Planning Commission

City of Petersburg Planning Commission Meeting Minutes January 2, 2025 Members Present: Mr. Fenton Bland Mr. Al Cannon, Vice-Chair Dr. Dianne Harley Ms. Kirsten Katzenbach Mr. Tony McDaniel Dr. James Norman Mr. Aku Reinhardt Members Absent: Mr. Marshall Ford, Chair Mr. Thomas Hairston 1. Call to Order: The City of Petersburg Planning Commission meeting held on Thursday, January 2, 2025, was called to order by Jared Crews at 6:10 p.m. A roll call was completed by Ms. Michelle Murrills. 2. Roll Call A quorum was established by Ms. Murrills. Others Present: Jared Crews, Maxwell Gorman, and Tyler Jackson, City Planning Staff and Ms. Michelle Murrills, Planning Commission Secretary 3. Adoption of the Agenda: Vice-Chair Cannon called for any changes to the agenda. Commissioner Bland moved to approve the agenda as presented and Commissioner Katzenbach seconded the motion, which passed unanimously. 4. Consent Agenda: Commissioner Bland motioned to approve the consent agenda which included the December 5, 2024 meeting minutes and the fourth quarter attendance report for 2024. Commissioner McDaniel seconded the motion which passed unanimously. 5. Public Comment Vice-Chair Cannon opened the floor for public comment. No public comments were received. 6. Public Hearings: a. 2024-RSUP-02: Consideration of a resolution recommending revocation of special use permit granted to Michael and Nina Stanley for a vehicle rental business, auto body, and vehicle repair shop at 1036 West Washington Street, Parcel ID 024270001 in the B-2, General Commercial District for failure to comply with conditions of approval. Mr. Crews gave the Commission an overview of the request by Planning staff to revoke the special use permit granted to Michael and Nina Stanley for 1036 West Washington Street in 2012. Mr. Crews stated the permit was approved subject to nine conditions and the property was currently in violation of at least three of those conditions. Mr. Crews stated cars have been stored on the property for periods exceeding three days, car parts and tires have been stored outdoors, and the property owner has failed to maintain an active business licenses; City staff were seeking to revoke the special use permit after sending multiple notices of violation to the property owner. Mr. Crews noted that the property owner had made some improvements to the property, including removing cars and materials stored outdoors over the last month following the public hearing on the adjoining property at 1024 West Washington Street and the Planning Commission’s recommendation to revoke the permit granted for that property. Mr. Crews stated Planning staff recommended revocation of the permit. Maxwell Gorman, City Zoning Administrator was present and asked by the Planning Commission to provide his perspective on the case. Mr. Gorman stated there had been some visible improvement to the property but that there are still inoperable vehicles on site as well as outdoor material storage. Mr. Gorman stated he has had ongoing violation cases for the property since the summer, but there is substantial evidence that the issues on the site have existed for years. Michael Stanley, 1036 West Washington Street, spoke to the Planning Commission and stated the property has been largely cleaned up, but one vehicle has been left in the lot to discourage cars from cutting across. Mr. Stanley stated another truck and a large quantity of tires had been removed from the site. Mr. Stanley stated that he has had a valid business license for the property for months. Michelle Murrills, 131 South Market Street, stated that she has complained to the City multiple times a year about the condition of the property. Ms. Murrills stated there is also a risk of the property returning to an unacceptable condition even if the permit remains active and the property is temporarily cleaned up.  Commissioner Reinhardt made a motion to recommend City Council revoke the special use permit for failure to comply with the conditions of approval. Commissioner Katzenbach seconded the motion, which passed 4-3 (Aye – Vice-Chair Cannon and Commissioners Katzenbach, Norman, and Reinhardt; Nay - Commissioners Harley, McDaniel, and Bland). b. 2024-ZTA-09: Consideration of a resolution recommending approval of an amendment to the Zoning Ordinance of the City of Petersburg pertaining to short-term rental uses in the City. Mr. Crews presented an overview of the proposed text amendment. Mr. Crews stated Planning staff had been working with the Commission since the summer on drafting the text language. A public hearing was held in October where the Planning Commission had requested some changes to the language to relax some of the proposed regulations for individuals who are already operating short-term rentals in the City. Mr. Crews explained a new public hearing was being held on the updated version of the amendment. Mr. Crews stated short-term rental is not currently a permitted use in the City and the goal of the text amendment would be to define and permit the use along with introducing regulations. The drafted text would allow short-term rental in the higher density residential and mixed-use zoning districts as well as in the commercial districts which allow residential uses. A special use permit would be required for short-term rental of a property not occupied by the owner as their primary residence. Short-term rental of apartment units would be limited. Mr. Crews explained the text amendment would create a registry of short-term rental properties where rental operators would register annually and ensure that rental units met all appropriate standards. Mr. Crews provided an overview of the regulations that would apply to short-term rentals and noted registration could be revoked for failure to meet these standards. Mr. Crews stated Planning staff recommended approval of the ordinance as drafted since it represented the coordination with the Planning Commission over the last six months. Mr. Crews stated one written public comment had been received urging the Planning Commission not to place restrictions on short-term rental properties. Mr. Crews noted that without an ordinance permitting and regulating short-term rental, the use would not be allowed in the City. The Planning Commission discussed the collection of taxes on short-term rental properties and how the City is currently not receiving taxes from all rentals. Joe Battiston, 1 North Sycamore Street, stated he owned and operated several short- term rental units in the City and had been involved with the ongoing Planning  Commission discussions on short-term rental regulations. Mr. Battiston stated he pays taxes to Airbnb and those taxes are provided to the State, but they are only provided to a locality upon request. Joel Erb 416 High Street, stated he owns a short-term rental unit with an English basement unit which is one of only three accessible short-term rental units in Petersburg. Mr. Erb stated the Commission should consider accessibility when considering regulations that would limit the number of units in a single home. Mr. Erb shared concerns over regulations on short-term rentals potentially having a negative impact on tourism to the City. Mr. Erb stated that studies have shown that short-term rental has not had an impact on availability of housing. Diane Curling, 116 Liberty Street, stated she would like the Commission to cap the number of short-term rentals in the City so that neighborhoods would retain residential character. Ms. Curling also requested the Planning Commission require that units could only be rented out if the property owner lived in the home full-time. Commissioner Katzenbach made a motion to table the proposed text amendment so a sub-committee could be appointed to review the text language more thoroughly before a recommendation is made to City Council. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Reinhardt and passed unanimously. 7. Old Business a. 2024-REZ-03: Consideration of a resolution recommending approval of a request by Virginia Electric & Power Co. DBA Dominion Energy to rezone with proffers property at 3345, 3339, and 3311 West Washington Street, Parcel IDs 027010001, 027010003, and 027010004, from the R-2 Single-Family Residence and B-2 General Commercial Districts to the M-1 Light Industrial District. Mr. Crews presented the Commission with updated proffers and an updated concept plan from the applicant. Mr. Crews explained the applicant had updated these items to address staff and Commission concerns with the project’s location in an area identified as Corridor Commercial located in a gateway to the City. Mr. Crews reminded the Commission that the request was to rezone the property to the M-1 District to allow for the expansion of the existing Dominion Power Storage facilities at 33 Rawlings Lane. The updated request was accompanied by 11 proffers, including the provision of a 30-foot buffer along West Washington Street with landscaping improvements, provision of ornamental fencing along the perimeter of the storage area, lighting and sidewalk improvements along West Washington Street, the dedication of an easement for public art or gateway signage along West Washington Street, provision of signage in accordance with the Zoning Ordinance, provision of a stormwater  management plan with stormwater facilities owned and maintained by the applicant, and conformance with the aforementioned proffers and the updated concept plan. Mr. Crews stated that Planning staff still recommended denial of the request since a gravel storage yard would not be an appropriate use of this land based on the guidance of the Comprehensive Plan, but noted that the updated proffers and concept plan were significantly more representative of the principles of the Comprehensive Plan. Derrick Johnson, Timmons Group, spoke on behalf of the applicant. Mr. Johnson stated the redevelopment of the property would increase tax revenue to the City and that the proffers had been updated with the enhanced buffer and public art easement to account for the property’s location in a gateway area. Mr. Johnson stated that Dominion intended to use the property for this purpose and would not be interested in any commercial development of the site. The Commission discussed the updated proffers and whether the proposed storage yard would generate significant revenue through machine and tools taxes. Mr. Crews said he did not have that information, but could coordinate with the City Commissioner of revenue to try to get an answer. Commissioner Bland made a motion to recommend approval of the rezoning subject to the proffers as presented along with a request for staff to provide City Council with information on how the property would be taxed and how much revenue might be anticipated. Commissioner Reinhardt seconded the motion, which passed 6-1 (Aye – Vice-Chair Cannon and Commissioners Bland, Harley, Katzenbach, McDaniel, and Reinhardt; Nay - Commissioner Norman). b. 2024-SUP-02: Consideration of a resolution recommending approval of a request by Fortune Founders LLC for a special use permit for multiple-family dwellings as authorized and controlled by the R-5 Multiple Dwelling District Standards at 25 South Crater Road, Parcel ID 012260023, in the B-2, General Commercial District. Mr. Crews stated the Planning Commission had tabled action on this request at the December 5, 2024 meeting and asked that the applicant attend this meeting to provide additional information on the request. Mr. Crews presented the conditions that staff drafted and reminded the Commission that staff was making a recommendation of approval of the request with the conditions as drafted. Mr. Crews explained that the conditions had been drafted to require that all site improvements be made before any residents could occupy the property. Mr. Crews stated the applicant had requested changes to the conditions requiring rooms to be furnished, requiring security at all times, and requiring two electric vehicle charging stations. Mr. Crews noted the applicant was in attendance.  Roy Ahluwalia, Fortune Founders, LLC, presented the Commission with an overview of the plans for the property as well as information on the applicant’s similar projects in Chesapeake and Newport News Virginia. Mr. Ahluwalia stated the residents on the property would most likely be on a fixed income. Mr. Ahluwalia asked that the Commission consider relaxing some of the proposed conditions to only require security during nighttime hours, to only require 10 percent of rooms be furnished, and to only require one electric vehicle charging station. Mr. Ahluwalia stated they would be able to meet the other drafted conditions including the improvements to the site, the provision of greenspace and amenities for residents, and improvements to the street frontage. The Commission discussed the current condition of the site and the scale of the improvements needed. Several Commissioners stated they would prefer to see renderings showing the proposed improvements to the property rather than relying on written descriptions. Mr. Crews stated plans would be reviewed administratively for some of the improvements, but the Commission had the option to amend the drafted conditions if desired. Commissioner Bland made a motion to recommend approval of the special use permit subject to the 11 conditions drafted by Planning staff. Commissioner Norman seconded the motion, which passed 4-2 (Aye –Commissioners Bland, Harley, McDaniel and Norman; Nay – Vice-Chair Cannon and Commissioner Katzenbach; Commissioner Reinhardt abstained from the vote). 8. NEW BUSINESS There was no new business discussed. 9. SECRETARY/CITY STAFF REPORTS Mr. Crews stated that Planning staff were looking into compensation for the Planning Commissioners. Mr. Crews noted this would have to be budgeted for, but staff were hoping to implement compensation in the summer. Mr. Crews noted the Planning Commissioner training class in January had filled up, but that those who had already reached out had been signed up in time. Mr. Crews noted City staff were also coordinating with the Regional Planning Organization to try to hold a local training sessions in addition to the classes offered through Virginia Commonwealth University. 10. ANNOUNCEMENTS/COMMISSIONER REPORTS Vice-Chair Cannon reminded the Commissioners that they should be reviewing agenda packets prior to meetings so that they’re familiar with the agenda items.