City Council Regular Meeting

City of Star Meeting Minutes January 2, 2007 The regular meeting of the Star City Council was called to order at 7:00 pm at the Star Fire Station. Mayor Nathan Mitchell called the meeting to order and all stood for the Pledge of Allegiance. Roll Call: Council persons Tammy McDaniel, Tom Erlebach and Chad Bell were all present; Councilman Dustin Christopherson was absent. Approval of the Agenda: Bell moved to amend the agenda changing New Business to #6 and adding B. Architect Contract and moving Public Hearings to the 7th position, Erlebach seconded the motion. All aye: motion carried. The Mayor announced that the Hidden Meadows annexation will be tabled to February 6, 2007. Consent Agenda: Bell moved to approve the Consent Agenda, McDaniel seconded the motion. The Consent Agenda consisted of Approval of December 5, 2005 Regular Meeting Minutes, Claims Against the City for December 2006, Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law for Capital Development Annexation, Zoning, Comprehensive Plan and Preliminary Plat and PUD for Hunter’s Creek Subdivision. All aye: motion carried. Public Input: No public input was given. New Business: Addendum to Joint Fire District Agreement – The Mayor explained that this addendum defined the time frame of payments. McDaniel moved to approve the addendum and have the Mayor sign the document, Erlebach seconded the motion. Roll Call: McDaniel, Erlebach and Bell – all aye: motion carried. Architect Contract – A new contract for the Architect was put in front of the City Council for the new City Hall. Their original design came in over budget and had to be redrawn. Bell moved to approve the contract to do construction drawings for the new City Hall, McDaniel seconded the motion. Architect Tad Jones stated that anything added to the upper floor would be an extra cost. They can have drawings by February 15. The contract is a set figure of $10,000. Bell amended the motion to state that the contract will be for $10,000, McDaniel seconded the amendment. Roll Call: McDaniel, Erlebach and Bell - all aye: motion carried. Public Hearings: Rockbridge Crossing: The Mayor reviewed the public hearing procedures; then declared the public hearing open and asked the applicant to speak. 1 Kevin McCarthy, Toothman-Orton Engineering, represented Rockbridge Crossing. McCarthy stated that this was originally approved as three lots and they are now asking for approval of eight commercial units so they can sell them. The ingress and egress to these buildings was a concern; McCarthy explained the flow of traffic. The final plat will reflect joint parking. Erlebach asked where the six foot buffer on the north boundary between residential and commercial was. The north property is mixed use and residential use. McCarthy stated that if that is a requirement he would like to have that condition removed if possible. McDaniel stated that it seems like a short distance to have a berm. Erlebach asked if the property has a level elevation. Bell stated that there are buildings on the property now. Bell asked if there is a fence there now. McCarthy stated that there is a fence between them and the Steven Springs lot. Rockbridge Crossing does not have their own fence. Erlebach stated that he is okay with building a block wall. The Mayor stated that any noise affect can be controlled by a conditional use permit. The Council has already placed conditions on this property. Erlebach asked if CC&R’s have already been approved for this or will it be separate for each commercial lot. Legal Counsel, Paul Fitzer stated that he had reviewed the CC&R’s and they would be for the entire application. Public Testimony – No public testimony given. Bell stated that an agreement needs to be worked out for the one lot at Steven Springs. A suggested buffer would be trees being planted. Erlebach asked if the CC&R’s will need to be modified. Bell asked that the landscape plan be approved at Council level. The Mayor closed the public hearing and moved to deliberations. Bell has no problem with this going to eight lots, but wants to add a condition that the landscape plan come before the Council. Bell moved to approve File #SP-PP-FP-06-01combined preliminary and final plats of Rockbridge Crossing with the stated 13 conditions of approval adding the 14 - having the landscape plan come before the Council before occupancy permits are issued. McDaniel seconded the motion. All aye: motion carried. Hidden Meadows Annexation/Zoning and Preliminary Plat – The Mayor stated that this would be tabled to February 6, 2007. McDaniel moved to table Hidden Meadows Annexation/Zoning and Preliminary Plat to February 6, 2007, Erlebach seconded the motion. All aye: motion carried. 2 Plummer Subdivision Condo Plat – The Mayor declared the public hearing open and asked the applicant to speak. Tim Petche of Advanced Properties stated that he was one of the people that built this building and would now like to have a condo plat applied so they are able to sell the individual buildings. Public testimony – No public testimony was given. The Mayor declared the public hearing closed and moved to deliberations. Bell moved to approve the condo plat for the Plummer Subdivision with the seven conditions of approval, Erlebach seconded the motion. All aye: motion carried. Foothill Crossing Annexation/Zone/Preliminary Plat – The Mayor opened the public hearing. Ken Firmage, Foothill Capital Group - Firmage presented a slide show to the Council. Firmage stated that the Foothill Capital Group is not a big development group with lots of money. They are a small local group. Firmage reviewed the slide show. The subdivision will dedicate 55 acres or 1/3 of the subdivision to open space. Each of the home phases will have it’s own park. The development includes water amenities, a ten acre dedicated school site, a large community park with a clubhouse and two swimming pools as well as tennis and basketball courts with year round access. There are large landscaped buffers around the parameter. There will be collector streets with traffic roundabouts, pedestrian and equestrian trails and a new east/west connection off of Foot- hill Road. They have a farmers market area, town homes, loft condos, single family homes and an amphitheater for outdoor plays and other community events. They have already been approached by the group in Garden Valley to have their plays here. They have already agreed to donate a ten acre elementary school site. The school district w will allow the community to use the facilities with lockdown points. The subdivision has a retail area to include daycare, professional offices and a diversity of pricing model homes. These office condos will allow people to stay in their subdivision and not have to travel to work. This is not a typical subdivision as everyone can stay close to home. Prices for homes will start at $200,000. Strict building guides will be required. Diamond Homes and H & B Homes will be the only builders. Chris Hobbs, Planner for the project discussed housing types. He has been working on this for a year. Hobbs talked about the features and amenities of this project. There will be individual neighborhoods with parks and pathways. Housing types were shown. The housing types shown will be the exact type of homes that will be built. There are two town home areas with garages on the street side and doors on the opposite side. There will be a multiple use area for local services, neighborhood compatible services and a mix of commercial and residential uses. There will be two to three story buildings for commercial; with the top floors to be residential. There will be 360 residential lots; 126 town home lots for a total of 486 lots. Density is between 2.8 and 2.97. 3 Mike Liimikka, Alpha Omega Engineering, 181 E. 50th Street, reviewed the slide show further with discussion on the infrastructure. The Star Sewer and Water District will supply water and sewer. It will be reviewed on the 16th of this month. The line will run for one mile past Can-Ada Road. A well site will be provided for future demands. Sewer will be gravity fed with a lift station. The Canyon County regional lift station is south of Highway 44. Foothill Crossing will contribute to the Canyon County regional lift station. Transportation is controlled by Canyon County Highway District #4. Canyon County Road District (CCHD) is adapting many of Ada County Highway District policies. They will have a main road through the development to defer traffic on Foothill Road. The road district has requested one easement to the south and they are proposing the closure of Foothill Road at some time in the future. The group is proposing pathways and equestrian paths along Foothill Road. Kingsbury and Blessinger are minor arterials now. In the future they may see them as principal arterials. A traffic study has been prepared and a left turn lane proposed on Highway 44 along with a traffic light at Can-Ada. Surface drainage will go to retention basins on the property. Groundwater is high and studies are on going with 28 ground water monitoring wells. They are in a flood area from Lanktree Gulch Drainage. Rodney Evans, Landscape Architect, gave a brief overview of the project. It is at a design review stage. The core neighborhoods all have their own parks. They added townhomes to diversify the housing and then came up with the commercial areas. The application does have a school site and an entertainment area. Foothill Road would become a cul-de-sac. There are numerous water features and each park has a children’s playground – with all safety issues such as fencing. Foothills drive and a simulation of what it would look like with half asphalt and half gravel was shown. Erlebach asked if they are going to have 2.68 houses per acre, why ask for an R-4. Hobbs stated that the density is under 2.9. Hobbs stated that the commercial and school sites bring the density down. Erlebach asked how many houses there would be. Hobbs stated that there are 360 single family homes and 126 townhouse units and 15 multiple use units. The scale is what will actually be in the subdivision. Firmage stated that the R- 4 designation is driven by market demand. If they need to put in some senior housing they will have that capability with an R-4 zoning designation. Bell stated that he believes this is extremely well thought out and liked the mixed use applications. They have done an extremely good job and this has really nice amenities. Staff – Mammone stated that there was an addendum to the application. The Idaho Transportation Department is asking Council to postpone this decision until the traffic study is reviewed. Public – Tom Farley, 11787 W. Blake Drive, Star, stated that he is a retired bureau chief for schools, but he has now been put back to work for Middleton. He is an Idaho native and knows about schools. This is good for the children. We appreciate the relationship with the Foothills organization – it has been very positive. The ten acre site has been agreed upon. It is a powerful savings for the public. The price of land is very costly. He 4 thanked Foothills and the Mayor and Council for the opportunities to address the situation. Terry Malarkey, 232418 Blessinger Road, asked if they know if the canal easements that exist now are inclusive of zoning density and also the school. Are you including what is there currently. The Mayor stated that they calculate on acreage to include everything. Malarkey stated that at a meeting that was held a month ago on a development in the same area there was no comprehensive plan for the area. The Council agreed at that time that the their core area retail and commercial would be along State Street and farther out toward the foothill area would be less dense properties. He doesn’t see commercial and retail areas off Blessinger Road. In keeping with what the Council has done in the past he believes this is a deviation. Lane Rich, 8050 Dusty Way, stated that he is impressed with the application. The City seems to be moving out to the country and we have a different type of plan. He didn’t move out to the country to have this next to him. He is concerned about the infrastructure. He likes the amphitheater. He lives above the Lakes of Tallaga and he hears the noise from there. This changes his lifestyle. What will this many houses do to the water tables. He stated that the builders have beautiful looking homes, but thinks they are Corey Barton type homes with these type of lots. Applicant - Firmage stated that he appreciates the comments. This was a tough decision as he is a resident of Star and also a builder. This subdivision will be unique and more open then what you are currently finding in Star. With regard to the cost of homes, those town homes will be at the $200,000 range – they are building them now. There will be homes in that range. Regarding the Blessinger retail area – if Kingsbury is the major arterial the retail will move to Kingsbury. The retail area will be built as the last phase. They expect this to build out in seven to ten years. Mike Liimikka began with the concern about the water table. The three wells will be in place when the fourth is completed. It is anticipated that a well will be needed in our area. There are four west of Can-Ada and their site will contain one. They are deep aquifer wells – there should be no effect. They have worked with Star Sewer and Water and asked about the affect, and they have stated that there will be no affect. Regarding traffic, there is an impact and ITD has a copy. The Foothills group will do anything reasonable to work with the traffic improvements. Regarding the ITD letter, the study was submitted to them in July and resubmitted recently to include Corinthian Homes. Erlebach asked who owns the wells. Liimikka stated that Star Sewer and Water will own the wells. McDaniel asked about the discontinued use of Foothill Road and if there will be full access to the Fire Department. Liimikka stated that they may have to put up posts, but they can be knocked down. Firmage stated that Canyon County Highway District proposed this closure, not the Foothills Capital Group. Firmage stated that it also not a done deal yet. 5 Erlebach asked who would be maintaining the road. The Mayor stated that Canyon County Highway District will still own the road. McDaniel asked if there would be a problem if you were to switch the retail and amphitheater area to the other street. Firmage stated that there would be no affect as the two are interchangeable. Traffic was discussed on the Blessinger Road. Erlebach asked if the road improvement money will go into escrow. The Mayor stated that it will be bonded for. The Mayor asked Firmage to talk about the thought process for retail uses in the subdivision. Firmage stated that the idea came from the PUD and creating a sense of community. Retail is to service the entire community and they are trying to lessen the traffic impact. Legal Counsel, Paul Fitzer, stated there needs to be a development agreement – with traffic, the long build out and detail in the phasing and density to phasing. The Mayor stated that these items can be covered in the conditions of approval. The Mayor suggested building commercial and retail up front so everyone knows what they are getting into. The Mayor closed the public hearing and moved to deliberations. McDaniel stated there is nothing she is concerned about. This would add a sense of community and provide other services for residents of the City of Star and she is in favor of annexing and zoning this property. Erlebach loves the pictures and ideas, he is concerned about the R-4. He has no problem with R-3. They could sell this tomorrow and it would be at a higher density. He believes we need to have more stipulations, maybe drawn up with legal counsel. Bell stated the R-4 isn’t really that big of deal if you approve the preliminary plat tonight. The entitlement stays with the ground. The Mayor stated that the R-4 could cause a problem down the road. Bell moved to approve the annexation of the Foothill Crossing with a zoning designation of R-3, McDaniel seconded the motion. All aye: motion carried. Preliminary Plat/PUD – The Mayor stated that Council needs to be aware that one of the requests is a deviation in height in retail area going from 35 feet to 45 feet. Bell moved to approve the Preliminary Plat/PUD for Foothill Crossing with the 10 stated conditions of approval. McDaniel seconded the motion. Erlebach asked if we need to state how 6 many buildings will be at the different height. The Mayor stated that it was at Council discretion. All aye: motion carried. Ordinances & Resolutions: Resolution 2007-01 Archives/Record Retention – McDaniel moved to approve Resolution 2007-01, a Resolution of the City of Star, Idaho setting forth policy on the retention, archiving and destruction of City records, proceedings and documents consistent with Idaho Code 50-907, Bell seconded the motion. Roll Call: McDaniel, Erlebach, Bell – all aye: motion carries. Ordinance No. 169 Corinthian Homes Annexation/Zoning/Development Agreement - McDaniel moved that pursuant to Idaho Code, Section 50-902 the rule requiring an Ordinance to be read on three different days, with one reading to be in full, be dispensed with and that Ordinance No. 169 be considered after reading once by title only, Bell seconded the motion. Roll Call: McDaniel, Erlebach and Bell – all aye: motion carried. Bell moved to approve Ordinance No. 169 an Ordinance annexing to the City of Star certain real property located in the unincorporated area of Canyon County, Idaho, and contiguous to the City of Star; establishing the zoning classification of the annexed property as Mixed Use (MU) with a development agreement; directing that certified copies of this Ordinance be filed as provided by law; providing for related matters; and providing for an effective date, McDaniel seconded the motion. Roll Call: McDaniel, Erlebach and Bell – all aye: motion carries. Ordinances No. 170 Hunters Creek – McDaniel moved that pursuant to Idaho Code, Section 50-902 the rule requiring an Ordinance to be read on three different days, with one reading to be in full, be dispensed with and that Ordinance No. 170 be considered after reading once by title only, Erlebach seconded the motion. Roll Call: McDaniel, Erlebach and Bell – all aye: motion carried. Erlebach moved to approve Ordinance No. 170 an Ordinance annexing to the City of Star certain real property located in the unincorporated area of Ada County, Idaho, and contiguous to the City of Star; establishing the zoning classification of the annexed property as Residential (R-3) of approximately 29.61 acres; directing that certified copies of this Ordinance be filed as provided by law; providing for related matters; and providing for an effective date, Bell seconded the motion. Roll Call: McDaniel, Erlebach and Bell – all aye: motion carries. Reports: Staff – Ward stated that she is working on a Tree Ordinance. Council - Bell stated that he attended a Valley Regional Transit meeting regarding the Highway 44 route – they have miscalculated their numbers regarding their budget. 7 Micron will be contributing for the busses. They may come back to Council for more money. Mayor – The Mayor stated that he attended an Ada County EMS public hearing regarding the way Ada County runs EMS, it was approved it. On a positive note – Chief Courtney, the Mayor and the Ada County EMS discussed ambulance service in Star. The EMS is willing to provide an ambulance here in Star. The Mayor stated that we have two new deputies in Star. Regarding Blue Print for Good Growth, a more detailed letter was dropped off stating that we are no longer participating. Adjournment: Bell moved to adjourn the meeting, Erlebach seconded the motion. The meeting adjourned at 10:00 pm. Respectfully submitted: Approved: _______________________ ________________________ Cathy Ward, City Clerk Nathan Mitchell, Mayor 8