05-08-2001 PC MIN - SPECIAL - Laserfiche WebLink

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Planning Commission May 8, 2001 Page 6 . that the PUD ordinance allows increased density and they must ensure that the City's needs are met. Ms. McPherson explained that the townhome ordinance needs to be revised so that a fair evaluation can be done from one project to another. Commissioner Franz asked if the City Attorney could clarify the term "hardship". City Attorney Peter Beck stated that determination would be open to interpretation by the City Council. There are some standards in the ordinance for variances, and the Council could use these standards but they would not be bound by them. The standards include unique circumstances that more than an issue of just economic consideration, a whether a developer is being put in an unfair position by the proposed ordinance. Mr. Beck stated that the ordinance does have an opportunity to request a waiver. If the ordinance is adopted, a person could apply for a waiver and submit it with his application package. The waiver would then be considered by the Council first before land use application. He stated that a waiver could be requested without having an application complete if there were unusual circumstances, but that would likely help support the wavier request. . Commissioner Ropp asked if it was feasible to finish the new ordinance in less than 180 days. Ms. McPherson explained that the revised ordinance is an amendment to the zoning ordinance which requires that a public hearing is held by both the Planning Commission and City Council. She explained that there is a period of approximately 3-4 weeks between the two hearings. Staff will begin drafting a new ordinance, which will need be reviewed by the Planning Commission and City Council for their input. When a final draft is completed, a public hearing will then be held by both the Planning Commission and City Council. She stated that the process may take less than 6 months, but this is typically the busy season for land use applications and staff needs to balance time spent on drafting the new ordinance and time spent processing new applications. Ms. McPherson stated that since this is an important issue, the City does not want to artificially hurry the process. The ordinance needs to ensure that the City's long term needs are met to provide a balance of housing styles and housing types for all age groups. She reviewed some of the issues which will be included in the new standards. The City Attorney felt that six months to complete such an ordinance is a very aggressive schedule. Commissioner Baker stated that the issue before the Planning Commission is whether or not to approve the interim ordinance, and that a request for a waiver would be heard by the City Council. Commissioner Baker asked if it would be possible to process an ordinance amendment for the town home standards without a moratorium. Ms. McPherson explained why it would be difficult to do so, while continuing to receive and process townhome applications. . Commissioner Schuster questioned whether the language in the interim ordinance regarding common walls could impact office projects. City Attorney Peter Beck stated that the language refers to dwelling units. Commissioner Schuster asked if projects in process which are being phased would be stopped