Boundary County Planning and Zoning Commission
Minutes October 19, 2017
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Attending
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Names
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Public |
Tom Kitchen, Laura Kitchen |
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Planning & Zoning |
Caleb Davis (Chairman), Wade Purdom (Co-Chair), |
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Absent |
Tim Heenan, Adam Isaac, Counselor Tevis Hull |
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Staff |
John Moss |
At 5:30 pm Chairman Caleb Davis opened the meeting and presented the evening agenda. After identifying the presence of a quorum Davis asked if there were any changes or corrections to be made to the Minutes of the September 21 2017 meeting. There being none, Davis asked for a motion to approve the September 21 minutes. Wade Purdom so moved, seconded by Ron Self, and there being no further discussion Davis called for a vote. The votes were as follows:
John Cranor - Aye, Tim Heenan - Absent, Scott Fuller - Aye, Marciavee Cossette - Aye, Wade Purdom - Aye, Adam Isaac - Absent, Rob Woywod - Aye, Ron Self- Aye, Caleb Davis - (tie-breaker);
Tally: Nay (0), Recused (0), Aye (6), Absent (2)
The motion to approve the September 21 minutes was unanimous.
[Planning & Zoning minutes are transcribed from the conversation that takes place during the meeting. Topics are condensed, eliminating verbatim comment in order to condense the material. Key points are included in this extraction and all votes taken are recorded.]
Next on the agenda was an item of discussion presented by Staff concerning Courtroom Etiquette, including a request to turn off all cell phones (at which point staff remonstrated himself by turning off his phone). Staff said that it is a courtesy and a responsibility to leave the courtroom as it was found. Cleaning up after the meeting is an understood obligation and this includes placing chairs as they were found, restoring the microphones to their original position and picking up loose papers and any evidence of a presence left by the Planning and Zoning Commission as well as any visitors to the courtroom.
Staff addressed email submission, explaining that by sending emails BCC (blind copy) he was protecting from the inadvertent publishing of individuals' email addresses. He also asked that when mail is received from the Administrator a simple reply would acknowledge receipt of same. This would also be an opportune way to communicate an inability to attend the next meeting or ask pertinent questions. Staff reiterated that all Planning and Zoning communication is public and if anything needs to be sent to individuals it should originate from the administrator. Chairman Davis requested confirmation from Counselor Tevis Hull regarding the liability of two commission members communicating outside of the scheduled meeting time and place. Staff said that any discussion relating to personal affairs not related to Planning and Zoning considerations was normal and had nothing to do with ex parte or conflict of interest issues. Davis reiterated he would like Counselor Hull's opinion on the question.
The reference to keeping the courtroom tidy prompted the question of where else could the meetings be held, and was the date and time a requirement. Davis thought this was in the ordinance, but the specific date and time is up to the Planning and Zoning Commission, as per Section 3.6.5. Meetings: The planning and zoning commission will hold regular meetings once per month except when no agenda items are scheduled, and will hold special meetings or workshops as needed to conduct the business of the planning and zoning commission, as approved by the chair. Pursuant to IC 67-6504, at least nine regular meetings will be held each calendar year. The regular meeting date, time and location will be set by motion and majority vote of the planning and zoning commission at the first regular meeting of the calendar year. Alternate locations were suggested, and it was agreed that the meeting location had to be somewhere that alcohol is not served and the facility had to be available at no charge. Rob Woywod suggested using the Armory, if it is available. Staff agreed to check on this location.
Chairman Davis asked staff for an update concerning Application 17-135, having presented to the County Commissioners the Planning and Zoning recommendation that the 2008 Comprehensive Plan and Map be retained for the 2018 version of same. Staff replied that the County Commissioners have accepted the recommendation of the Planning and Zoning Commission to retain the 2008 Comprehensive Plan and Map unchanged, and have scheduled a public hearing for November 28 2017 in order to get final public comment regarding this recommendation. Davis asked if the Commissioners can still send the Plan back to Planning and Zoning for reconsideration, and staff acknowledged this possibility but considered it very unlikely. The publication of this date has not yet been done, but publication is scheduled for November 9 2017 in order to be compliant with publication guidelines.
Regarding the current zone map, staff suggested there is a need to update the map because there have been several parcels created which are contrary to the zoning ordinance density requirements. The review of these parcels, and subsequent mapping of changes, will require specific area reviews and, using maps provided by Olivia Drake, these specific areas can be highlighted on the county zone map. Staff noted that these changes relate to the Land Use Map, NOT the Comprehensive Plan Map, since there are no changes being proposed to the Comprehensive Plan. The map(s) provided by Olivia are intended to show where, in the County, these changes are being made. When staff mentioned identifying these specific areas inclusive of parcel number, Self was quick to explain that a parcel number is not a legal description and cannot be used in lieu of a legal description. Staff acknowledged the logistics of this constraint but suggested that for ease of reference (only), a parcel number is something the public understands and can appreciate whether or not their specific parcel is to be included, or not, in any proposed zone change.
John Cranor asked for clarification on making a request for a map change; is the request made as an application and then the mapper Olivia Drake makes the change? Staff explained the procedure, after reviewing the application, is to have a public hearing in front of the Planning and Zoning Commission, which then makes a recommendation to the County Commissioners who hold another public hearing to ensure all parties are aware of the proposed change. The County Commissioners would then make the final decision to approve or reject or require modifying the proposed change in some manner. Staff suggested that there may be some time before changes are proposed because the Planning and Zoning Commission must review selected areas of the County where change has occurred, probably using a projected image to visualize the details related to zone and parcel size, and this would take some time. After choosing an area for proposed changes, the Mapper's large County Map can be highlighted with markers to illustrate graphically where in the County the proposed changes are located. This level of detail will make it easier for the public to visualize the scope of change proposed and to identify where their own property is located relative to the proposed changes.
Cranor asked if the application for a map change would contain all of the specifics of the change or would there be an attachment document of some kind. Staff responded that the format would be similar to the Ordinance changes just completed, where the details were in attachments and yet were incorporated into the final document when all components were agreed upon. Caleb Davis asked if a separate application would be needed for each area (Comp Plan, Comp Plan Map, Land Use Ordinance, etc.) or if one application could cover each area? Staff replied that for content changes an application is required for each instrument, but that for renaming all instruments at the same time one application would suffice. The application so created might have an implementation requirement that this take place on a certain date, having all instruments synchronize naming at the same time.
Attention then turned to the renaming of the Land Use Ordinance, Land Use Zone Map, Comprehensive Plan, Comprehensive Plan Map, and Overlays (Airport, Flood), proposed as follows:
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9B (Boundary County)
18 (Year)
CP (Component - Comprehensive Plan)
V1 (Version)
As a result, the names of the Comprehensive Plan, Plan Map, Land-use Ordinance, Zone Map, Fees and Overlays would look like this:
9B18CPV1 Comprehensive Plan
9B18CMV1 Comprehensive Plan Map
9B18LOV1 Land-use Ordinance
9B18LFV1 Land-use Ordinance Fees
9B18LMV1 Land-use Ordinance Map
9B18OAV1 Land-use Overlay - Airport
9B18OFV1 Land-use Overlay - Flood
Staff reminded the Commission that after talking to Counselor Hull it was determined that there is nothing in the ordinance that addresses a naming convention and that by publishing a name change from old name to new name the convention could be established. Staff noted that this renaming could be accomplished with an application which requests an update to the Comprehensive Plan, Comprehensive Plan Map, with a corresponding update to the Land Use Ordinance (2017-1a), Land Use Map, Fees and Ordinance Overlays. One application could provide for renaming all documents and instruments using the proposed naming convention and as stated in the meeting where this was discussed on August 17 2017, Counselor Hull agreed. Staff suggested that the actual renaming can occur simultaneously at any time, but may be more appropriate to take effect upon adoption of the 2018 Comprehensive Plan and Map. Specifically, create an application specifying a rename (only) of all documents and instruments as Version One (V1). Any necessary changes subsequently applied for would become V2, V3, etc. within each document/instrument after renaming. Finally, this renaming process can occur at the same time the Comprehensive Plan is updated (next: circa 2028) thus retaining an ongoing relationship between and among all of these documents and instruments.
John Cranor moved to have staff create the application (Amendment Form) to rename the Land Use Ordinance, Land Use Zone Map, Comprehensive Plan, Comprehensive Plan Map, Fees and Overlays (Airport, Flood) consistent with the naming convention proposed. ++
The votes were as follows:
John Cranor - Aye, Tim Heenan - Absent, Scott Fuller - Aye, Marciavee Cossette - Aye, Wade Purdom - Aye, Adam Isaac - Absent, Rob Woywod - Aye, Ron Self- Aye, Caleb Davis - (tie-breaker);
Tally: Nay (0), Recused (0), Aye (6), Absent (2)
The motion to have staff create the Planning and Zoning application to rename the Ordinance, Comprehensive Plan, Maps, Fees and Overlays (Airport, Flood) was unanimous.
Wade Purdom asked the Chair to invite any visitor wishing to speak to do so. Caleb Davis asked the visitors if they had any comments to make. Tom Kitchen said he was interested in knowing how to go about dividing his property and how the zoning process affected his ability to do that. He said he has about 35 acres and wanted to know if he could split this into 5 acre parcels. Davis replied that the administrator can answer specifics regarding Mr. Kitchen's property and that the rezoning process would take some time. Purdom reiterated this, saying about a year, and Mr. Kitchen and his wife Laura left the meeting.
Staff said, in returning to the subject of finding time to work on a review of the non-conforming parcels (because of size) within zones, meetings can be scheduled to divide up the region for scrutiny. This can be a planned effort, he said. Co-Chair Wade Purdom said that having an overhead projector would make things easier to visualize in a public meeting.
Wade Purdom moved to adjourn, Rob Woywod seconded, approved unanimously at7:00 pm.
John B. Moss