February 4, 2020, Planning Commission Meeting MinutesPlanning Commission Meeting Minutes
City Council Chambers, City Hall
February 4, 2020
Commissioners:
Present: Stephanie Bailey, David Bernstein, Joe Morrison, Suanne Martin Smith, Annette Stewart, Trish Tierney, Mark Trenary
Absent: Phil King
Staff Present:
Community Development Director Nick Bond, Long Range Planner Keri Sallee
1. Call to Order:
Chair Stewart called the meeting to order at 6:02 p.m. and led the pledge of allegiance.
2. welcome – planning commissioner joe morrison. The Planning Commission welcomed new Commissioner Joe Morrison, who replaced Kathleen Wilson in January. Morrison has lived in Port Orchard
for three years. He grew up in Anchorage, Alaska, and currently manages an investment fund for the City of Anchorage.
3. election of chair and vice chair. The Planning Commission elected its Chair and Vice Chair for 2020. Commissioner Bailey nominated Commissioner Stewart to continue as the Chair.
Commissioner Trenary seconded the motion. Commissioner Martin Smith nominated Commissioner Bailey to continue as the Vice Chair. Both nominees were confirmed by a unanimous vote.
4. approval of minutes from September 3, 2019. Commissioner Tierney moved to adopt the minutes of the Planning Commission meeting of November 5, 2019, as submitted. Commissioner Bernstein
seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously.
5. Business items:
A. Discussion: Tree Canopy/Significant Trees Code. The Planning Commission continued discussion of the draft Tree Canopy/Significant Trees Code. The version under discussion was initially
reviewed at the November 2019 meeting. Community Development Director Bond made real-time changes to an online working copy of the draft based on comments received at the February meeting,
and Commissioner Bernstein will provide Long Range Planner Sallee with additional comments to be included in the code as discussed. Sallee will prepare a final draft which includes
all of the February changes in redline, for Commission review and a potential vote at the March meeting.
B. Initial Discussion: McCormick Communities Request for Revision to Certain Design Standards. Bond said that Quadrant Homes will be developing Phase III of McCormick Woods, and has
asked for some revisions to the City’s design standards and related code sections to better fit their residential products. This revisions include: allowing houses on sloping lots to
be exempt from the minimum 2-foot ground floor elevation if the house is set back more than 15 feet from the right-of-way; allowing side-entry single-family detached homes; revisions
to minimum porch width and depth requirements; allowing a front stoop instead of a porch; allowing double-car driveways on townhomes with front-loaded garages; allowing a “carriage
unit” on top of a multi-unit garage structure serving a cottage court development. The Planning Commission supported the staff recommended code for the minimum ground floor elevation,
agreed to support side entry homes and revisions to porch width and depth requirements, agreed with staff’s recommendation that stoops could be appropriate for townhomes and attached
homes but not single-family detached homes and cottages; agreed with staff recommendation that double-car driveways for townhomes not be allowed; and supported the carriage unit proposal.
The Commission also supported a Director’s Interpretation issued by Bond in November 2019 regarding porch widths. Staff will prepare draft redline code changes for Commission discussion
and a potential vote at the March meeting.
C. Initial Discussion: GGLO Outreach Memo on Downtown Subarea Plan/EIS. Bond presented a memo from the City’s consultant, GGLO, which asked for guidance from the Planning Commission
and City Council on a number of topics regarding the proposed Downtown Subarea Plan and Planned Action EIS. The Planning Commission was asked to review the memo and provide feedback
by email to Sallee, who will compile the comments into one document for discussion at the March meeting.
Adjourn: Chair Stewart adjourned the meeting at 7:45 pm.
Annette Stewart, Chair
Nick Bond, Community Development Director