Planning & Zoning Commission

110 SE Watula Avenue Ocala Ocala, FL 34471 Planning & Zoning Commission www.ocalafl.org Minutes Monday, October 10, 2022 5:30 PM 1. Call to Order a. Pledge of Allegiance b. Roll Call for Determination of a Quorum Present William Gilchrist Jr., Vice Chair Arthur "Rus" Adams, Richard "Andy" Kesselring, Chairperson Kevin Lopez, Brent Malever, and Allison Campbell Excused Todd Rudnianyn, and Branson Boone c. Agenda Notes: Chairman Lopez read the agenda notes into the record. 2. Proof of Publication It was acknowledged that a Public Meeting Notice was posted at City Hall (110 SE Watula Avenue, Ocala, Florida 34471) and published in the Ocala Star Banner on September 23, 2022. Attachments: Star Banner ad Hillpointe Ad 3. Consideration of Minutes September 12, 2022 Attachments: PZ Minutes 9-12-22 RESULT: APPROVED MOVER: Arthur "Rus" Adams SECONDER: Richard "Andy" Kesselring AYE: Gilchrist, Vice Chair Adams, Kesselring, Chairperson Lopez, and Malever EXCUSED: Rudnianyn, and Boone 4. Annexation/Land Use/Zoning a. ZON22-44951 Attachments: Memo Staff report Case map Aerial map Staff Report Page 1 of 9 Planning & Zoning Commission Minutes October 10, 2022 Ms. Miller displayed maps and photos of the property and adjacent properties to the audience while providing staff comments and the findings of fact. Discussion: Commissioner Malever asked if the Commission had any concerns regarding the M-2 rezoning request. Ms. Miller explained the differences between M-1 and M-2 zoning. The outdoor storage will be restricted to M-1 zoning. Chairman Lopez requested more information regarding the storage requirements for M-1 zoning. Ms. Miller responded the M-1 zoning allows only 30% of the gross floor area of the main building or structure, up to a maximum of 10,000 square feet. Commissioner Kesselring expressed concern limiting the storage to 30% of the gross floor area. Allison Campbell commented M-1 zoning requires the outdoor storage area to be screened from public view. Ms. Miller noted M-2 zoning requires a 25’ or 10’ buffer for outdoor storage. Chairman Lopez asked if the strip below needs to be changed to M-2 zoning. Ms. Miller responded the property line stops at that point. Growth Management Director Tye Chighizola commented the City recommends keeping the north 100-feet as M-1 zoning to provide a 25-foot landscape buffer or a 10-foot landscape buffer with a wall as required when industrial abuts residential. The plan is to use the M-2 zoning for outdoor storage and achieve a larger buffer for the open space requirement. Furthermore, the M-2 zoning will not be restricted to landscaping. Chairman Lopez asked where the entrance is located. Mr. Chighizola responded the site entrance will lineup with the entrance across the street. The outdoor storage will be addressed by City staff during the site plan process. There were no comments from the petitioner or the public. RESULT: APPROVED MOVER: William Gilchrist, Jr. SECONDER: Brent Malever AYE: Gilchrist, Vice Chair Adams, Kesselring, Chairperson Lopez, and Malever EXCUSED: Rudnianyn, and Boone b. CDA22-44965 Page 2 of 9 Planning & Zoning Commission Minutes October 10, 2022 Attachments: P&Z memo Case Map 163 Development Agreement (Hillpointe) Exhibit B - Conceptual Plan Letters of Objections from the September 12 meeting Mr. Chighizola explained that at the September 10th meeting, the Committee approved the annexation, land use, and zoning. These items were also discussed at the August 8th meeting but were tabled until the September meeting. The 163 Concurrency Development agreement was part of the rezoning process at the last meeting, but an official vote was not taken on the 163 Agreement because it requires two separate public hearings. However, because the staff did not advertise it as part of the September P & Z meeting, the staff decided to advertise it for the October 10th meeting. The second public hearing is with City Council on October 18th. This is the reason why you are seeing this agreement again. Plus, since this time the applicant has met with some of the surrounding residents to work out some of the issues that were discussed in the previous meetings. The staff has been working to address some of the issues too. A revised agreement has been given to each member. The changes included are a height requirement which will allow up to three stories for the apartments; second, no building would be closer than 100-feet from the west right-of-way; so, the houses across the street would have at least 100-feet, including the 50-feet buffer, between their houses and any apartment that the developer builds. Staff’s recommendation includes the restriction of no access and no entrance on SE 38th Street because of the configuration of the curve on SE 36th Avenue and SE 38th Street and the adjoining neighborhood across the street. There would be no benefit to having access to SE 38th Street. The main access would be off SE 31st Street on the eastern side of the property which can accommodate the capacity. The secondary access would be on SE 36th Avenue to drive traffic to the east property line. Also, the 50-foot buffer would be maintained along SE 36th Avenue to keep the canopy roadway. One other issue that we talked about during this process which relates to the canopy is the internal sidewalk connection; we expect kids to be able to walk in the community, most probably to/from bus stops on SE 31st Street and SE 36th Avenue. The internal sidewalk connection would come from the development. Also, the requirement is normally to have a sidewalk on the SE 36th Avenue side. Staff would like the ability to require the sidewalk and the applicant is fine with it, but we don’t want to disturb the 50-foot buffer and take down the trees. It would not be a safe situation to have the sidewalk right up against the road with the existing curving of this roadway. The sidewalk would have to go back further and that would put it into the buffer. The trade-off would be to try to maintain that buffer. Mr. Chighizola confirmed that all four items, the annexation, land use, zoning, and Chapter 163 agreement, will all go before City Council for a vote. In the past, the 163 agreements have not been heard before the P & Z board but in the future staff will bring all of them before the P & Z board for the first public hearing so a recommendation can be made. Discussion: Commissioner Adams said that in previous meetings the Board discussed doing a right Page 3 of 9 Planning & Zoning Commission Minutes October 10, 2022 in/right out on SE 36th Avenue lining up with SE 35th Street. He asked if this was considered and if it was something that should it be a part of this agreement. Or will it be handled in the design process? Mr. Chighizola responded this is something staff would have to look at when during the site plan process and the traffic study. He added it’s possible and if secondary access is put in, then some improvements will need to occur at SE 36th Avenue. Ms. Campbell commented without a turn lane on SE 36th Avenue; the traffic will back up immensely and it is already a congested intersection. She added that she can’t imagine what it will look like if people are trying to turn in as well. Mr. Chighizola explained if there is secondary access, then a left turn lane would have to be put in. If a right in/right out, then most likely they would not need it. The goal is for secondary access with the main access on SE 31st Street. Commissioner Gilchrist asked if the traffic study has already been done. Mr. Chighizola responded no. Commissioner Gilchrist replied there is a lot of traffic out there right now. Mr. Chighizola said one of the things they look at to determine if a traffic study is needed, is the existing land use and zoning. Under the existing land use and zoning of M-1 and B-2, there would most probably be more trips because of the way the sites would be developed. It is sort of a trade-off between the existing land use and zoning under Marion County versus the change to residential use. The staff mentioned in past hearings that M-1 and B-2 are not compatible at that intersection of the roadway. More trips would be allowed if it remained M-1 and the property could also be broken up into multiple parcels and then you would have a lot more trips coming out on SE 36th Avenue. The proposed development is a good thing. It keeps the buffer along SE 36th Avenue and limits access if the project is approved. Fred Roberts, 40 SE 11th Avenue, Ocala, FL, said this is still the same agreement that was presented last month when the project was presented in total. There were some changes based on feedback received at the September meeting and from the voluntary residential meeting. The changes include additional buffering to the south boundary; second, changing the language of the buffering to make it very clear that the 50-foot buffer is to be retained and that it’s intended to be a natural vegetative buffer along the west and south boundaries; third, a limitation to the height to make sure there is no confusion as to the density capacity; lastly, it includes additional setback language to make sure there is additional spatial attenuation between the single-family residences present to the west and the project even though it is being separated by the 50-feet buffering; just to create that one little additional element of space. In response to Mr. Malever’s question, the traffic methodology has been submitted and is pending review. Staff is probably holding the review pending the resolution of this process because if it is approved, then the traffic study will be going forward. If it’s not approved, then the traffic study will not be needed. Louise Petz, 2718 SE 30th Street, Ocala, FL, said she has been coming to Ocala since the 1990s and she moved here eight years ago. She has noticed a huge amount of people and development. When she looks at what’s on the agenda today, it looks like minestrone soup with everything thrown together for approval. She believes this area might have an Page 4 of 9 Planning & Zoning Commission Minutes October 10, 2022 existing Master Plan. Things are very different now and there is great growth coming in here, but it also means there is a great need that the growth we have to be appropriate. We need to ensure that the infrastructure works and that the school system can accommodate the children coming in because without schools you lose what makes people want to live here. I believe that I'm a little late because we hadn't followed up on how to keep track of what's happening in Planning and Zoning. She stated her concern over the ad-hoc developments such as Lake Louise because of the amount of traffic and infrastructure changes and State Road 200 which used to be a 2-lane road but now the traffic competes with I-75. She quoted and expounded on something Mr. Roberts said at the last meeting; He said, “It may not be the job of the developer to fix what is already broken.” She added to the quote, “but it is certainly the responsibility of the Planning & Zoning Commission to make sure the developer is not allowed to make anything worse.” Justin Cavalier, 3550 SE 38th Street, Ocala, FL, said his parcel is to the south and two units over to the west of the property in question. A lot of his concern comes from the fact that in addition to this parcel, which is proposing to add 300 plus units, the 17-acre parcel immediately to the east is about to break ground on town homes bringing more bodies into this area. He added that he is extremely happy to see the contingencies one through seven that have been placed in the agreement but is worried about traffic because his daughter will be driving in five months. It is already hazardous to pull out of his front yard in the mornings and during rush hour in the afternoons. He is greatly concerned that the addition of not only these 300 plus units plus the 17-acres will interject thousands of people into this area. The traffic study being proposed is great, but we are moving ahead with approval without considering the ramifications. There is just a zebra lane that brings the traffic from SE 38th Street to join up with SE 36th Avenue. Then you can either go north or continue east on SE 38th Street. You are looking at big trouble here when you start putting this many bodies in here without thinking about the traffic. He expressed concerns about who’s responsible for the roads because they are shared by the City and the County. He asked who is responsible for that stop sign right there and who will make sure that my daughter is not going to be t-boned coming out of my driveway in the morning. This is becoming a city matter and he doesn’t have any representation from a Council Member because he lives in Marion County. He questioned the mix of units and asked if they were three-twos and asked how many people are going to be living there because even though it is no more than 324 units, they could be drawing a lot of people into these units. He said he understands growth is a necessity in the City and County since we are the 4th largest growing community in the county. He also understands the need for people to have homes because he’s a real estate agent. He stated his biggest concern was that we have not come anywhere near addressing what needs to happen from an infrastructure standpoint. He asked what effect the injection of this number of families is going to bring to Forest High School; to the traffic in the area, and the all-around safety of the development. He added that he does believe there is a school bus stop on SE 35th Street but it may have been moved. His family has lived at this location for 42 years and there has been for many years a school bus stop at SE 35th Street and that’s very near where the proposed entrance on SE 36th Avenue will be. And even though we’re saying an entrance is not going to be allowed on SE 38th Street there’s still going to be tons of traffic injected into that area and it’s going to cause real problems on a couple of two-lane roads. He asked the Board to think about the safety of the citizens as Page 5 of 9 Planning & Zoning Commission Minutes October 10, 2022 they make their decision. Fred Massa, 2806 SE 30th Street, Ocala, FL, said he lives in Devonshire, and his grandson attends Forest High School, and he is turning 16 next year and he will be part of all the traffic that’s being added onto the roads. He stated he believes that it is backward to approve this proposal before completing the traffic study. If you’re going to do this and add 300 plus people and cars to the area, then you probably ought to have the traffic study done first and present it to the Board; then decide about the agreement. He added he moved here from Nashville, TN and the two things you hear about this place are it's a great place to visit and the traffic is horrible. The reason the traffic’s terrible is that the Planning board did it backward, they approved the plan and did the traffic study next. It's almost backward to not understand how the traffic patterns are going to be especially with the intersection up there and the addition of all those people on our roads. He added in closing that he is not against it, he is for it but believes that we need to know what we’re getting into before approving it. Joseph Flood, 2718 SE 30th Street, Ocala, FL, said this area is so pristine and such a nice area. He doesn’t know why somebody had to come up with an idea to develop the site and create problems with traffic. The speed limit has already been increased by 5 miles per hour and now with new development, they’re going to lower the speed limit. The roads can be dangerous. There were two accidents within a year at the red light on SE 36th Avenue in broad daylight. There have been two fatalities; one in November and another just a couple of weeks ago. This development is putting an increased burden on the police, the fire department, and the schools. And it’s going to increase the traffic in the area. We just want to have a nice community. He finished by saying that he just wants people to think because this is Ocala and we’re growing but this is not necessary. It doesn’t fit into this area; we have single-family homes from front to back. It just seems like when there is a nice area to build; a company comes in to develop the land. We already have traffic problems as it is. We don’t need this in our backyard. Fred Roberts, 40 SE 11th Avenue, Ocala, FL, said this is a unique project proposed under the zoning classification with a Chapter 163 agreement which requires the developer to assume a higher burden than is normal in these cases. This property is changing from an industrial use to residential which is a downward deviation on the traffic impacts which should not be taken lightly. It also puts the property in the jurisdiction of the City of Ocala and the care, custody, and control of our staff and our code to establish the appropriate protocols and safeguards in connection with the development of the site. The Chapter 163 agreement establishes these additional criteria for the site; not limited to the requirement for offsite improvements which are to be completed by the developer if necessitated by the traffic study. The developer anticipates having to make these improvements and is willing to do them. The traffic study will determine those improvements and the City will have the authority to approve the methodology and to approve the traffic study. Regarding the concerns regarding SE 38th Street, there will be no vehicular access point on this street because it is limited by the development agreement. It cannot occur without the developer going back through the entire process; this is a strict limitation. Relating to the area, we agree it is a wonderful area that’s why the developer intends to develop on this site. From the perspective of Page 6 of 9 Planning & Zoning Commission Minutes October 10, 2022 what is currently permitted versus what is proposed, it is much more appropriate to put residential in a residential area instead of industrial or commercial uses smack dab in the middle of the single-family and multi-family residential uses that are currently in the area. Lastly, the recommendation of approval relating to the zoning occurred at the last meeting; this is now the development agreement which is the overarching safeguard in connection with the rezoning. Without this agreement, the rezoning is less limited which would allow for a much higher unit count; a strict code requirement related to the traffic study with only proportion share payments instead of off-site improvements. We are excited to bring this back to demonstrate that we keep our word and do what’s promised. Commissioner Kesselring said he abstained from voting because even though he is not directly involved in this project; he is involved with the applicant on another project. Commissioner Gilchrist restated the 163 agreement is going above and beyond what normally occurs. It ties the developer to a lot of things that they wouldn’t normally have to go through before getting final approval from City Council. Mr. Chighizola confirmed the annexation, land use, zoning, and Chapter 163 agreement would go to City Council for final approval. Commissioner Adams restated his request that staff pursues the right in/right out on SE 36th Avenue to limit the access and the impact of the traffic. Mr. Chighizola responded this is one of the things staff can look at. He added the traffic engineer will always look at how to disburse the traffic and they will also look at disbursing traffic on SE 36th Avenue, SE 31st Street, and SE 38th Street. But we specifically don’t want to do that; we don’t want to drive traffic to SE 38th Street and SE 36th Avenue. As much as possible, we will control that through the right in/right out, restrictions, or possibly gating the SE 36th Avenue entrance. Something will be done to restrict the access there so traffic is driven to SE 31st Street. And with those parameters in place, we can see how the traffic will flow. The traffic study and this agreement are not for capacity purposes because there is capacity on the roadway. This study is to determine how the roadway is going to function with the driveways and how the intersection would work; like the Haselden property at SE 25th Avenue. Commissioner Malever asked if it doesn't work after the improvements are built, must the City pay for the roads. Mr. Chighizola explained the City maintains SE 31st Street and SE 36th Avenue is shared but the developer might pay for some of the roads. Commissioner Malever said who is going to pay in the future. Mr. Chighizola said that the City and County would share the expenses. RESULT: APPROVED MOVER: William Gilchrist, Jr. SECONDER: Arthur "Rus" Adams AYE: Gilchrist, Vice Chair Adams, Chairperson Lopez, and Malever ABSTAIN: Kesselring EXCUSED: Rudnianyn, and Boone Page 7 of 9 Planning & Zoning Commission Minutes October 10, 2022 c. ANX22-44952 Attachments: Memo Staff report Case map Aerial map Ms. Govindaraju displayed maps and photos of the property and adjacent properties to the audience while providing staff comments and the findings of fact. Discussion: Chairman Lopez asked how the property is contiguous with City limits. Ms. Govindaraju responded the property is in an enclave surrounded by City properties. Commissioner Adams questioned if the remaining properties located on 49th Avenue would still be considered County properties. Ms. Govindaraju responded the remaining properties will be landlocked after the annexation. Furthermore, emergency services can access the landlocked properties through the property owned by the common owner. Planning Director Patricia Hitchcock commented annexation does not change access for the remaining County properties. The request before the Commission is considered a voluntary annexation, and the property owners of the remaining County parcels can submit an application for voluntary annexation. Furthermore, the City and County can execute an Interlocal Agreement for enclaves less than 110-acres; or pass a local Bill/referendum. Commissioner Adams commented enclave property owners would contact Marion County for development projects. Ms. Hitchcock noted enclave property owners would contact the City to access City utilities (sewer and water). Ms. Hitchcock advised the petitioner was unable to attend due to a prior commitment. There were no comments from the petitioner or the public. RESULT: APPROVED MOVER: Arthur "Rus" Adams SECONDER: Richard "Andy" Kesselring AYE: Gilchrist, Vice Chair Adams, Kesselring, Chairperson Lopez, and Malever EXCUSED: Rudnianyn, and Boone d. LUC22-44953 Attachments: Memo Staff report Case map Aerial map Ms. Govindaraju displayed maps and photos of the property and adjacent properties to Page 8 of 9 Planning & Zoning Commission Minutes October 10, 2022 the audience while providing staff comments and the findings of fact. Discussion: Chairman Lopez asked how the property is contiguous with City limits. Ms. Govindaraju responded the property is in an enclave surrounded by City properties. Commissioner Adams questioned if the remaining properties located on 49th Avenue would still be considered County properties. Ms. Govindaraju responded the remaining properties will be landlocked after the annexation. Furthermore, emergency services can access the landlocked properties through the property owned by the common owner. Planning Director Patricia Hitchcock commented annexation does not change access for the remaining County properties. The request before the Commission is considered a voluntary annexation, and the property owners of the remaining County parcels can submit an application for voluntary annexation. Furthermore, the City and County can execute an Interlocal Agreement for enclaves less than 110-acres; or pass a local Bill/referendum. Commissioner Adams commented enclave property owners would contact Marion County for development projects. Ms. Hitchcock noted enclave property owners would contact the City to access City utilities (sewer and water). Ms. Hitchcock advised the petitioner was unable to attend due to a prior commitment. There were no comments from the petitioner or the public. RESULT: APPROVED MOVER: Richard "Andy" Kesselring SECONDER: William Gilchrist, Jr. AYE: Gilchrist, Vice Chair Adams, Kesselring, Chairperson Lopez, and Malever EXCUSED: Rudnianyn, and Boone 5. Next meeting: November 14, 2022 at 5:30 pm 6. Adjournment Chairman Lopez adjourned the meeting at 6:29 pm. Page 9 of 9