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09/11/01 Planning Board MinutesKALISPELL CITY -COUNTY PLANNING BOARD MINUTES OF MEETING SEPTEMBER 11, 2001 CITY PROJECTS CALL TO ORDER AND Chairman Greg Stevens called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. ROLL CALL Members present were: Don Garberg, Dale Pierce, Ron Van Natta, Bill Rice, Greg Stevens and Brian Sipe. Rob Heinecke and Don Mann had excused absences. Narda Wilson represented the Tri- City Planning Office. There were approximately 50 people in the audience. APPROVAL OF MINUTES There was a motion by Van Natta and second by Rice to approve OF THE SEPTEMBER 11, the minutes of the meeting of the September 11, 2001 meeting as 2001 MEETING presented. Stevens said he would like to make a few comments regarding the minutes under Old Business. WHITEFISH STAGE A request by Whitefish Stage Development, LLC, for an initial DEVELOPMENT zoning designation of RA- 1, Low Density Residential Apartment, ANNEXATION AND from the current County R-5, Two -Family Residential upon ZONING/PRELIMINARY annexation into the city of Kalispell on property that contains PLAT/ CONDITIONAL USE approximately 38.4 acres. It is located on the west side of Whitefish PERMIT Stage Road and north of Granrud Lane in the northeast part of Kalispell. Also; a request for preliminary plat approval of Whitefish Stage Condominiums, a 304-unit condominium development; and a request for a conditional use permit to allow the 304-unit condominium multi -family development, Whitefish Stage Condominiums. Sipe stepped down from the board due to a conflict of interest. STAFF REPORT Wilson asked the board to allow them to combine all three requests for the purposes of the presentation and public hearing, but to make separate motions on each item of business. Wilson described the project and noted the property is located on the west side of Whitefish Stage Road between Evergreen and Reserve Drives and is the last undeveloped 40-acre parcel in the area. Wilson said the property is currently in the county and is zoned County R-5, a Two -Family Residential zone that allows single-family residences and duplexes as permitted uses with a minimum lot size requirement of 5,400 square feet. Wilson said the applicants were proposing to annex the property into the city for the purpose of development and are proposing that the property be zoned City RA- 1, a Low Density Residential Apartment. This zoning district allows single-family residences and duplexes as permitted uses and allows multi -family dwellings as a conditionally permitted use. Wilson said the proposed RA-1 zoning has a minimum lot size of 6,000 square feet and requires an additional 3,000 square feet for Kalispell City -County Planning Board Minutes of the October 91 2001 Meeting Page 1 of 16 each dwelling beyond a duplex; the potential density under the existing County R-5 zoning, though it would be limited to single- family residences and duplexes, was one dwelling per 2,700 square feet The property is designated on the Master Plan map as Suburban Residential, an area that would typically not have public water or sewer. The plan encourages redesignation of Suburban Residential areas to a higher density once public sewer becomes available. Wilson said because public sewer would be extended to the property and the proposed zoning closely reflects the existing zoning, the RA -I zoning designation would be appropriate once it was annexed. Wilson said the purpose of the annexation was for a 304-lot multi- family condominium development which would be done in six phases. Phase I would be developed along Whitefish Stage Road and Granrud Lane, and the baiance of the phases would be developed as the market dictated. Wilson said the project would be developed as duplex, six-plex and nine-plex units. They would be individually owned and the homeowners would pay into an association for the maintenance of the common elements such as landscaping, clubhouse and fencing. Wilson said the maximum density that would be allowed under the RA- I is 417 units or one dwelling per 3,000 square feet, and the density that was being proposed is one dwelling per 4,108 square feet or 72.9% of the maximum density. Wilson said that in comparison with the County R-5 zoning, which has a maximum density potential of 463 units, the base density is reduced under the proposed RA- 1. Wilson said the water would be provided by the Evergreen Water District and sewer would be provided by the City of Kalispell via the Village County Sewer District and would be constructed to City standards. Wilson noted at full build -out the traffic projections for the subdivision were approximately 1,200 trip per day, with primary access would be from Whitefish Stage Road which would be developed during Phase 1. Wilson said this section of Whitefish Stage Road is the third busiest County road with a daily average of 4,284 trips a day from a study done in 1997. Wilson said Granrud Lane would also provide access and will be developed earlier than Phase V in order to construct a looped water system. Wilson said a traffic study assessing the impacts to Whitefish Stage Road from the subdivision and Granrud Lane would be required by the Public Works Department as part of their review process. Wilson said one of the largest issues that staff struggled in order to provide the board with a recommendation was the upgrade of Granrud Lane, which is a paved County road and constructed to County standards. Wilson said the entire length of Granrud Lane was contiguous to the city to the south and would be annexed as part of the subdivision and some improvements might be needed. Kalispell City -County Planning Board Minutes of the October 9, 2001 Meeting Page 2 of 16 Wilson said the Kalispell Subdivision Regulations require that any public or private street or road providing ingress/egress to the subdivision shall meet street design standards. This would require the developer to upgrade Granrud Lane to City standards which includes curb, gutter and sidewalks on both sides. Wilson said because the subdivision only fronted on the north side of Granrud Lane it might not be reasonable to require the developer to fully upgrade both sides of the road, which is paved but does not have curb, gutter or sidewalks. An alternative might be to require upgrading of both sides of the road with curb and gutter but sidewalks on one side, or the creation of a special improvements district to cover the upgrade of Granrud Lane to the south that fronts along Buffalo Stage Phase V. Wilson said she had contacted Edgerton School regarding enrollment capacity, which is 568 students, and as of September of this year they were at 548, so the development could have an impact on the school. Wilson said the developers wanted to pay cash -in -lieu of parkland, because the common areas that would be commonly owned by the homeowners association. Wilson said when staff had developed the conditions for the conditional use permit they had tried to be consistent with the preliminary plat and also to time the permit and the extensions in conjunction with the plat. Staff was recommending approval of the annexation and zoning, preliminary plat and conditional use permit subject to the conditions as stated. Stevens asked if the county R-5 zone allowed mobile homes. Wilson said it allowed double -wide and single -wide mobile homes on a permanent foundation. Stevens asked why they couldn't use Evergreen sewer. Wilson said it was outside the Evergreen Sewer District boundaries and would have to get permission to use the Village County Sewer District to use their collection system, which the City would probably take over next summer, or they could annex into the sewer district. Stevens said potentially under the current zoning there could be mobile homes put on the parcel, which could be worse than what is being proposed. APPLICANT/AGENCIES Jay Billmayer, of Billmayer Engineering, introduced David Johns, of Johns Development Group in Phoenix, AZ and Joanne and Jim Purdy and Tom Cline of West One Development in Whitefish, and Jeff Swenson of Remax Realty saying they had worked together to develop this concept after studying the market and had chosen this location' because of its availability to services and the existing development pattern in the surrounding neighborhood. Kalispell City -County Planning Board Minutes of the October 9, 2001 Meeting Page 3 of 16 Billmayer said the development would be in the mid to upper range in pricing and they had also added amenities to the project such as a clubhouse and pool facility directly off of Whitefish Stage Road. The clubhouse would be constructed in the first phase of the project and would cost in excess of one million dollars in order to create an image for the project. Billmayer said the entire perimeter would be landscaped and there would be a buffer zone and fencing between Whitefish Stage Road and the development. Billmayer said this project would be marketed more as a quality second home for older people with no young families. They would probably not be full time residents and traffic may be less than anticipated. Billmayer said he had visited with Gary Rose, Superintendent of School District 5, who said it is policy that if a school is at capacity, then there may be some busing, and he was not concerned about the impacts from this project. Billmayer said they didn't Eke the layout of Granrud Lane because it had become a de facto back door to other subdivisions, and the primary access would be Whitefish Stage. Billmayer said he understood that there was a waiver of protest of an special improvements district that was part of the Buffalo Stage subdivision approval and they were willing to consider the same treatment if that is how the board would like it handled. Billmayer said he didn't feel they should be required to totally upgrade all of Granrud Lane. Billmayer asked the board if they would consider the fact that they were spending approximately $1.2 million dollars up front for the common facilities, and they would rather pay cash -in -lieu instead of giving up any of the land in the project. David Johns spoke in favor of the project saying they had selected this site because of its current zoning and thought the project would improve the area as opposed to its alternative use, and to also lower its density. Johns said the market they were aiming for were people from out of the area who wanted a second home, but did feel that over time, many of them would become permanent residents. Johns said because of the amenity package they were offering, which includes clubhouse, recreation rooms, pool facilities, etc.; the early retirement market people found these very attractive and that is what the project was geared for. Johns said the condominiums would sell for a base price of $180,000 to $280,000 and would range in size from 1,300 square feet to 1,800 square feet. Johns said he would like to complimented staff on their professionalism in the handling of this project. PUBLIC HEARING The public hearing was opened to those who wished to speak on the proposal. PROPONENTS Jean Agather, representing the Flathead Business and Industry Association, said she would especially like to speak in favor of the Kalispell City -County Planning Board Minutes of the October 9, 2001 Meeting Page 4 of 16 project moving expeditiously through the system. Agather said they in the business community have found that within the planning process that has gone on in the valley for the last few years has caused developers enormous delays which has affected the viability of their project with the main cause being the inability of the County and the City to agree on a growth policy. Agather said this project meets some of the goals and needs of the community. Stevens said in going through the growth policy they had found that a lot of the income in the county comes from retirement income and it was one of the biggest sources, and asked Agather if her organization handled any of those statistics. Agather said she didn't have any statistics, but the Flathead Valley was a huge retirement area and it was an issue that needed to be addressed. She said they will continue to see more urban flight and this type of project is what people will be looking for who want to get out of higher density areas. OPPONENTS Jefferson Oxford, 2118 Mission Way South, stated his neighborhood had started two petitions in opposition. He said there was some duplication of names because one of the petitions had been lost. Oxford stated the concerns of opposition about the development as the additional traffic impact to Whitefish Stage Road, the RA- I zoning will destroy the family nature of the neighborhood, the additional traffic will impact the safety of children on their way to and from school, the impact to the quality of education in the school system, it would quadruple the amount of residences in similar neighborhood, it may drive property values down, and there may be more crime because apartments and condos were transient in nature. Oxford urged the board to consider the character of the neighborhood stating this would be a total change from the single-family character that it is now. Doug Green, 234 Mission Trail, asked what low density was because in comparison with the surrounding neighborhoods it looked like twice the density as what exists. Green also said he had concerns with the additional traffic impacts to the road systems. Bruce May spoke in opposition saying there are only seven duplexes on Granrud Lane with all the rest being single-family residences and that six and nine-plex units a -re not compatible with the neighborhood. May also said this appeaxs to be a high end project, would not be available to the average wage earner in the valley. It was ignoring the housing shortage, and asked if there was a there a need for this type of development. Dick Betchler, Mission Way South, stated he was opposed to the project because of the additional traffic impacts to the road system and that it would necessitate the need for a new fire station and asked that some land be donated for that. He also asked that the density and cash in lieu be clarified. Stevens said land had been donated at the Home Depot project for Kalispell City -County Planning Board Minutes of the October 9, 2001 Meeting Page 5 of 16 a new fire station. Stevens noted they had a large number of people at the meeting. They had heard opposition revolving around traffic flow, family character of the area, traffic safety, detriment to education, crime, property values, incompatibly with the area, density, etc. and asked that if the opponents were going to address these same concerns to be brief, and to say they agreed with the previous concerns. Pam Hahn, 626 County Way, stated she feels the density is too high, it was incompatible with the neighborhood, the traffic is too much for Whitefish Stage and the project needs to be somewhere else. Bennett Kauffer, 2082 Mission Way South, stated his concerns were also the devaluation of the property, this project doesn't need to be in a single-family area, the roads are dangerous and the traffic is bad. Elaine Snyder, 454 County Way South, asked if this property was annexed what would happen to the Country Way Subdivisions, because they didn't want to be annexed. Sandy Hyser also expressed concern about the annexation and asked what would happen to them if the property were annexed. John Garfield, 2046 Mission Way South, said the entrance to the project off of Whitefish Stage would be almost directly behind their home. Garfield said the developers had selected this site because of its current zoning and asked why they were asking for a change in the zoning. Stevens said the applicants want to be annexed into the city and the County and City zoning designations were different. Garfield asked if there wasn't a closer match. Garfield said he had concerns regarding the safety of Granrud Lane, the density of the project was not compatible with the area and that he was not in favor of the development. There was no one else who wished to speak and the public hearing was closed. Stevens asked Billmayer if he could respond to some of the issues. Billmayer said he had been in development for many years and had heard all these protests before, as had the board, but with the extension of City services there comes a change in density and land use. Billmayer said the traffic numbers that were available were of record, but they were average daily trips, and they were required to cite the maximum. Billmayer said it would be less than a ten percent increase in traffic on Whitefish Stage. Billmayer as growth occurred they were all feeling the stress throughout the valley not just on Whitefish Stage Road. Kalispell City -County Planning Board Minutes of the October 91 2001 Meeting Page 6 of 16 Wilson said in regard to the zoning issues the County R-5 zoning is defined as a Two -Family Residential zone, which anticipates single- family and duplex dwellings and a more comparable City zoning would be R-4, a Two -Family Residential zone that anticipates single-family and duplex dwellings as permitted uses. Wilson said the RA- I zoning enabled them to do multi -family residential, which is not allowed in the City R-4 zone. Wilson noted that the City R-4 and the RA-1 both have a density of one dwelling per 3,000 square feet. Therefore, the density doesn't change. The applicants chose RA- I because of the multi -family concept with the condos that wouldn't be allowed under R-4. Wilson said she viewed this as an alternative housing opportunity, and that some people may not like the design because it's multi- family but the design was the marketing strategy behind the development in that the homeowners will be able to pay into an association and will know the maintenance on their home and yard will be taken care of. Wilson said not everyone could or wanted to maintain yards or maintenance issues. Wilson said the density was not different than what could be under similar zoning, but it is the design that is different in that it is a condominium project rather than single-family homes. Wilson said in regards to the Whitefish Stage Road issue, the County and the City would require a traffic analysis on Whitefish Stage Road that would assess the level of service of the roadway and the increased impacts as a result of the traffic and would require improvements to the road to mitigate those impacts. Wilson said in regards to the annexation issues, the City only annexes based on petition or if properties were receiving City water or sewer and a condition of continuing to receive those services may be annexation. Wilson said the City doesn't annex people who are on private water and sewer systems that a functioning properly, so this should not be a concern. Wilson said another issue that had been brought up was densities. The density under R-5, 231 lots could be created. On those 231 lots, either a single-family or duplex could be constructed up to a maximum of 463 dwellings if every one of the 231 lots had a duplex. Stevens asked the difference between a townhouse and a condominium. Wilson said with the townhouse you get title to the land and with a condominium there is no title to real estate, you own the building but all the land is held in common. Wilson said there were also different construction standards between the two. Van Natta asked how they arrived at the cash -in -lieu. Wilson said Condition #12 had been mistakenly put in the staff Kalispell City -County Planning Board Minutes of the October 91 2001 Meeting Page 7 of 16 report and asked the board to delete it. Wilson said parkland dedication is based on the size of the lots; if its one-half acre or smaller it is one -ninth of the amount of area devoted to lots or 11 percent of the unimproved market value of the area in lots. Wilson said the applicants didn't provide a per -acre value and $ 10,000 was close to what a 40 acre parcel would cost. She said when the purchase was final and if they could demonstrate they paid less than that based on their purchase price or provide an independent appraisal, then they could use that as an alternate way to calculate the land value. Wilson said the recreational amenities and the investment in the common areas were not in the original plan, but perhaps it could be an issue the boa-rd could address as cash in lieu. MOTION Garberg moved to adopt staff report #KA-0 1-6 as findings of fact and forward a recommendation to Kalispell City Council that the initial zoning of this property should be RA- 1, Low Density Residential Apartment, upon annexation to the city. Hines seconded the motion. BOARD DISCUSSION Stevens said that if there was a waiver of a special improvement district provided by Buffalo Stage for Granrud Lane, and if they received a waiver of SID from the applicants, then between the two parties they could do what they wanted with the road. Stevens said he had visited the site, and that the people in Buffalo Stage might not want a sidewalk in their backyards, that it might be better if there was one only on the north side. Wilson said she would research the issue. Stevens said income from retirement was one number one in the valley at present and if the project was approved it would be the equivalent of another 400 to 500 paychecks. Stevens said the valley was in transition to retail, retirement and recreation from the traditional agriculture and timber, and this issue was a standard dilemma with increased density near city services. Stevens said he was in favor of the high -end condos because they would not have the impact on the schools, police or traffic as a regular subdivision would since many of the people will not be full time residents. Stevens said if the project was approved, it would add a big increase to the tax base for minimal impact on the cost of services, he equated this project more as a planned unit development that was more attractive than what could be developed there and he would vote in favor of it. Van Natta said in the draft growth policy Granrud Lane is proposed to be extended to Highway 93, West Reserve is proposed to be upgraded to four lanes in conjunction with the Bypass, and Whitefish Stage has always been bad. Van Natta said his concern is about inadequate right-of-way on Whitefish Stage Road for upgrading in the future. Wilson said the Federal Highway Administration gave $400,000 to Kalispell City -County Planning Board Minutes of the October 9, 2001 Meeting Page 8 of 16 the Kalispell Urban Road System and that Whitefish Stage would be improved between West Reserve and the Stillwater Bridge. That would include widening the shoulders, ditching, and an asphalt overlay which should last about ten 10 years. The project is scheduled to start in the Spring of 2002. Wilson said because there hasn't been an identifiable project along Whitefish Stage, they don't know how much right-of-way to ask for. Also, when the road project is designed, part of the construction cost of the road would include the acquisition of private property, and this would be an issue that the property owners would deal with at that time. Wilson said they had considered this and it appeared that there was at least 10 to 20 feet along Whitefish Stage Road in the common area that could be taken as right-of-way without impacting the condominiums and still meet the setbacks. Van Natta said they need a specific response from the school. Wilson said she talked to Harry Amend and they can accommodate children in the district though maybe not at the neighborhood school. Rice said it made sense to put density where services are available and the project was acceptable to him. ROLL CALL The motion passed unanimously with six in favor, one opposed and one absention. MOTION Rice moved to adopt staff report #KPP-0 1-02 as findings of fact and recommend to the Kalispell City Council that the preliminary plat be approved subject to the conditions as stated and as amended by deleting Condition # 12. Van Natta seconded the motion. Garberg asked for clarification on Condition #3 which was requiring curbs, gutters, sidewalks, etc. and asked if that was referring to Granrud Lane also. Wilson said Condition #3 only referred to the internal roadways of the subdivision. Stevens said they could insert the word "internal" roadways into Condition #3. MOTION (CONDITION #7) Stevens moved that Condition #7 be amended to read "a waiver to protest a special improvement district to upgrade Granrud Lane to city standards in accordance with the City of Kalispell's Design and Construction Standards for urban streets be filed with the final plat." Rice asked if that would require sidewalks on both sides of the street. Wilson said it would be up to the Public Works Department in working with the neighborhood on what they would like to do. Kalispell City -County Planning Board Minutes of the October 9, 2001 Meeting Page 9 of 16 Wilson said she would research the Buffalo Stage waiver of SID. Rice seconded the motion to amend Condition #7 as stated. ROLL CALL VOTE The motion passed unanimously. MOTION (CONDITION #6) Stevens moved to amend Condition #6 to read "That the developer shall obtain written approval for the proposed approaches onto Whitefish Stage Road by the Montana Department of Transportation and the Flathead County Road Department and from Granrud Lane by the Kalispell Public Works Department and any conditions or improvements associated with the approval be completed prior to final plat submittal." Van Natta seconded the motion. ROLL CALL VOTES The motion passed unanimously. MOTION (CONDITION Stevens moved to delete Condition #15. Garberg seconded the #15) motion. MOTION (AMENDMENT) Van Natta moved to amend Condition #15 to read "A recommendation on parkland dedication requirements shall be made to the City Council by the Tri-City Planning Office." Rice seconded the motion. MOTION Garberg moved to amend the motion to say "that in addition to the verbiage accepted that the Board recommend that the common ground satisfy the requirement for parkland as long as it meets statutes." The motion died for lack of a second. ROLL CALL VOTE The motion passed unanimously. ROLL CALL VOTE (MAIN The motion passed unanimously. MOTION) MOTION (CONDITIONAL Garberg moved to adopt staff report #KCU-01-5 as findings of fact USE PERMIT) and forward a recommendation to the Kalispell City Council to grant the conditional use permit for Whitefish Stage Condominiums subject to the conditions as amended in the preliminary plat. Pierce seconded the motion. ROLL CALL VOTE (MAIN The motion passed unanimously. MOTION A zone change request by the Flathead City -County Health Department from R-4, Two Family Residential, a residential district FLATHEAD CITY -COUNTY that allows single family and duplex dwellings as permitted uses, to HEALTH DEPARTMENT R-5, Residential / Professional Office, a residential district that also ZONE CHANGE allows professional and government offices for property located on the east side of First Avenue West between 10th Street West and 'I lth Street West containing approximately one acre. STAFF REPORT Narda Wilson of the Tri-City Planning Office gave a presentation of staff report #KZC-0 1-3 saying this was a request for a zone change Kalispell City -County Planning Board Minutes of the October 91 2001 Meeting Page 10 of 16