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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 09/10/2008 FORTANGELES WAS H I N G TON, U. S. A. COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AGENDA PLANNING COMMISSION 321 East Fifth Street September 10, 2098 6 p.m. I. CALL TO ORDER Pledge Of Allegiance Led by the Chair II. ROLL CALL III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Regular meeting of August 27,2008 IV. PUBLIC HEARINGS: SHORELINE CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT - SMA 08-02 - THE LANDING MALL, 427 West Fifth Street: Request to allow non-water-oriented uses in the Urban- Harbor jurisdiction and water-oriented uses in the Aquatic-Harbor jurisdiction of the Port Angeles Harbor, located in the Central Business District CBD zone. V. COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE PUBLIC VI. STAFF REPORTS VII. REPORTS OF COMMISSION MEMBERS VIII. ADJOURNMENT PLANNING COMMISSIONERS John Matthews (ChaIr), Doc ReISS (VIce Chmr),Werner BeIer, Mike CaudIll, John SmIth, TIm Boyle, one vacancy PLANNING STAFF Nathan West, Director, Sue Roberds, Planning Manager, Scott Johns, ASSOCIate Planner, Dan BIalzlk, ASSIstant Planner . . . MINUTES PLANNING COMMISSION Port Angeles, Washington 98362 September 10, 2008 6:00 p.m. ROLL CALL Members Present: John Matthews, Werner Beier, Mike Caudill, John Smith, Doc Reiss, Tim Boyle Members Excused: One vacancy Staff Present: Sue Roberds, Scott Johns, Heidi Greenwood Pubhc Present: Paul and Sarah Cronauer, Carol Jada, Jack Harmon, Chetta Wallace, Nicole Hooker, Lisa Ann Dorrell, Marie and Melissa Balducci, Eric Mischke, Ralph Timmerman APPROVAL OF MINUTES No minutes were presented for review. PUBLIC HEARINGS: Chair Matthews indicated that those who testify must sign the "Sign In" log and affirm that their testimony will be truthful to the best of their knowledge. SHORELINE CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT - SMA 08-02 - THE LANDING MALL. 115 East Railroad Avenue: Request to allow non-water- oriented uses in the Urban-Harbor jurisdiction and water-oriented uses in the Aquatic-Harbor jurisdiction of the Port Angeles Harbor, located in the Central Business District CBD zone. Associate Planner Scott Johns reviewed the Department Report recommending approval of the conditional shoreline permit with conditions. Mr. Johns responded to questions relative to why the mall and pier uses need to remain tied as one use. The pier provides an opportunity to create shoreline dependent/shoreline oriented uses without which most of the use of The Landing mall development would not meet the intent of the City's Shoreline Master Program that requires uses within the shoreline area to be shoreline oriented or shoreline dependent. Commissioner Beier asked whether parking impacts should be analyzed before a conditional use permit is considered. Mr. Johns explained that it is not possible to effectively analyze traffic impacts prior to knowing what proposed activities are desired. The conditional shoreline permit identifies that retail uses not related to the shoreline environment are proposed, but does not specifically state what those uses are to be. Currently, a hair salon/spa is requested. As time goes by, uses may change. It will be necessary to carefully analyze each use and its impacts on available on site parking pnor to issuance of building permits or of occupancy permits during the life of the mall use. If parking is maxed out, an intended use will not be . . . Planmng CommiSSIOn Mmutes September 10.2008 ' Page 2 permitted to occupy space on the site without alternative parking arrangements. It wIll be very important for the property owner to keep track of the parking issues, amount of available parking, and to identify when to cease adding activities to the mall. Staff will also keep a record of the uses and available parking and may not be able to issue occupancy permits if it is shown that parking is not available to support a particular use. The currently proposed activity, a hair salon/spa, will require significant on site parking at 3 spaces per station. Commissioner Reiss asked if restaurant could be developed along the pier. Mr. Johns responded that restaurants are permitted uses within shoreline environments. Mr. Johns responded to Commissioner Matthews that the pier is not zoned for industrial use. The entire site is located within the City's Central Business District, and as such, is zoned commercial. Discussion continued with regard to the limited parking given the scope of the proposed mall development, and continued relative to the applicant's specific proposal to allow a hair salon/day spa within the shoreline environment. Mrs. Roberds noted that the potential number of uses that could be contained within the structure, on the site, would be dependent on the ability to accommodate the total parking impact of those uses. The property owner will need to limit site occupancy to those uses that are most important to his business plan and ensure that parking is available for those uses. Chair Matthews reviewed the quasi judicial public hearing guidelines and qualifying statements. Following review of the aforementioned, Commissioner Beier stated that a brief ex parte communication had occurred between himself and the applicant, who is a customer of the bank that he manages. He immediately informed the applicant that he could not discuss matters relative to The Landing until after action on the pending shoreline permit. Although Mr. Cronauer has financial dealings with the bank that he manages, he did not believe that fact would cause him to not be able to act fairly on the matter or that there would appear to be an issue wIth appearance of fairness. Commissioner Beier stated that he would leave the meeting if anyone disagreed. No commissioner objected to his remaining to act on the proceeding, nor did any member of the audience object. Chair Matthews opened the public hearing. Paul Cronauer, 806 Milwaukee Drive, provided a history of his renovation of The Landing mall and noted that the mall has historically supported a variety of non shoreline related retail uses since originally constructed. He is asking for permission to continue to allow a wide variety of undetermined uses within the structure similar to those uses permitted in other locations withm the Central Business District. He needs to make the operation financially stable, and a variety of uses should ensure that potential. Mr. Cronauer explained the improvements that he has planned for the pier structure and for the floating docks. Uses may include use by Platypus Marine or a farmer's market. The docks have been reoriented from north/south to east/west per direction of the Department of Ecology to accommodate water dependent activities in the area. He is trying to get clear direction as to what uses are permitted in the Aquatic and Urban Harbor shoreline environments. Jack Harmon, 404 E. Ahlvers Road, operates the water dependent ferry and transport activity that is located wIthin the Landing mall. He applauded Mr. Cronauer's efforts to upgrade and remodel the mall. As a mall tenant, neither he, nor his customers have ever been permitted to park on mall property. He asked if the conditional use permit would extend to use of the pier, or just the mall. Mr. Johns responded that the conditional use permit is being requested for the entire site. Chetta Wallace, 2430 E. Ryan Avenue, noted that waste discharge from the proposed beauty salon would be to the sewer system. . . . Planning CommissIOn Mmutes September 10.2008 Page 3 Eric Mischke, 1634 W. ih,Street, works at the Landing mall. He did not believe that on site parking is an issue. He is working on site 8 - 10 hours a day. Parking only appears to be a problem during the lunch and dinner hours. Lisa Ann Dorrell, 133 Jamestown Road, Sequim, said that the Landing mall is empty. She encouraged approval for a beauty salon. Commissioner Reiss asked Mr. Cronauer what the vacancy rate is at the mall, and if there appears to be a parking issue. Is parking adequate for additional tenants? Mr. Cronauer responded that he has never not been able to find a parking space. The mall has a total of 3600 square feet of area that is not as yet rented. Employees can park off site if necessary. Melissa Balducci, 822 South Laurel Street, said that her family has lived in this town for 45 years. A new salon potential is exciting. There being no further public comments, Chair Matthews closed the public portion of the hearing. Planning Manager Sue Roberds asked if she could address some of the testimony that had been provided. Chair Matthews agreed. She noted that each and every business in the City is reqUIred to provide on site parking for its customers and employees by City ordinance. There is some exception for those businesses constructed prior to 1965 that did not then, nor do they now, have the ability to provide parking, adequate, or otherwise. All new commercial construction after 1965 must address its parking impact on site and limit its occupancy to what it can handle, parking wise. In some cases, shared parking arrangements can be made, but the basic premise IS that it is the business owner/operator's responsibility to contain and be responsible for parking and traffic generated from its users. It is not permitted that business owners/operators will require or expect their employees to park elsewhere, nor that they should build their site to such an extent that on site parking cannot accommodate the traffic impact generated by the site use. Weare an automobIle oriented society. That fact cannot be ignored. It is disturbing that neither Mr. Harmon nor his employees who occupy a water dependent site location within the mall have never been permitted to park on site or that Mr. Cronauer might expect the surrounding commercial area to provide parking for his employees. Mr. Cronauer responded that a large area of the Mall remains vacant of tenants. Parking for the site was not calculated on the footprint of the Mall, but rather, on areas within the mall that were designated for use. The usable area has been increased, while the footprint has not, by rearrangement and/or by eliminatmg previously open space areas. Staff s recommendation of support of the proposed non water related, non water dependent uses wIthin the Mall is based largely on the analysis that the new decking/dock and pier will provide additional shoreline public access areas that are required under the City's Shoreline Master Program. Those additional areas should offset the permissibility of actIvities within the mall structure for uses not necessarily permitted under the current Master Program m the Urban Harbor environment, e.g., personal service uses. The applicant stated that he has considered industrial uses (Westport Shipyard or Platypus Marine) for the pier. Industrial uses are not permitted in the commercial zone. The pier is located in the Aquatic Harbor (waterward of ordmary high water mark) shoreline environment and uses must be those allowed under that designation shoreline environment. Discussion contmued amongst Commission members on the testimony provided and how the site would accommodate required parking. It was agreed that a variety of uses would provide an opportunity to bring people to the shoreline area but it was agreed that few of the uses currently within the mall are intended to be either water dependent or water related. . . . Planmng COmnllSSlOn Minutes September 10,2008 Page 4 After lengthy discussion, and a consensus that Commissioner Beier moved to recommend that the Department of Ecology approve the shoreline substantial development conditional use permit citing the 4 conditions, 8 findings, and 7 conclusions noted in staff's report as follows: Conditions 1. All non-water-oriented commercial uses shall be confined to the interior of the Landing mall structure. All uses located in the Aquatic-Harbor jurisdiction shall be water-oriented uses as specified by the Shoreline Master Program. Non-water-oriented uses are prohibited waterward of the ordinary high water mark in the Aquatic Harbor jurisdiction. 2. Prior to receiving a certificate of occupancy for any individual business m The Landing mall, adequate provisions ensuring that parking requirements have been met to the satisfaction of the City of Port Angeles Community and Economic Development Department and consistent with P AMC 14.40 (Parking) shall be made. 3. The adjacent pier and structure located on the pier referred to in the application shall remain part of the site and shall not be separated through sale to ensure that an ample mix of water-oriented and non-water-oriented urban and aquatic environmental uses are provided. Public access amenities on the pier and the exterior walk shall remain open and available to the general public. 4. Conditions 1 through 9 of SMA 07-04 issued for the subject site on August 8, 2007, shall remain in effect. Expansion of the floating dock can be no more than 20 feet north of the existing north end of the dock and no more than that previously approved in SMA 07-04. Findim!s Based on the information provided in the September 10, 2008, Staff Report for SMA 08-02 including all of its attachments, comments and information presented during the public hearing, and the Planning Commission's dIScussion and deliberation, the City of Port Angeles Planning Commission hereby finds that: 1. An application for a shoreline conditional use permit was submitted by the Landings Partnership LLC on August 6, 2008, to allow non-water-dependent uses to be included in a structure located within the shorelIne jurisdiction of Port Angeles Harbor. The site is located within the Urban-Harbor and Aquatic-Harbor designated jurisdictions of the City of Port Angeles' Shoreline Master Program. 2. In accordance with the Shoreline Management Act, a conditional use may be granted if all five of the specified criteria can be met, as well as consideration of the cumulative effects of such requests has been made. These include assurances related to the proposed project that: 1) applicable policies are maintained, 2) public use of the shoreline is not impacted, 3) compatibility with adjacent uses can be made, 4) no adverse effects to the shoreline will result, and 5) that the public interest is maintained. As conditioned, the proposal meets the criteria specified. 3. Due to the site's location in the Central Business District, its orientation and physical access to the water, and surrounding land uses, water-oriented uses are not reasonably expected to locate inside The Landing mall building in the areas proposed for non-water- . . . Planning COml1JlSSlOn Minutes September 10,2008 Page 5 oriented uses. The proposed non-water-oriented uses do not usurp or displace any land currently occupied by water-oriented uses and will not interfere with any water-oriented uses. The proposed non-water-oriented uses will attract new users to the site and therefore mcrease public use and enjoyment ofthe shoreline. 4. A Determination of Non-Significance and adoption of existing environmental documents was issued by the City of Port Angeles SEP A Responsible Official for the proposal on September 5,2008. The adopted document is a Determination of Non Significance #1201 issued for a similar project on the same property on August 1,2007. A Shoreline Substantial Development permit, SMA 07-04, was issued on August 8, 2007, for exterior expansion of the building, floating dock, and repair ofthe pier. Expansion of the floating dock was approved to extend the dock 20 feet north and 200 feet to the east as the only new over-water structure permitted. The Port Angeles Shoreline Master Program, Comprehensive Plan, Zoning Ordmance and critical areas ordinances have been reviewed with respect to this application. The site is designated Commercial on the City's Comprehensive Plan Land Use Map, Central Business District in the City's Zomng Ordinance, and a combination of Urban- Harbor and Aquatic Harbor in the City's Shoreline Master Program. Chapter 5 Environmental Designation Matrices of the City's Shoreline Master Program indicates non-water-oriented uses are conditional uses in the Urban-Harbor designation and are prohibited uses in the Aquatic Harbor designation. The City's waterfront trail runs east and west along Railroad Avenue adjacent to the south side of the project. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Conclusions Based on the information provIded in the September 10, 2008, Staff Report for SMA 08-02 including all of its attachments, comments, and information presented dunng the public heanng, the Planning CommissIOn's discussIOn and deliberation, and the above listed findings, the City of Port Angeles Planning Commission hereby concludes that: A. The proposed project is consistent with the City's Shoreline Master Program. The site meets the requirements of the Urban-Harbor and the Aquatic-Harbor shoreline jurisdictions. Non-water-oriented uses are allowed by conditional use permit in the U-H designatIOn and water-oriented uses are allowed by conditional use in the A-H designation. B. The proposed project is consistent with the City's Comprehensive Plan, and zoning ordinance. The Comprehensive Plan designates the area as commercial, and the site is zoned Central Business District where mixed commercial uses are permitted. C. As conditioned, the proposed uses will not be detrimental to the shoreline. D. The proposed project will not change the shoreline environment along the City's waterfront. E. As conditioned, the proposal meets the criteria for a conditional use permit as outlined in the Environmental Designation Use Matrices. The proposed project will not interfere with public use oflands or waters. F. . . . Planmng CommiSSIOn MlI1utes September J O. 2008 Page 6 G. The following adopted City regulations were reviewed in consideration ofthe application: Comprehensive Plan Land Use Element Goal D & Policies 1 & 2, Goal E policy 1, and Goal F & Policies 1 & 2, Conservation Element Goal A, Policy 1, Goal B and Policies 2 & 9, Goal D & Policies 1,5, & 8, and Economic Development Element goal A, Policies 3 - 6; the City's Shoreline Master Program's Urban-Harbor and Aquatic- Harbor designations and Chapter 3, Goals A.l & 3, B. 1-6, Chapter 4 General Policies and Regulations 1,3-5, Policies B-1 and 2, D-l, E-2, and J-2, Chapter 5, Policies D-l & 2,4,8-11, F-I-3, and Chapter 6, Policies C-l -5, and all associated regulations. See complete text in Attachment B. Commissioner Boyle seconded the motion, which passed 6 - O. Staff noted that, as a conditional use permit, the matter would be forwarded to the State Department of Ecology (DOE) for final disposition. There is a 21 day waiting period for a response from DOE in consideration of conditional use permits. COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE PUBLIC None STAFF REPORTS Planner Johns noted that the City had submitted an American Institute of Architecture (AlA) grant for assistance in redesign of entryway and main traffic corridors within the City. REPORTS OF COMMISSION MEMBERS None ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 8:45 p.m. / PREPARED BY: S. Roberds CITY OF I20RTANGELES o WAS H I N G TON, USA PLANNING COMMISSION ATTENDANCE ROSTER AND TESTIMONY SIGN-UP SHEET PLEASE SIGN IN Meeting Agenda of: ~O L0 g / To help us provide an accurate record of those in attendance, please sign in. If you plan to testify, by your signature below, you certify that the testimony given is true and correct under penalty of perjury by the laws of the State of Washington. Signature below DOES NOT REQUIRE you to testify. 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