Planning Commission Meeting

MINUTES OF MEETING INDIAN HILL PLANNING COMMISSION May 21, 2025 The regular meeting of the Indian Hill Planning Commission was held on May 21, 2025 at 7:00 p.m. in Council Chambers of the Village Administration building. Members Present: Rita Stolper Joseph Rhodenbaugh Shayne Manning Don McGraw Robert Schilling, Planning Commission alternate Members Absent: Barrett Tullis Officials Present: Jonathan West, Assistant City Manager Visitors Present: Jane Hughes, 6275 Miami Road Emmy Higgins, 6365 Miami Road Richard Ernst, Jr., Richard Ernst, Jr. Architects Mrs. Stolper asks for anyone planning to speak this evening to please stand, raise their right hand, and be sworn in prior to presentation of the cases. Item Number 1: Minutes from the April 16, 2025 Indian Hill Planning Commission meeting: Mr. Rhodenbaugh made a motion to approve the minutes. Mr. McGraw seconded, and the motion was approved by a unanimous voice vote. Item Number 2: Case #25-006: Blackwelder Custom Homes, on behalf of Lisa and Craig Hilsenrath, is requesting authorization to permit construction of a new dwelling on a non-conforming lot of record per Section 81. Lot of Record of the Indian Hill Zoning Ordinance. The subject property contains a non-conforming home located at 6345 Miami Road. Mr. Richard Ernst, Jr., the architect for the project, comes before the Commission and states that they have designed a new home for the lot that meets all the zoning requirements and are requesting approval to build the home on the existing non- conforming lot of record. Staff Report: Mr. West refers to Section 81. Lot of Record which states: “On any lot of official record, as defined in Section 3 of this ordinance, at the time of the enactment of this ordinance, even though a smaller area and/or frontage than required by this chapter in the district in which it is located, a one-family dwelling with its customary accessory structures may be authorized by the Planning Commission provided that the owner of the Village of Indian Hill Minutes of Planning Commission Meeting May 21, 2025 Page 2 lot does not own any adjacent land and provided that all structures are so designed and located as to conform as closely as possible to the yard and distance from lot line requirements of this ordinance for the district in which the lot is located.” Mr. West explains that the subject property was annexed into The Village of Indian Hill per Council Ordinance No. 28-65, which was passed on October 26, 1965. The house was existing at the time of the annexation, and the property boundaries have been the same. The subject property is located in District “C” – one acre minimum and is a non- conforming lot of record. The lot frontage is 75', and the required minimum frontage for District “C” is 150'. The net lot area is 0.6783 acres, and the required lot area for District “C” is 1.0 acre. The existing home is non-conforming due to not meeting the front and side yard setback requirements. The proposed two-story dwelling will be located 103' from the Miami Road right of way line (102' minimum required to be at the average of the two existing adjacent homes), 20' from the left (south) side yard lot line, 20' from the left (north) side yard lot line (20' minimum required), and 161' from the rear lot line (75' minimum required). Staff finds that per Section 81 of the Indian Hill Zoning Ordinance: 1. The lot is an official lot of record annexed into the Village in 1965; 2. The owner of the lot does not own any adjacent land; and 3. All structures are so designed and located as to conform as closely as possible to the yard and distance from lot line requirements of the zoning ordinance for District “C”. The proposed improvements meet all requirements of the zoning ordinance. Staff properly notified the adjacent property owners and was contacted by two of the property owners to the south who had questions regarding storm water. Mr. West notes that staff has met with the builder and engineer to review storm water detention to ensure it meets the Village’s requirements. Ms. Emmy Higgins, residing at 6365 Miami Road, inquires about the location and setbacks of the new home as it relates to her home and receives copies of the building plans as well as the site plan. After brief discussion, Mr. McGraw made a motion to approve the request. Mr. Manning seconded, and the motion was approved by a unanimous voice vote with all in favor of approval. Village of Indian Hill Minutes of Planning Commission Meeting May 21, 2025 Page 3 Item Number 3: Case #25-005: The City Manager is requesting the Planning Commission review and make a recommendation to City Council on proposed text amendments to the zoning ordinance. Mr. West states that per Section 124.1 of the Indian Hill Zoning Ordinance, the Commission shall report to Council setting forth its findings of fact and recommendation with respect to the following matters: 1. Whether the proposed text amendment is consistent with the Village’s adopted land use policies and objectives. 2. Whether the proposed text amendment is consistent with the intent and purpose of this ordinance. 3. What areas of the Village are most likely to be affected by the proposed text amendment and the manner in which those areas will be affected. 4. Whether the proposed text amendment is necessitated by a change in conditions in the areas of the zoning districts affected and the nature of such changed conditions. The Village worked with a consultant that specializes in zoning ordinance reviews and updates, Wendy Moeller, FAICP, with Compass Point Planning & Zoning, as well as our Solicitor, Scott Phillips. The main purpose of the review was to make sure the zoning ordinance is up to date with zoning case law and to update the ordinance to clarify terms and procedures. Below is a summary of items that have been updated: • Section 2 Purposes and General Standards on page 2: Section 2.3 was updated to allow staff to approve additions to non-conforming structures as long as the addition does not worsen the non-conforming condition. • Section 3 Definitions on pages 3 – 9: Removed terms that are not used in the ordinance, added terms that need defined, and updated definitions that needed clarification. • Section 5: Updated Nonconformities, Non-conforming Uses and Nonconforming Structures. Clarified language in Section 53 Location of Accessory Structures. Clarified language in Section 57 Off-Street Parking Standards. Section 58 Lighting for Special Exceptions was added. • Section 6 District A and B Use Regulations were clarified and the Home Occupation language was updated. Section 61.25 Signs was updated to conform to recent case law on signage to treat commercial and non-commercial signage the same. Added 61.27 Amateur Radio Towers because they are required to be permitted per the ORC. Added 61.3 Prohibited Uses and specifically prohibited short term rentals. Village of Indian Hill Minutes of Planning Commission Meeting May 21, 2025 Page 4 • Section 7 District “C” Regulations: Added 71.25 Keeping of Backyard Chickens as an Accessory Use and added Prohibited Uses to be the same as Districts “A” and “B”. • Section 86: Green Area Lot Reductions and Green Area Development were updated to reflect how they have been handled for the last 20 years with City Manager approval of Green Area Lot Reductions and Planning Commission approval of Green Area Development. • Section 9 Enforcement: Minor revisions were made for clarification. • Section 10 Administration: The ability to appeal to Council was removed. All appeals of Planning Commission decisions will have to go to the Court of Appeals. Clarified language in 101.3 Special Exceptions. Section 101. 431 (11) was added to allow the Planning Commission to review lot coverage for special exceptions on a case-by-case basis. Also updated application requirements for Special Exceptions and Variances as well as public notification procedures. Mr. West and Commission members review the ordinance page by page. Discussion followed regarding changes, typos, and additional clarification to be made to sections of the ordinance. Mr. Rhodenbaugh made a motion to recommend to Council the changes discussed based on the four review criteria mentioned above. Mr. Manning seconded, and the motion was approved by a unanimous voice vote of the members present. There being no further business to come before the Commission, Mr. McGraw made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Rhodenbaugh seconded, and the motion was approved by a unanimous voice vote. Respectfully submitted, Rita Stolper, Chairperson ATTEST: Jonathan D. West, Secretary Pro-tem