Westminster Planning & Zoning Commission

CITY OF WESTMINSTER PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION MEETING SUMMARY Thursday, May 11, 2017, at 7 PM City Hall, 1838 Emerald Hill Lane A meeting of the City of Westminster Planning and Zoning Commission was held at City Hall, 1838 Emerald Hill Lane in Westminster, Maryland 21157, on May 11, 2017, at 7 PM. Chair Peggy Bair, Vice Chair Kevin Beaver, Commissioner Thomas J. Rio, and Commissioner Lori Welsh-Graham were present. City staff Bill Mackey and Barb Sardi were also present. The following were present and signed-in: Mr. John Norman, Ms. Kelly Shaffer, and Ms. Barb Norman; Mr. Kevin Wagman was also present. Chair Peggy Bair opened the meeting at 7:02 PM. Commissioner Welsh-Graham moved approval of the minutes from the meeting of April 20, 2017. Vice Chair Beaver seconded. The motion passed. Chair Peggy Bair opened the public hearing for proposed Annexation No. 66 for Crowell. Mr. Mackey presented the staff memo and staff recommendation. Ms. Kelly Shaffer was present to answer any questions. Commissioner Welsh-Graham moved to recommend approval, as presented. Vice Chair Beaver seconded. The motion passed. Chair Peggy Bair opened the public hearing for proposed Annexation No. 69 for the City’s Wastewater Treatment Plant. Mr. Mackey presented the staff memo and staff recommendation. Vice Chair Beaver moved to recommend approval, as presented. Commissioner Welsh-Graham seconded. The motion passed. Commissioner Welsh-Graham motioned to close the public hearings. Commissioner Rio seconded. The motion passed. Adopted on June 8, 2017 Chair Peggy Bair recused herself, based on her long-standing membership in the Westminster Riding Club, and turned the meeting over to Vice Chair Kevin Beaver. Mr. John Lemmerman spoke on behalf of Robin Ford, developer of the Hillcrest Addition, regarding the proposed Final Plat. Ms. Barbara Norman, Treasurer of Westminster Riding Club, spoke well of Robin Ford and his other projects. Ms. Norman raised issues regarding the lack of landscaping at some nearby sites and requested significant landscape screening be provided in the rear of the site, next to the Riding Club. Mr. Lemmerman agreed with the quality of Mr. Ford’s developments and stated that he would pass along the issue raised. Mr. Kevin Wagman also urged the Commission to make recommendations for upgrades to the landscaping on the site. Commissioner Welsh-Graham moved to approve the plat as submitted, with suggestion that landscapes and parking will be revisited. Commissioner Rio seconded. The motion passed. Peggy Bair spoke as a Westminster Riding Club board member and former President with concerns, regarding the amount of traffic and lack of on-street parking along the area. Ms. Bair suggested parking on the Manchester side of the street, since all the homes on the Fair Ave side have off-street parking. The Westminster Riding Club has a membership of 350, which can result in twice the number of cars plus event parking for the social hall. Ms. Bair recused herself from voting on the matter. Mr. Lemmerman then distributed proposed drawings to Commission members. Staff requested electronic copies for the record. Peggy Bair asked about the sizes of the garages on the homes; Mr. Lemmerman clarified the proposed garages are two-car. Vice Chair Kevin Beaver turned the meeting back to the Chair Peggy Bair. Chair Peggy Bair then welcomed Ms. Andrea Gerhard as the new Carroll County liaison. Ms. Gerhard reported in the results of the County’s Bicycle Pedestrian survey. In the responses received, a bike share program in the City of Westminster was suggested. Ms. Gerhard also summarized the answers from all surveys in the County, including those from people living in Westminster, noting that respondents rated Route 140 as crossable with proper pedestrian facilities. Vice Chair Beaver requested access to the Post Office and Mall be made a focus. Ms. Gerhard then reported that the Fall amendment Cycle for the Carroll County Water and Sewer Master Plan was complete. The County’s requested expansion of the water and sewer Adopted on June 8, 2017 Page 2 of 3 service areas for Random House were recently approved by MDE. Finally, Ms. Gerhard reported that the energy saves loan program still had available funds for homeowners. Commissioner Welsh-Graham moved to approve the Proposed Support Letter for Carroll County. Commissioner Rio seconded. The motion passed. Chair Peggy Bair commented that there was recently a newspaper article about Town Mall ownership. Commissioner Welsh-Graham mentioned that the article reported that the mall was in receivership. Commissioner Welsh-Graham motioned to adjourn the meeting. Vice Chair Beaver seconded. The Commission adjourned at 7:55 PM. Adopted on June 8, 2017 Page 3 of 3