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Home My WebLink About07122001 Min Ag . CITY OF PORT TOWNSEND PLANNING COMMISSION WORKSHOP AGENDA City Council Chambers, 7:00 pm July 12, 2001 I. Call to Order II. Roll Call III. Acceptance of Agenda IV. Approval of Minutes: June 28,2001 V. Unfinished Business VI. New Business 1. Tiering & Infill A. BCD Sta:tIPresentation . VII. Upcoming Meeting: July 26, 2001 VIII. Communications IX. Adjournment ~ · · · CITY OP PORT TOWNSEND PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES July 12,2001 I. CALL TO ORDER Chairman Larry Harbison called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers. IIII. ROLL CALL Other members answering roll were Jerry Spieckerman, Jim Irvin, Prank Benskin and Lyn Hersey; Bernie Arthur was excused. Also present were BCD Director Je:tIRandall; City Engineer Dave Peterson; and Public Works Director Ken Clow. City Council Members Alan Youse and Alan Prank were also present. III. ACCEPTANCE OP AGENDA -- There were no changes to the agenda. IV. APPROVAL OP THE MINUTES Mr. Spieckerman made the motion to approve the minutes of June 28,2001 and Mr. Irvin seconded. All were in favor. v. UNFINISHED BUSINESS Planning Commissioner Lyn Hersey reported notification of her absence trom the June 14th meeting had not reached the Chairman. She requested her unexcused absence as reported in the minutes of that meeting be changed to excused. VI. NEW BUSINESS -- Workshop 1. Tierin2: and Infill Mr. Randall distributed his memorandum to the Planning Commission dated July 12, 2001 regarding Infill Strategies. The memorandum cited a motion passed June 4,2001 by the City Council which stated: "Task the Planning Commission to develop an infill plan for areas with pre-existing infrastructure and identify the primary infill area. Planning Commission should be sure to emphasize existing parks and non-motorized [areas] as well as utility and other infrastructure issues. The final work product should include: 1) Detailed inventory of buildable lots in the designated infill areas; 2) Possible incentives to encourage infill in the designated area; and 3) Possible consequences for not participating in infill." Mr. Randall called on City Engineer Dave Peterson and Public Works Director Ken Clow to give their input regarding the issues in the City Council motion. Messrs. Peterson and Clow showed city maps indicating the existing tiering plan: . Planning Commission Minutes Page 1 July 12, 200 I . . . Tier 1 -- Urban. (Existing urban inftastructure and urban densities -- emphasize infill.) Tier 2 -- Light industrial/commercial, i.e., Howard Street corridor. Tier 3 -- Least developed. Mr. Clow stated the basis for infill and tiering is not new, that it appears throughout the Comprehensive Plan. He spoke of such issues as density, public structures and utilities and how to prioritize capital facilities. He indicated the first priority is presently being given to existing infrastructure in Tier 1, that City finances don't get us out of Tier 1 where they don't have to extend infrastructure for great distances. Mr. Peterson spoke of the Growth Management Act. After the Comp Plan was completed and ordinances written, they mapped existing water lines; sewer lines and septic systems; and street systems (paved streets, gravel roads and trails). An overlay of all the maps together would show the character of the urban situation -- the tiering map. He stated that inftastructure at greater distances is higher maintenance for the City. He suggested code-wise and policy-wise to make it happen: Tier 1 area (where the water and sewer lines are) the City will pay a proportionate share for hook up. He discussed issues regarding paybacks. Mr. Glenn Norcross, local developer, spoke of unfortunate circumstances he had in the past with development within the city. He indicated he is ready to forgive the past and make sure it does not happen again. Mr. Peterson felt it had been rough before 1995 and until these issues were codified. He stated technical conference with Public Works is now part of the tiering strategy. He noted the City's budget last year of $50,000 for these improvements and the difficulties presented. Mr. Norcross spoke of spaghetti lines all over the city and said he knows they are going to have to be replaced. He asked if the City has the means to cover this growth, that they will need attention within the next 10 years. Lengthy discussion followed including comments, e.g.: Tierin2: Mr. Prank thought tiering is a good place to start, but look where other amenities are. Some people concerned with anti sprawl in other parts of the city do not want infill in their area. Some came to the conclusion to provide some funding to Tier 3 to extend infrastructure. He asked, "Do we want to invest in extending infrastructure or do we want infill?" Tier! infill Mr. Irvin asked if with pre-existing inftastructure are there vacant lots? Mr. Prank noted buildable does not mean available. Mr. Benskin asked why it is the City's business to get people to build on their vacant property? Planning Commission Minutes Page 2 July 12, 2001 · · · Mr. Youse asked who pays for lines that go past his vacant lots, is he costing the city extra money? Mr. Prank felt Mr. Youse was onto something and asked what is fair and equitable. Mr. Benskin replied that everyone is paying for what they are using and are not being assessed for what they are not using. He spoke of penalizing because someone has an extra lot. He felt people should pay when they hook up, but not when it goes past vacant property. Mr. Prank brought up the issue of Port Townsend being designated the only Urban Growth Area under the GMA and asked how can the city get what is required? Mr. Benskin noted that people don't want growth. Mr. Prank mentioned the impact of the cost of infrastructure and suggested that under the capacity for utilities, it is logical to expand Tier 1. Tier ~ develoument Ms. Hersey suggested maybe looking at Tier 2, light industrial/commercial and get a decent tax base. Mr. Peterson said the City is not giving funding for extending in any tier, that it might be a good argument for the City to consider. Ms. Hersey thought it might be the best investment for tax pay backs. Mr. Norcross pointed out there is no guarantee for payback - businesses don't want to come here. You could make an investment, but with no guarantee, and you could wait forever. Mr. Randall referred to water lines not as available there (Sims Way). If there is money, it might be a good investment. Mr. Frank thought we might need to reassess. We may have to look at zoning and change where infrastructure is available. Mr. Spieckerman asked regarding the City forming a Local Improvement District (LID). He suggested creating the incentive as one possibility for Tier 2. Tier ~ develoument Mr. Irvin suggested that providing infrastructure to Tier 3 would be more worthwhile for growth. Mr. Peterson pointed out that land is cheapèr in Tier 3. He indicated the City would not be involved in underwriting utilities there. Planning Commission Minutes Page 3 July 12, 2001 -. . . Mr. Randall asked regarding more maps. After discussion it was determined to bring back maps that would be clearer on the issues discussed. VII. UPCOMING MEETINGS July 26, 2001 - PTMC amendment regarding time limit to waive fees MOTION Mr. Spieckerman Continue the workshop focusing on incentives for infill and further examination of tiering until the next meeting SECOND Mr. Irvin VOTE UNANIMOUS; 5 in favor Mr. Peterson will not be available on July 26. Mr. Clow will have more information regarding paybacks. VIII. COMMUNICATIONS Letter from the city of Sequim regarding Land Use Decision Making Training, July 17th, 7:00 p.m. in the Sequim Community Center. IX. ADJOURNMENT Motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Mr. Spieckerman and seconded by Mr. Irvin. All were in favor. The meeting adjourned at 8:58 p.m. ß~P-- , Larry arbison, Chairman b~ Sheila Avis, Minute Taker Planning Commission Minutes Page 4 July 12, 200 I · City of Port Townsend Department of Building and Community Development Waterman-Katz Building 181 Quincy Street, Suite 301, Port Townsend, WA 98368 (360) 379-5081 FAX (360) 385-7675 July 12, 2001 To: Prom: Chair Larry Har bison and MJZ of the Planniog Commission Jeff Randall, BCD Director Infill Strategies Re: As background for tonight's workshop, the on June 4th, City Council passed the following motion: "Task the Planning Commission to develop an infill plan for areas with pre-existing infrastructure and identify the primary infill area. Planning Commission should be sure to emphasize existing parks and non-motorized [areas] as well as utility and other infrastructure · issues. The final work product should include: 1) Detailed inventory of buildable lots in the designated infill areas; 2) Possible incentives to encourage infill in the designated area; and 3) Possible consequences for not participating in infill." Tonight's workshop will be the first discussion of these issues. BCD will report back to the City Council the Planning Commission's recommendations. · . . . GUEST LIST Meeting of: Purpose: Date: Port Townsend Planning Commission Workshop. Tiering & Infill July 12. 2001 Name (please print) Address ....... Testimon ? Yes No e ,/