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08/31/2020 - Minutes1 City of Port Orchard Land Use Committee Meeting Minutes – August 31, 2020 Committee Members Present: Fred Chang (Acting Chair), Jay Rosapepe City Officials and Staff: Mayor Rob Putaansuu, Community Development Director Nick Bond, Long Range Planner Keri Sallee Acting Chair Chang called the meeting to order at 9:30 am. 1. Discussion: Donation Policy. Mayor Putaansuu said that he had coordinated with Public Works to identify a number of locations in City parks where donations of benches, tables, bike racks and other outdoor furniture could be suitably placed. A draft City donation policy and agreement template has been prepared for Council review. If it is approved, it will be placed on the City website for the public to use. Putaansuu said that memorial plaques will be reviewed for potentially offensive language, but hopefully most donations will come from service clubs and similar organizations, and they will police themselves. The committee agreed to move this item forward to full Council review. 2. Discussion: Fireworks Code Revisions. Community Development Director Bond said that since 2018, several seasonal fireworks stands have been continuing to operate on properties which would not be allowed to have a new fireworks sales use under the zoning code. Currently, the POMC Chapter 20.39.040 use table allows the commercial sale of fireworks only in the Commercial Heavy (CH) and Industrial Flex (IF) zones. These stands are considered legal nonconforming uses on their current properties per POMC Section 20.54.050(5), which considers seasonal nonconforming uses to be abandoned only if the seasonal use is not utilized during one full season (e.g., if a fireworks stand did not apply for a permit for the 2020 Independence Day sales season). Three fireworks stands that operated in 2019 were discontinued in 2020, and have lost their legal nonconforming status. One fireworks stand was accidentally issued a permit in 2020 on a lot with incorrect zoning, and the permit will not be renewed for that location. A draft ordinance has been prepared that would allow civic and institutional organizations such as churches to allow the sale of fireworks as an accessory use on properties where a use has already been established conforming to zoning (Civic & Institutional, CI). For example, a church on a CI-zoned property could allow fireworks sales as an accessory use on the property where the church is located, provided the permitting requirements of POMC 5.60 are met. It would not allow a church with a vacant CI-zoned property, or a church with a property zoned for others uses (such as Residential High, RH) to have fireworks sales as an accessory or primary use on that property. The committee recommended that the ordinance should be a discussion item at the next Council meeting. 3. Discussion: Ruby Creek Neighborhood Development Regulations. Bond presented proposed new and amended Title 20 development regulations and maps that will accompany the Ruby Creek Neighborhood Subarea Plan. These regulations will establish the Ruby Creek Overlay District (RCOD), with specific land uses and development restrictions, remove properties in the Ruby Creek neighborhood from the City’s Self-Storage Overlay District, and amend the street frontage design requirements for Sidney Rd within the neighborhood. Bond also addressed changes that had been made to the transportation goals and policies of the Plan since the August 4 Planning Commission meeting, based on public testimony received. Chang asked that the Planning Commission consider allowing taller buildings at the intersection of Sidney and Sedgwick. At its next meeting on September 1, the Planning Commission will continue the August 4 public hearing on the Ruby Creek Neighborhood Subarea Plan, and will also take testimony on the development regulations. 4. Discussion: McCormick Meadows (Landis Court SW). Bond said that Landis Court SW is a cul-de-sac private road in the McCormick Meadows subdivision. When Division 1 of McCormick Meadows was recorded in 2011, the City declined 2 to accept the road because the radius of its curve exceeded the City’s Public Works road standards. Due to an oversight, the developer removed the road from the public dedications on the final plat, but did not actually convey it to the homeowners association (HOA). This has resulted in Landis Court SW being in a “limbo” situation, with neither the City nor the McCormick Meadows HOA having ownership or maintenance rights and responsibilities for the road. The HOA has been asking the City to take over this road for several years. The road curve radius cannot be corrected without buying out property occupied by an existing home. However, the City has performed tests to ensure that the road subgrade is in satisfactory condition, and has indicated to the HOA that if the HOA pays for a pavement grind and overlay to bring the road to like-new condition, the City may accept the road and take over future maintenance. The former developer, while claiming that he no longer owns the road, is willing to sign a quit claim deed to relinquish any legal interest he may still have in it. The HOA wants to clear the cloud on the title, and if the City will take over the property it is willing to do a special assessment to meet the City’s requirements for the road improvements. The South Kitsap Fire Department (SKFD) does not object to the City taking ownership of Landis Court SW, as a change in ownership will make no difference to SKFD’s existing emergency response access. City ownership would also allow the City to enforce parking requirements in future, if desired. Bond will follow up with SKFD to get their agreement in writing, and will put this item on a future Council meeting for discussion. 5. Discussion: Downtown Subarea Plan Survey Results. Bond presented the results of the online survey that had been administered by GGLO for the Downtown and County Campus Subarea Plan and Planned Action EIS. The survey results will be incorporated into the planning process. The EIS scoping process is also underway, and the Planning Commission will host a scoping meeting at its September 1 meeting. Notices for the survey and the scoping meeting were sent to all property owners within the proposed expanded Downtown/County Campus subarea, plus an additional 800 feet on all sides. 6. Discussion: Multifamily Tax Exemption Code Revisions. Bond gave an overview of the code revisions and revised maps that have been prepared at Council’s direction for POMC 3.48 (Multifamily Property Tax Exemption) following the June 16 work-study meeting. Three types of tax exemption are now proposed, as shown on separate maps. Type 1 tax exemption provides 12-year exemptions for affordable housing in centers and for other selected properties, requires that the affordable units be significantly more affordable than is currently required in code. Type 2 exemption is an 8- year exemption intended to encourage redevelopment on sites with abandoned buildings, underutilized buildings, or sites where improvement to land value ratios are at least 2:1. Type 3 exemption is an 8-year exemption that requires certain performance and value standards be met, such as structured parking instead of surface parking, constructing mixed use buildings as part of a proposed project, or purchasing additional height through the City’s transfer of development rights (TDR) program and building taller buildings with higher assessed valuations. The MFTE revisions will be reviewed by Council at the September 15 work-study meeting. 7. Discussion: Projected Growth and Development Activity. Bond summarized ongoing and future development activity in the City. The 105-lot Blueberry Ridge subdivision is being paved, and a final plat application should be submitted within the next two months. The 49-lot Geiger subdivision is about to clear and start installing utilities and other infrastructure. The building inspector is currently reviewing plans for a 136-unit apartment complex in 10 buildings on SE Sedgwick Rd next to Fred Meyer. This project will have an adjacent, second phase to be developed within the next two years. The 62-unit Rush live-work project at Sidney and Sedgwick is under review, and the developer hopes to start construction next spring. An application for a 236-unit apartment site on Sidney Road in the Ruby Creek neighborhood is expected shortly. Stetson Heights Phase I has completed paving and should be submitting a final plat application soon. McCormick Woods Parcels C, D and E will be mostly built out by the end of this year. McCormick Parcel A was approved by the hearing examiner in August, has started clearing, and should be in for final plat early in 2021. Quadrant Homes has purchased McCormick Woods North and plans to submit for final plat this fall in order to obtain clearing and development permits in 2021. Housing Kitsap has sold about half of its Melcher Street subdivision lots, and is considering developing an apartment complex on the adjacent property to the north. The Lighthouse redevelopment project was approved by the hearing examiner, and is waiting on variance approval from the Department of Ecology. The Overlook Apartments Phase I is complete, and 99 units are proposed for Phase II in building permit review. The Riverstone 3 subdivision, which expired, has been resubmitted. An application has been submitted for a 30-unit apartment project at the corner of Harold and Lund, which will require building out the ROW of Harold Drive SE. Acting Chair Chang adjourned the meeting at 10:51 am. Next Meeting/Location: Wednesday, October 7 at 4:30 pm, via Zoom teleconference.