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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 01/04/1972A G E N D A PETALUMA C ITY PLANNIN-G CONUAIS'SlON JANUARY 4, 1972 REGULAR MEETING #13 =, FISCAL YEAR. COUNCIL CHAMBERS 7:30 'P.M,. , CITY HALL P- ETALUMA, CALIFORNIA ROLL CALL: Comm. Balshaw Cern Daly S,chmelz Waters Comm. Gore. Popp Hood STAFF: William C. :MCGiver , Director �o•f P lanning. R16 ,hard ,D. A. Anderson°, Assistant Planner. APPROVAL OF MINUTES FOR 'DEC . 2 CORRESPONDENCE CONTINUATION OF PUBLIC- B ARING TO CONSIDER THE ADOPTION QF THE ENVIRONMENTAL DES'I:GN PLAN FOR THE CITY OF PET,ALUMA y 1 Il I ADJOURNMENT s PETALUMA CITY PLANNING SION MINUTES Regular meeting of the Petaluma City Planning Commission was held on January 4, 1972, at '7:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers, City Hall, Petaluma, California PRESENT: Comm. Balshaw,, Ce.rini,'Daly, Schmelz, Waters. Comm. Gore, Popp, Hood® (Board of Zoning Adjustments) ABSENT: None. STAFF: Richard D. A6 Anderson, Assistant Planner. APPROVAL UP MINUTES the minutes for the meeting of December 21, 1971, FOR DEC. 2.1, 1.971 were approved with the following addition noted prior to ADJOURNMENT: Sonoma C ounty Refer ral: ABC Neon Co. - Use Permit to,allow gn at M52 Redwood Hwy., File 3692 The Commission directed the staff to forward a letter to the Sonoma County Board of Zoning Adjust - ments recommending that any, additional sign area on the parcel not be approved. They further in- dicated that the proposed free- standing, illumin- ated price sign would be acceptable if the total sign area on'the site is reduced to city standards of 200 sq. ft. of aggregate sign area for each use on the site. The illuminated sign to be lighted with subdued lighting. CORRESPONDENCE Mr. Anderson read a letter received from Mr. 4 Mrs. Pletcher Scott voic- ing opposition,to the residential designation proposed by the consultants for the 700 block Bast Washington Street. They stated the present commercial zoning is appropirate for the area. Chairman Waters said this particular objection has already been noted by the Commission at a pre- vious public hearing on the Environmental Design Plan. GOLDEN G ATE TRANSIT SYSTEM Mr. Y. Tito Sasaki from the Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District addressed the Commission and audience. He outlined their pre- sent and future plans for the commuter club syC °:::,am and the regular bus ervice. Mr. Sasaki said one tentative route - jr service on the east side of Petaluma would send buses down Pet. Blvd. to West Payran, then to East Washington,, east to McDowell, then south to Casa Grande and on to U.S. 101. He.urged any citizens interested in expressing their opinions on routes'and stops to contact the Golden Gate Bridge Authori- ties or the Planninc- Director. Planning Commission Minutes for January 4, 1972 CONTINUATION OF PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER THE ADOPTION OF THE Chairman Waters read the testimony taken from the floor at the two pre- vious public hearings regarding the proposed Environmental Design Plan. Again he requested the audience to make specific recommendations when addressing the Commission. Mr. Corwin Mocine, Planning Consultant, and the chairmen of the s citizen committees were present to hear the testimony., Chairman Waters reopened the public hearing. The following comments, questions and recommendations were recorded: Councilman Daly recommended that the greenbelt and parkway be eliminated Comm. Balshaw recommended that the Petaluma Sky Ranch Airport be retained a's a type of open space buffer along Petaluma's eastern boundary. All indications are that the airport will remain active and it is unrealistic to discuss possible relocation within the 5 year period. Mr© Balshaw's recommendation is to eliminate mention of removal of the airport. He further recommended to leave the greenbelt ass ,. a, greenbelt and omit the "parkway" reference, The recommendation to;";5nnex as much of the area within the greenbelt park as feasible" appea-rs to be unacceptable in view of the lack of control currently available to the City. He recommended to eliminate the recommendation to - annex area within the greenbelt. Mr. Mocine answered it was the consultants' thinking that it would be better to have the land under the control of the city's jurisdiction than the County's since the city has now established a development policy. Comm. Balshaw said necessary legislation should be adopted first to have the needed control.. Comm.'Cerini recommended that McNear's Island and the railroad yard be put in a stage for further study; that th6 should not. be referred to as.a circulation route.; and the- Corona Road overpass area should be given further studv re traffic flow,ramd development uses. Comm. Cerini also had a. question regarding the improvement and extension of Laurel Street as a collector street since it dead -ends into developed property. Comm. Gore questioned what would happen to property having more than a 25% slope.. (the consultants recommend that the property be retained 'as open space) John Lounibos spoke on behalf of Aubrey 8 20 acre parcel of land in Mr. Sande.-r-son's Blvd. North & Petaluma Blvd, North retain ton. He objected to changing the parcel saying that Mr. Sanderson has been paying for several years. an6erson. He requested that the owr-^ , fshir) located at McDowell the present industrial designa- to an agricultural designation, into the Assessment District Victor Nagel, representing several property owners in the Lakeville area, requested that the area between the Freeway, Lakeville Highway, and the Fairgrounds be designated industrial. He commented that the land was - ✓ bought for industrial purposes and the property owners have.been paying taxes on industrial land. Residential development would not be feasible -2- I' . Pla Commission Minutes for January 4, 1972 dine to the existing industrial uses, the freeway, noise from activities at the Fairgrounds, etc., Mr. Nagel also pointed out that the area be- tween the Freeway and Lakeville Highway is in the Old Adobe School Dis- trict. A change to residential use would increase the school load and reduce the tax base derived from industrial uses® Bob Sttimson, representing several property owners, recommended that in- dustrial/commercial designation be noted for the area between the River and Petaluma Blvd. South. lie said a residential designation would be incompatible because: the majority of the area is developed with commer- cial uses. He suggested that the multiple residential designation could be placed on the West side of Petaluma Blvd. South if it is needed in the area. He further recommended that the area around Walnut Park be residential rather than office commercial so that the residents in the area could benefit from the park. Bill Bradford .recommended commercial designation for the area on Peta- luma B v . North adjacent to the bucky'Shopping Center. He said the area has easy access to the freeway and there are quite a few commercial uses already in the area. Mee® Mocine responded their firm understood it was the Council's polio that strip commercial zoning should not be encouraged along the Boulevard extending to the Denman Interchange. • Paul. Ma selli recommended �o leave .Lakeville/Wilson Street as industrial to Jferson Street. Robert O'Neil indicated the Planned Residential designation for the area e s TW S__ would create school problems. The average density of 6 to 6.9 units per acre is not suf°fi.ci.en't' to allow development of adult community facilities. He recommended: that the area be designated for higher density. Mr. Mocine answ6 ed that the designation should be changed to higher density if the Commission agrees with Mr. O'Neil be- cause the Planned Residential designation would not allow the higher density. Mr. O'Neil. reco mmended that the hospital site designation on North McDowell Blvd. be flexible as to exact location because the think- ing as to loc- ti-6h may change in the next few years. Mr. Mocine answered that the Plan is anticipated to be flexible. David Traversi, representing v'anBebber Bros., recommended that the Zero Mfg. and van B ebber Bros.property should remain industrial. The area was zoned industrial`in 1969 to allow expansion of industrial operations and should be retained as such. Herbert Farrer representing 'the Kaiser Sand x Gravel Shamrock Readymix Plant, recommended the area on the easterly .aide of Lakeville Highway be left industrial.. if it is changed to residential, he strongly-recommended an adequate depth of buffer be designated along the Lakeville Highway. Mr Boyd recommended that the property shown as service commercial at C_u_7t_i`JTd Lane on the west side of the Freeway, remain light industrial. Wait Minogue, representing Carl's Market and the Ehe .souff de of East Washington Street between recommended the area should remain commerclal.� Jonas Office bldg., on Vallejo and Edith Streets, -3- Planning Commission Minutes for January 4, 1972 John Icing pointed out the McNear & Grant Schools have vacant classrooms Wich co ld accommodate the proposed 70 acre development on "I" Street Extension ®_ He stated there are no suk-division lots left except for a possible J= lots owned by McGah & Bailey a�n any lots which may be left in the Boise - Cascade Subdivision. He said a developer has no assurance or commitment for .continuing a development for more than I year a:t a time® (Mr. Mocine responded that this problem was recognized by the consultants i n the: Apoen.dix of the Plan and would require study) Mr. Icing recommended, that a cony of the Envi ronmental Design Plan be made available to each;iti:`terested party in - the City before the Plan is approved. He continued if the Plan is adopted it would shop growth in Petaluma and reminded the Commission that the city's biggest income is from the building trades. Comm. Balshaw responded that the Environmental Plan has been reviewed by 100 citizens working on various committees since April 19 2 previous public hearings have been held; and the Plan has., h l newspaper coverage. Comma Cerini also responded th'a't- ie 'wa:. not the intent of the Commission to stagnate building pro- grams but strive. for quality rather tha. quantity. The recommendations made will be studied and acted upon by the Commission. Bob Lagle requested Ed Sch;melz, chairman of the Industrial Committee, to-Up-port the statement- he had made on December 28, 19 71 a (Mrs, Schmel.z was absent that date,) Mr. L6gle tated the Industrial Committee diad not recommend industrial zoning for the. D.D. Young property on North McDowell Boulevard. Comm Schmelz answered that the Industrial Committee felt the subject site was not totally suitable for industrial development (due to :flood plan, encumbeYances with easementsp etc.). The Committee felt there could be areas more suited for industry. Comm. B,alsahw said the Residential Committee felt that mobilehome areas should not be designated as such Residents in these parks deserve the same tion as those living in conventional 'homes m Jack Garrison, heal Estate Broker, made the following comments: the pro - pose P aI n does not recaan.ize' existing Assessment Districts; the Plan does not recognize recent improvements made in certain areas of town (East Washington St., Pet aluma B lvd. North & South), If t he Plan is adopted, these uses world become non - conforming. The Plan also fails to recognize the present tax bases �Iand adjacent to city are taxed for industry, not agriculture) . Mr. Garrison exaressed a need for a buffer zone between the Residential areas and noia- .-streets (ex. Pet. Blvd. & East Washington) a He also requested furthe clarification of the PUD and PCD Zones Davie].. Traversi said some very excellent recommendations have been ,Wade Hegat in Fe changes to the Plan and urged the Commission. not to be_ �A.f;luenced by any time tables in conside.r•i g its adoption. Mr. Mocine said the Plan has gone through several changes as a result of the citizens committees' recommendations, staff recommendations, etc. Public hearings will also be held at the Council level. He added it is very'un'li.kely that the city would rezone existing commercial property away from commercial., leaving them as nonconforming uses. In explaining the Planned Unit District, Mr. Mocine said this method is used for parcels of Land not less than 4 to 5 acres in size and up to 40, or even 100 acres. The whole area would be planned together. Bonuses would be given 4- - i 7 Planning Commission minutes for January 4, 1972 to encourage creative kinds of developments. The Planned Community District would apply to larger areas (up to 300 acres) and would re- 4uire perhap_ a 10 year development program. This designation is de- signed to help both the city and developers of large property to understand what the needs and desires are over a period of time. Bob Stimson expressed concern that the Environmental Plan seemed•to be precise p Comm. Balshaw and the City Manager said publlc*hear- ings would be required before any parcels of land could be rezoned. Mrs. Joan Bucholz, a member of the Residential Committee, asked if there were another met9od of solving the school problem other than by stopping growth. Mr. King replied that building could take place in those areas where schools are available. Chairman Waters read the Development Con- trol Criteria outlined in the Appendix of the Environmental Design Plan. Martin Gavriloff recommended the area on the west side of Petaluma Bled® Scm "Y=reet north, should not be designated R-1 residential or multi-family residential, but should be C-H commercial on the lots fronting on Petaluma Blvd. South, because of existing development and the fact that single famiI development should not front on a heavily travelled street like Petaluma Blvd. South. • Robert Meyer, City Manager, recommended that the boundary lines WE Assess- ment DisTricts No. 6 & No. 9 be shown on the Environmental Design Plan, and the existing zoning should be shown. He also recommended that the Commissioners should drive around the City to observe'the problem areas again. He pointed out the Environmental Design Plan must be adopted soon in order for development to start again, He pointed out further that several areas will be available within the City and that development will be possible. Richard Courrier recommended that some areas be specifically designated lol�Yer dens t r, iarge'R-1-10,000 development. He stated that the concept of bonusd's offered for Planned Unit Development would mean addi- tional dwelling units.' The people don't want' higher density. Bill Combs recommended smaller, 6,000.sq. ft., lot designation for the area c ing his property on Cherry S The low density, 10,000 square foot designation is not feasi the property because the sur- rounding improvements do .not justify the type of improvement necessary for 1. l 0,000 sq. ft® lots He recommended the urban b ow density designa- tion e moved out to include the developed areas, Victor DeCarli recommended that the -area on east side of Lakeville High way be 'industrial to ieffersoA Street . He also recommended the - hearing should be continued to further comments and information to be offered, • Mr. Daly pointed out the City Council will hold further hearings and any chan es will be referred back to the Planning Commission for comment. 9 1 Mr.. DeCwrli also recommended that someone from the City should encourage the people downtown to fix up their buildings. Mr. Cerini stated the - Chamber of Commerce is now conducting .a program trying to encourage. the -improvement of the dowrn�own area. -5.- Planning Commission Minutes for January 4, 197 There being no further testimony presented, Chairman Waters called for a-motion close the public hearing The motion was introduced by Councilman Daly and seconded by Comm. Balshaw. The motion passed. DISCUSSION ITEMS The commission agreed to meet Saturday, January 8, 1972, at 9:00 a.m. to.survey the problem,areas of the city in Y - elationship to the testimony presented at the public hearings on the Environmental Design Plan. Counciiman Daly said the City Council and Planning Commission wil1 meet in the.near future with the Sonoma County Assessor (and possibly the County Manning Director) for an informal discussion. ADJOURNMENT - there being no further business to come before the Com mission, was adjourned. - Chairman Attest N