives more discretion to the Director. The repair, rental and servicing feature needs to be examined before the wording is finalized and it can be voted on. Village of Lombard Page 6 Plan Commission Minutes November 18, 2013 Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 8:55 p.m. __________________________ Donald F. Ryan, Chairperson Lombard Plan Commission __________________________ William J. Heniff, Secretary Lombard Plan Commission Village of Lombard Page 7