Planning Commission

Russellville Planning Commission Minutes March 23, 2015, @ 5:30 p.m. The Russellville Planning Commission held its regular meeting on Monday, March 23, 2015 at 5:30 p.m. in the Russellville City Hall Council Chambers. Members Present Chairman Dennis Boyd Jimmy Sims Vice-Chair Doug Skelton Wendell Miller Secretary Eric Westcott Herschell Hargus Todd Meimerstorf Peggy Stratton Council Liaison Bill Eaton Members Absent Mike Wilkins Also present:, Mayor Randy Horton, City Planner David Harris, City Attorney Trey Smith, City Engineer Kurt Jones, Fire Marshal Richard Setian, City Inspector Brian Holstein, Planning Assistant Lequitta Jones, Jim Lynch/City Corp, Mark & Leslie Holloway, Leon Anderson, and Abdolreza Ahrable. Welcome The First Order of Business was a request to review and approve minutes from the March 2, 2015 meeting, which was rescheduled from the regularly scheduled February 23rd meeting due to inclement weather. Commissioner Skelton made the motion to approve the minutes as written. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Meimerstorf and passed unanimously. The Second Order of Business was a request to review and approve Large Scale Development plans for a proposed Holiday Inn Express, to be located on Lot 2 of R & C Commercial Park on Reasoner Lane. Submitted by Justin Magie, P.E. (DV.15.03.136) City Planner Harris said he had no concerns and that the Planning Department had received no communications from adjoining property owners or citizens. Mr. Harris said the proposed hotel seemed reasonable for this property considering the proximity of the site to Exit 81 and the nature of existing uses on surrounding properties. City Engineer Jones said he had reviewed the proposed plan and noted no engineering issues. A preliminary drainage report with detention calculations was submitted as requested; however, that plan will have to be finalized and approved prior to issuing a building permit. Chairman Boyd asked the commission if they had any comments or questions. None were offered. Commissioner Hargus made the motion to approve the request as submitted. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Skelton and passed unanimously. The Third Order of Business was a Public Hearing for review and recommendation of approval to City Council for a Special Use Permit to allow a billboard sign for property at the intersection I-40 and Aspen Lane. Submitted by Gregg Long of Crafton Tull on behalf of Rajesh Mehta/Russellville Properties, LLC. (SP.15.03.128) City Planner Harris said the proposed location for the billboard is along the south edge of the site close to the exit ramp. A billboard at this location should not impact anyone in the surrounding area since there are mostly road service commercial uses on adjacent properties with very few residential uses nearby. However, he pointed out one minor glitch. When first submitted, the subdivision plat showed two big lots with a very small third lot for the billboard. At some point the applicants eliminated that lot, possibly because they anticipated problems due to its lack of public access. However, our code requires that a billboard be principal use on a separate lot so a third small lot will have to be created for the billboard. The commissioners can recommend approval of the Special Use Permit if that is their desire and include the condition that the applicants have to address the subdivision requirement prior to erection of the sign. The chairman noted that this was a Public Hearing and asked if anyone from the public had any comments. No public comments were offered. Chairman Boyd asked if the lot had to have public access. City Planner Harris said Public Works Director Jones could not administratively approve a subdivision that created a lot with no access, but he believed the commission could if they directed the subdivider to place a note on the plat that the lot would be used only for a billboard. That seems a safe action because the lot will be too small for anything else anyway. The only alternative would be to create a flag lot to give the billboard lot a connection to the public street, but that seems like creating an awkward and complicated arrangement of lots on the property just to satisfy a technicality. Commissioner Sims asked if the Arkansas Highway Transportation Department (AHTD) had to approve the billboard. Planner Harris said they will have to comply with all City regulations and with AHTD’s requirements regarding separation from other billboards. Mr. Gregg Long of Crafton Tull, on behalf of owner, said the AHTD application is on hold pending the decision of this commission. AHTD will only give final approval after approval of the Special Use Permit. He said that they have no issues other than getting it approved. As to the platting of the third lot, he said they had no issue with that. The only thing is to work out the access. If we put in a street all the way down to the sign and dedicate it for public use, then it becomes a city street. We will do whatever we need to do to address that issue. Mr. Long said there will be a joint access easement down the property line because of the related nature of the two proposed businesses. 2 Commissioner Sims made the motion to approve the Special Use Permit as requested. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Meimerstorf and passed unanimously. The Fourth Order of Business was a Public Hearing requesting review and a recommendation of approval to the City Council for a Special Use Permit to allow a Machine Shop, for property at 508 North El Paso. Submitted by Mark D. Holloway. (SP.15.03.129) City Planner Harris said the applicant is proposing to do small-scale machine work in an existing building in a C-2 zone. A big portion of the subject property is in the floodplain and a fair amount is in the floodway. Mr. Holloway is going to improve the property by paving the driveways and a substantial portion of the parking lot. That will reduce or stop mud and gravel migrating into the city street. The machining work will be carried on entirely inside the building. There will be no exterior changes to the structure. The machining work is small-scale and the machinery is not suitable for working with large heavy materials. This is not an industrial use. Mr. Holloway said his business was not large production or large parts. He said he was the only employee with the exception of his son occasionally helping out temporarily. Commissioner Stratton asked if there would be outside storage. Mr. Holloway said none at all and no trailers. Mr. Holloway said he had no walk-in traffic. Mr. Holloway said the reason for using this building is to establish his own shop and reduce the amount of work he now has to do at the customer's shop. He said he would like to be able to perform the work at his own shop. Commissioner Westcott asked if there will be any large truck deliveries to the site. Mr. Holloway said there would be no deliveries other than UPS. Commissioner Hargus said his concern is the potential expansion and how that might interfere with the recent beautification of El Paso. Mr. Holloway said he would not expand the building. Chairman Boyd asked Mr. Harris if he had received an input from any of the surrounding owners. Mr. Harris said “no.” Commissioner Skelton asked Mr. Holloway to describe the equipment that he would use. Mr. Holloway said all the equipment that he plans to use is already there. He stated that he had owned the equipment for close to 15 years. Mr. Skelton asked if he planned to expand the number of machines in the shop. Mr. Holloway said he might add a grinder, but it would not be a big piece of equipment that would require a forklift for installation or that a big delivery truck is going to have to bring to me. All the work I do is a very small-scale. City Planner Harris then passed around a box containing several small items that Mr. Holloway said were representative of the type work he would be doing. Commissioner Meimerstorf asked Mr. Holloway if the building would continue to be used as a storage facility. Mr. Holloway said yes, there are three buildings other than the main building that are used for storage. As the front buildings are coming open I am not re-renting them. I want to do a facelift on the front of that building, but I can’t do anything while people have it rented. 3 Commissioner Miller asked Mr. Holloway to explain what he meant by 'facelift.' Mr. Holloway said that when the current renters were gone he intended to get rid of the doors on the front of the building and replace the siding. Commissioner Stratton said the concern of the commission is that a lot of money was spent on El Paso to make it attractive and we want whatever is done to add to the beauty of the street. Mr. Holloway said he would not do anything - landscaping, paving, etc - without getting Kurt Jones' approval first. Mr. Holloway said he had talked to Mr. Jones about extending the aprons. Liaison Eaton asked if there was a request made along with that to make that a hard surface area or to leave it gravel. City Planner Harris said Mr. Holloway had indicated that he was going to pave additional parts of the aprons and the parking areas. City Engineer Jones said this request is for a Special Permit Use, so the City could require improvements that would minimize mud and gravel migration onto the street and bicycle path. Mr. Holloway agreed to extend those aprons and provide more hard-surface to minimize tracking into the street. Mr. Jones pointed out that Mr. Holloway cannot expand the building without a building permit, and he can’t get a building permit because the structure is in a floodway. The existing building is grandfathered, but any major expansion to the building would trigger a building permit requirement which wouldn’t be allowed. Commissioner Stratton asked if we give someone this Special Use, is it only for the applicant, or would it convey to the new owners if the property were sold. City Planner Harris said change of ownership would not negate the Special Use Permit, but that any restrictions that were part of the SP would remain in effect and the new owner could not expand without commission approval. Commissioner Stratton asked how the City could get rid of a Special Use Permit. City Planner Harris said if the Special Permit Use stops for one year, or is replaced by a Permitted Use for any length of time, then the Special Use Permit for the fabricating shop would no longer be valid. Commissioner Skelton asked if Mr. Holloway sold the building and business what would prevent the buyer from putting in a large-scale machine/fabricating shop. City Planner Harris said significant expansion of the shop or machines would technically require review and approval by the commission. It might be possible to move in machines without detection and significantly change the operation without approval, but it would not be legal. Chairman Boyd said the applicant is not requesting permission to operate a business not permitted by the Zoning Code. This property is zoned C-2, which specifically allows a machine shop as a Special Use Permit. Chairman Boyd said this request certainly seems in line with the intent of the zoning code. The chairman noted that this was a Public Hearing and asked if anyone from the public had any comments. Mr. Leon Anderson said he represents the property to the south of the subject property. Mr. Anderson said when you hear machine shops you think of everything in the world. They do a lot of work with metal. Mr. Anderson said in looking at the situation and looking at 4 what we plan for the future of that area of North El Paso, machine shops seem to raise a red flag. Mr. Anderson said the commission is addressing it correctly by requiring all activity to be inside. Commissioner Hargus made the motion to approve this Special Use Permit, subject to 1) extension of the apron with a hard surface, 2) no expansion of the building, 3) all work is to take place inside the building, and 4) no outside storage of materials. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Westcott. The motion was approved unanimously. Meeting Adjourned. ___________________________________________________ Chairman Dennis Boyd 5