11-10-87 Planning BoardKALISPELL CITY -COUNTY PLANNING BOARD AND ZONING COMMISSION
MINUTES OF MEETING
NOVEMBER 10, 1987
CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by Charles Manning, President, at
AND ROLL CALL 7:40 p.m. Those present were Trippet, Manning, Stephens, Hall,
Treweek, and Reynolds. Those absent were Sloan (excused absence),
Hash, and Gunnerson. David Greer, Senior Planner, represented the
Flathead Regional Development Office.
MINUTES OCTOBER Trippet moved to approve the minutes of the meeting held on October
15, 1987 15, 1987. Stephens seconded the motion and it passed unanimously.
ADDISON SQUARE Manning introduced the application for preliminary plat approval of
PHASE II PRE- Addison Square Phase II by Alvin A. DeVinney. The proposed
LIMINARY PLAT subdivision is to divide 9.614 acres into nine residential lots in an
area located one mile east and .25 miles south of the intersection of
Helena Flats Road and Rose Crossing, adjoining Addison Square Road.
The location is more particularly described as being located in the
NW4 NW4 of Section 26, Township 29 North, Range 21 West, P.M.M.,
Flathead County.
Greer gave the staff report stating that since the report was created
one week ago, the developers have submitted an amended plat for 7
lots instead of 9 lots. Greer advised the Board that he would discuss
the 9 lot.proposal and conclude with a discussion of the "alternate"
proposal. -Findings of the staff report were highlighted. The area is
not zoned but the subdivision would not be in conformance with the
Kalispell City -County Master Plan. Covenants require that all
structures be placed on permanent foundations. The covenants are weak
in several areas especially concerning homeowner responsibilities.
Individual water and sewer facilities are proposed. Police protection
will be on an "on call" basis with no routine patrol. Ambulance
transport will take about ten minutes, which may not be adequate in
some emergencies. Fire protection is available from the Evergreen
Volunteer Fire Department. Traffic will increase and increase
conflicts with pedestrian use of the roads. Several lots abut the
100-year floodplain and all lots are within the 500-year floodplain.
Topography is suitable for development. Water quality is a concern
due'to the high ground water potential and rapid percolation of the
soils. Shallow wells are located in the vicinity. The drainage
channel offers excellent riparian habitat for wildlife. A buffer of
25"feet is proposed by the subdivider. Pets such as dogs and cats
will aggravate conflicts with wildlife. Taxes will be about $530 per
lot with a modular home on each lot. The impact to the Helena Flats
School may be significant from the standpoint of safety and classroom
capacity. This and other subdivisions in the area could cumulatively
create overcrowding problems in certain classes. The narrow roads
create safety problems for children walking to school. The proposed
parkland dedication of 0.31 acres is,insufficient and the proposal to
use a fee -in -lieu for park development may not be appropriate. The
soils are classified as prime agricultural soils. Indirect impacts to
adjoining agricultural land will include trespassing, pet harassment
of livestock, vehicular conflicts with farm machinery on the roads.
Public opinion has been negative. Greer summarized letters received
from Donald and Colleen Scharfe, Rudy and Iris Stevens, Kathy
Christensen, and Mike and Susan Dailey. These letters were in
opposition to the subdivision for reasons relating to: road safety,
school capacity, roaming dogs, trespassing, lack of need, rural
character of area, ground water pollution, shallow wells, impact to
agricultural uses, and cumulative effect of both phases of the
subdivision. Brief written comments were made by Marguerite Denges
and John Williams in favor of the subdivision. Greer expressed that
there is no justification of need for this type of subdivision.
Examples of existing subdivisions that are not yet built out include
North Springwood, Camelot Estates, Thompson Ranchettes, Addison
Square, Village Green, and South Meadows. The type and scale of the
lots do not fit the rural character of Addison Square. The design of
the subdivision does not comply with several requirements of the
regulations. Reference was made to the cul-de-sac approaches, tanker
recharge facility, and detail of covenants.
Concerns with traffic safety, non-compliance with the Master Plan,
indirect impacts to agriculture, school capacity, impacts to
wildlife, character of area, lack of need, public opposition, and
design problems led the staff to a recommendation of denial for the 9
lot subdivision.
Greer noted that with the amended plat there are several improvements
_ that help address some of the concerns the staff had with the
original proposal of 9 lots. Overall the amended plat provides a
design that has less impact on water quality, the school and traffic.
First of all there are only 7 lots in this proposal. Further, a .77
acre park is provided as is a tanker recharge facility. Vehicular
and property access is improved. A conservation easement is provided
and there are fewer acres devoted to lots. The covenants have also
been amended which now provide for fewer pets, the responsibility of
the tanker recharge facility is specified, restrictions applicable to
the Conservation Easement are articulated; and the responsibility for
the homeowners' park is specified. The staff felt that there is still
a negative impact to agricultural uses of the area, safety hazards
and overcrowding of the school is still a possibility, and that the
need for the subdivision is still not substantiated. The staff
offered a list of 20 suggested conditions of approval for the Board
to consider should they decide to recommend approval for the
alternate plat.
Public Hearing Manning opened the public hearing and called on proponents of the
subdivision to speak first.
Tom Sands commented on the redesign rather than the original
submittal of 9 lots. The developers feel that seven lots instead of
nine wells will not be detrimental and that wells currently less than
25 feet deep are considered illegal wells. He stated that there were
5 or 6 test holes dug and monitored this spring and there was not
water in them at the six foot level this year. When the construction
was done on the two new residences in Addison Square Phase I, there
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was not any water at the six foot level and the septic systems were
all approved by the State and County Health Departments. He added
that the Health Department does not issue septic permits if there is
a chance they will contaminate other wells or ground water.
Harley Brothers, Kalispell Home Center, stated that there is a need
for this type of subdivision. He said that the biggest problem he has
in selling modular type housing is finding suitable lots for home
placement. Most of his customers are looking for one acre tracts or
larger that have a reasonable cost. Many of the mobile home lots on
the market are not spacious enough or cost too much money.
Dave Hedeman of Montana Brokers stated that he was asked by Al
DeVinney to address the issue of need from the standpoint of real
estate. He stated that he receives a lot of inquiries for this type
of property. The reason for the failure of some of the other
subdivisions are many and varied. He also stated that when the
property owner is no longer able to operate his farming operation at
a profit then the highest and best use of the land has been lost and
another use must be found for the land. The need is there if the
development is done in such a way that it meets with state and
federal requirements. If the development is done according to the
regulations, then he did not feel that it would be add any more
impacts than uncontrolled development.
Hearing no more proponents, Manning called on opponents to the sub-
division proposal.
Susan Dailey stated that today the farmer in the area does not depend
on the land to give him a living but rather that farming is an
avocation he chooses to engage in. She felt that in regards to the
percolation holes that were dug and monitored this spring that this
is not a typical spring and the findings could not be accepted as
usual. She expressed concerns over dogs at large and the lack of
police protection in the area. She added that the neighborhood has
started work on a zoning petition since there is no way to check
development progress in the area. She also felt that covenants were
not strong enough to encourage the policing of themselves regarding
these negative impacts on the neighborhood.
Gail Strohschein stated that the subject property was never used as
agricultural land. She stated that she has a water problem at the
present time. Her well is a shallow one that is now pumping a lot of
sand. In all of the years that she has lived there, this is the first
year that this has happened. She felt that the three houses that are
on the property now was enough. She was concerned that the addition
of more wells in the area would further deplete the water supply for
those with shallow wells and that with the introduction of more
septic tanks contamination of those wells may follow. She also cited
the hazardous condition of traffic and pedestrians in the area.
Joann Speelman stated several areas of concern. They were water
pollution, additional septic systems in the area, dog problem,
trespassing on private property, traffic hazards from narrow roads
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and multiple uses of the roadway, and the fact that the proposed
subdivision does not conform to the Kalispell City -County Master
Plan. A natural deer crossing is also located on the property that
will be lost with development of the subdivision.
Iris Stevens was concerned with the lowering of the water table. For
the first time in 40 years her shallow well is sucking sand. She
believes that this may be due to the new wells of Addison Squares.
This subdivision should not be considered as just a seven or nine lot
but should also include the other four lots of the first phase.
Lorraine Callan said the quality of life would be affected. She said
the character of the area is rural with large lots.
Mildred Sanders said she moved there because it was rural. She has
cows and horses. She was concerned with trespass problems, garbage,
etc. and that approval of this subdivision would start a precedent.
She said the groundwater is high and that, in a normal spring, water
would reach the floor of her basement.
Bill Russell has nine horses and said he moved here to retire. He,
too, is drawing sand for the first time and is worried about
groundwater contamination from septic tanks. He said he is also
concerned with fire protection and traffic safety.
"Kathy Christensen said she also is concerned with the possibility of
water contamination. She moved there for the rural surroundings. Lots
for modular homes are available elsewhere. Trespassing will be a
particular problem.
There being no more comments, the public hearing was declared closed.
Board Discussion Manning stated that in reviewing the minutes of the last time Addison
Square Phase II was presented and that many of the same concerns were
brought forward at that time.
Hall felt that something needed to be done so that a developer did
not have to spend so much money prior to knowing whether he had an
approved subdivision. He felt that there has been good input from
each side but the system made him distressed. He suggested that some
less expensive hoops be found.
Greer stated that the staff has a pre -application conference with the
developer before they submit their proposal. At that time we try to
assess whether the subdivision has a chance or not but staff research
has not been done at that time. Sometimes after the staff research is
conducted the staff will draw different conclusions than previously
thought. It is never known for sure how the public or the Board will
react to a proposal. One reason for the preliminary plat is to
provide the subdivider conditions for approval, which should help the
subdivider identify expenses necessary to complete the subdivision.
In this particular area, there is no zoning and the County
Commissioners do not require compliance with the master plan so it is
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particularly hard to define what the results of subdivision review
would be.
Stephens stated that this pointed out the need to get the area zoned
as soon as possible. He added that it is not an easy decision.
Motion Trippet moved to recommend approval of the alternate plat for seven
lots with the suggested list of 20 conditions for approval of the
preliminary plat of Addison Square Phase II. Stephens seconded the
motion. In a roll call vote it failed by vote of 5 against and 1 in
favor. Those voting against the motion were Reynolds, Stephens, Hall,
Manning, and Treweek. The one favorable vote was from Trippet.
OLD BUSINESS Greer stated that Ordinance #1110 had passed the Kalispell City
Zone Reduction Council regarding the reduction of the zoning classifications. He
added that next month the City Council will pass a resolution to
adopt the official zoning map. Greer said that there are portions of
the text that needs to be worked on. Manning asked if each portion of
the text changes would be done separately or would a compilation be
done so that it is brought to the City Council one time only. Greer
stated that he was going to try to do all the background work and put
together a package proposal for the Board to review and subsequently
the City Council.
West Side Zoning Greer stated that the Commissioners have passed a resolution of
District intent and as soon as the first legal notice of the West Side Zoning
District proposal is published it will enter the 30-day protest
period. He thought the proposal would end its protest period sometime
in the middle of December.
Sign Regulations Greer said he will try to provide a process next month for continuing
the work on sign regulations.
NEW BUSINESS Greer said that the Board will probably be looking at the annexation
of a large piece of property in southwest Kalispell at the next
meeting. The annexation will be linked to a block grant proposed for
that area.
ADJOURNMENT Reynolds moved to adjourn the meeting and it was seconded by
Stephens. The meeting adjourned at 9:15 p.m.
3CL'a
Charles Man4 ing ident Ava Walters, Recording Secretary
Approved:
f �d
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