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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-19-2017 Planning Commission Meeting Minutes-1- REGULAR MEETING October 19, 2017 PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order at 7:00pm by Chairman Cruz. POSITION MEMBERS PRESENT MEMBERS ABSENT No. 1 Tanya Bowers No. 2 Joseph Campos No. 3 Paul Mendez No. 4 Alecia Greenaway No. 5 Joe Cruz No. 6 Ruben Alvarado No. 7 Zahra Roach No. 8 Pam Bykonen No. 9 Gabriel Portugal APPEARANCE OF FAIRNESS: Chairman Cruz read a statement about the appearance of fairness for hearings on land use matters. There were no declarations. Chairman Cruz then asked the audience if there were any objections based on a conflict of interest or appearance of fairness question regarding the items to be discussed. There were no objections. ADMINISTERING THE OATH: Chairman Cruz explained that state law requires testimony in quasi-judicial hearings such as held by the Planning Commission be given under oath or affirmation. Chairman Cruz swore in all those desiring to speak. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Commissioner Bowers moved, seconded by Commissioner Portugal that the minutes dated September 21, 2017 be approved. The motion passed unanimously. OLD BUSINESS: A. Rezone Rezone from I-1 (Light Industrial) to I-2 (Medium Industrial) (Tom Kidwell) (MF# Z 2017- 005) Chairman Cruz read the master file number and asked for comments from staff. Dave McDonald, City Planner, discussed the rezone application from I-1 to I-2. He -2- stated that there were no additional comments since the previous meeting. Chairman Cruz reminded the Planning Commission that the discussion of asphalt plants, which is what the applicant would propose to use the site for via special permit if rezoned to I-2, has been covered to great extent in the past and that there would be proper controls to ensure public health and safety. Commissioner Portugal moved, seconded by Commissioner Bowers, to adopt findings of fact and conclusions therefrom as contained in the October 19, 2017 staff report. The motion passed unanimously. Commissioner Portugal moved, seconded by Commissioner Bowers, based on the findings of fact and conclusions as adopted the Planning Commission recommend the City Council rezone Lot 4, binding Site Plan 2016-06 from I-1 to I-2 as recommended by the Planning Commission. The motion passed unanimously. B. Preliminary Plat Preakness Ridge, 86-Lot Multi-Family (Big Sky Developers LLC) (MF# PP 2017-008) Chairman Cruz read the master file number and asked for comments from staff. Dave McDonald, City Planner, discussed the preliminary plat for Preakness Ridge, an 86-Lot multi-family development. He noted in Condition #7, the cul de sac at the east end of Chapel Hill Boulevard must be squared to the southeast to provide additional right-of-way access to the storm water pond to the south. Chairman Cruz asked if the applicant was fine with the conditions. Mr. McDonald replied, yes. Commissioner Bowers moved, seconded by Commissioner Bykonen, to adopt findings of fact and conclusions therefrom as contained in the October 19, 2017 staff report. The motion passed unanimously. Commissioner Bowers moved, seconded by Commissioner Bykonen, based on findings of fact and conclusions, as adopted, the Planning Commission recommend the City Council approve the preliminary plat for Preakness Ridge with conditions as listed in the October 19, 2017 staff report. The motion passed unanimously. PUBLIC HEARINGS: A. Special Permit Location of a Church in a C-3 District (Pedro Bautista) (MF# SP 2017-012) – Continued from September 21, 2017 meeting Chairman Cruz read the master file number and asked for comments from staff. -3- Darcy Bourcier, Planner I, discussed the special permit application for a church in a C-3 district. She explained that this item was continued from the September 21, 2017 meeting because the Planning Commission wanted to give the applicant a chance to go over the conditions with Spanish speaking staff to ensure he fully understood the conditions prior to approval of the special permit. Since that meeting, the applicant has met with bilingual staff to go over the staff report. There were no additional changes to the report since the previous meeting. Pedro Bautista, 1327 N. 24th Avenue, Apt. 3A, spoke on behalf of his application and stated that he understood and would comply with the conditions contained in the staff report. With no further questions or comments the public hearing was closed. Commissioner Mendez asked to abstain from voting on this item but Rick White, Community & Economic Development Director, explained that per the City Attorney, it is not proper form to abstain after hearing the public testimony. The proper form would to have been to have made a declaration at the beginning of the meeting and then step out of the Council Chambers during the hearing. Commissioner Portugal moved, seconded by Commissioner Alvarado, to close the hearing on the proposed special permit and adopt findings of fact and conclusions therefrom as contained in the October 19, 2017 staff report. The motion passed 5 to 1 with Commissioner Mendez dissenting. Commissioner Portugal moved, seconded by Commissioner Bykonen, based on the findings of fact and conclusions therefrom the Planning Commission recommend the City Council grant a special permit to Pedro Bautista for the location of a church at 3330 West Court Street, Suite Q with conditions as contained in the October 19, 2017 staff report. The motion passed 5 to 1 with Commissioner Mendez dissenting. B. Special Permit Replacement of Stevens Middle School (Pasco School District) (MF# SP 2017-013) Chairman Cruz read the master file number and asked for comments from staff. Dave McDonald, City Planner, discussed the special permit application for the replacement of Stevens Middle School. The School District over the years has applied for various special permit applications to make improvements and changes to Stevens Middle School. Those other special permits have lead up to the current special permit request for the total rebuild of the middle school. The previous special permits were for parking lot changes to the north and to the east and the latest permit eliminated 23th Avenue so that the play fields could be connected to the school property itself and eliminate the dangers of children crossing the street. The current permit application proposes a new school in the southwest corner of the property at 24th Avenue and Henry Street. Once that school is complete then the old school will be -4- raised and a parking lot will be placed where the school is currently located. There will also be a track and a football field. Provided in the staff report was a review of the various items the Planning Commission is required to consider as well as a list of proposed conditions. Commissioner Bykonen asked if staff had received any public comments regarding the closing of 24th Avenue. Mr. McDonald said that staff did receive public comments during a previous public hearing for the School District. The road has already been closed now. Randy Nunamaker, Pasco School District Executive Director, 1215 W. Lewis Street, spoke on behalf of this application. Stevens Middle School was built in 1960 and is about 57 years old. The School District went through the process of meeting with the Community Builders Group made up of community members of Pasco. Based on those meetings their recommendation was to replace Steven’s on its current site with the current upcoming bond. The School District will work with the City to come up with designs that will be safe and efficient, allowing traffic and access to the school. Commissioner Bowers asked if this was a location where there has been overcrowding. Mr. Nunamaker said there has been overcrowding until a few years ago when the sixth graders were moved from middle school back into the elementary schools. Part of the Community Builders Group recommendation is to look into the future of moving those sixth graders back to the middle schools. With no further questions or comments the public hearing closed. Commissioner Mendez moved, seconded by Commissioner Alvarado, to close the hearing on the proposed special permit and set November 16, 2017 as the date for deliberations and the development of a recommendation for the City Council. The motion passed unanimously. C. Special Permit Location of Elementary School #17 (Pasco School District) (MF# SP 2017-014) Chairman Cruz read the master file number and asked for comments from staff. Darcy Bourcier, Planner I, discussed the special permit application for the location of elementary school #17. The Pasco School District is looking to build an elementary school on a portion of a 60 acre site that is composed of two parcels. The eastern lot is about 21 acres and a portion of the western lot is designated for the elementary school and most of the site to the west is being proposed for a middle school. Pasco currently has 15 elementary schools which have the capacity to serve 7,700 students but as of August 2017, there were 8,500 students. Mobile classrooms have been added to almost every school campus in order to accommodate that growth. The ongoing growth, population and enrollment, the School District needs to construct -5- several new schools. The District wants to develop the site with a 72,000 square foot elementary school with classroom space for 750 students. The site will contain sports fields, public parking and bus loading off of Burns Road. Burns Road is improved with pavement only so the School District will be responsible for completing all of the street improvements on Burns Road and installing roads on the east and west borders of the site. Access to the site will be from a proposed road that will be constructed on the east property line and from Burns Road to the south. Both Broadmoor Boulevard and Road 90 feed into Burns Road for local access. Schools in Pasco are typically located in residential zoning districts and raise the property values of the houses nearby, promoting the development of the neighborhoods. Commissioner Alvarado asked when the residential development to the south was developed. Dave McDonald, City Planner, said the residential south of Burns Boulevard began in 2004-2005 and in that time over 1,000 homes were constructed in the city and these homes were a part of that growth spurt. Commissioner Alvarado asked how recent have plans been to have a school in this area. Mr. McDonald responded that the School District would be better to answer but they have owned the 40 acre site for a number of years and just recently purchased a 21 acre site to add to it. Commissioner Alvarado said he would like to have seen more access for kids to walk to the school moving forward. Mr. McDonald replied that there are connections from the south to Burns Road by way of Road 84 and Road 90. Commissioner Alvarado said they were not very walkable for kids. Mr. McDonald responded that the School District will be installing sidewalks along the southern portion of their property and as with most elementary schools, they will have crossing guards at Road 90 and Road 84 along Burns Road. Commissioner Alvarado added that it would be nice to have a street between Road 90 and Road 84 to give access for kids to walk to school and not have to go all the way around to Road 90. It is possibly too late for that now but something to look at in the future. Mr. McDonald replied that when the subdivision was developed to the south nobody had any idea that there would be schools at this location. Commissioner Bowers said this location seems really close to Maya Angelou Elementary School and wondered what the boundaries would be for Maya Angelou -6- versus this new school. Chairman Cruz said that would be a question to ask the applicant. Randy Nunamaker, Pasco School District Executive Director, 1215 W. Lewis Street, spoke on behalf of this application. Pasco School District has continued its enrollment growth and the addition of these schools would help accommodate the growth on the west side of Pasco. The School District will work with the City to ensure the footprint is appropriate for safety and access to the school with crosswalks and sidewalks. Commissioner Bowers asked why there was a decision to locate an elementary school at this site given the close proximity to an existing elementary school. Mr. Nunamaker responded that right now Maya Angelou Elementary has almost 1,000 students which is significantly above and beyond what that school can handle. When looking at current and future developments there will be more than enough students accommodating the new school. Commissioner Bowers said there was a football or soccer field located on site and four baseball diamonds. She asked how the sports facilities were decided upon. Mr. Nunamaker said of course. Typically there are baseball and softball fields as well as soccer fields. They have a process called “Educational Specifications” where the community is involved and there is a lot of discussion. At this time it is conceptual plans. Chairman Cruz said they have a general template they use for planning purposes and then they adjust based on the feedback. Commissioner Portugal asked if he knew the percentage of walkers that would attend the school versus the students who take the bus. Mr. Nunamaker said that they won’t have those numbers yet. There is a process for developing the school boundaries and once those boundaries are developed with public input, and at that time there will be a discussion about walkers and buses. Chairman Cruz reminded the Commission that the School District doesn’t pick school locations based on the proximity to other schools, rather the density of the houses in particular areas. The density in the proposed area is very tight so even though the schools are close together it is based on the density of the student population around. There will likely be more than 5 schools in this area when it is all said and done when the area is fully developed. Mr. Nunamaker said yes, they are already looking for property. -7- Chairman Cruz said the new proposed middles school is only roughly 2 miles from McLaughlin. Mr. Nunamaker said yes. Commissioner Mendez asked if the School District has developed a master plan to address the population growth. As it is now, there are portables and nobody likes the portables. Mr. Nunamaker said absolutely and their goal is to construct new schools and move completely away from portables. Brick and mortar buildings are always their first choice. As for the Master Facilities Plan, the schools the Commission is hearing about now are being put on the November bond election which was developed by the Community Builders Group and based on the bond election results, the Community Builders will come back together and complete the 20 year Facilities Plan. With no further questions or comments the public hearing closed. Commissioner Bykonen moved, seconded by Commissioner Bowers, to close the public hearing and schedule deliberations, the adoption of findings of fact and development of a recommendation for City Council for the November 16, 2017 Planning Commission meeting. The motion passed unanimously. D. Special Permit Location of Middle School #4 (Pasco School District) (MF# SP 2017-015) Chairman Cruz read the master file number and asked for comments from staff. Rick White, Community & Economic Development Director, discussed the special permit application for the location of middle school #4. This item involves a middle school adjacent to the proposed elementary school in the 9300 block of Burns Road. The entire site is roughly 60 acres and the middles school site is composed of about 39 acres. The current zoning on the property is R-1 and everything discussed during the special permit hearing for the new elementary school would apply to this item. The school will be substantially larger at 115,000 square feet and would have the capacity for 1,100 middle school students. There is information in the staff report on traffic generation. Part of the staff report indicates that the City will be working with the School District to review a traffic impact study that will likely call out the likely needed improvements both on the roads adjacent to the site and possible intersections nearby, particularly Broadmoor Boulevard and Road 100. Chairman Cruz stated that he agreed with a comment Commissioner Alvarado discussed during the special permit hearing for the elementary school located on the same site in that there is an awkward situation where there is only one north/south access for quite some distance but there is not much to do about that. Randy Nunamaker, Pasco School District Executive Director, 1215 W. Lewis Street, -8- spoke on this item. This middle school will help with growth and provide additional space for our middle school students. Mr. White added that while there doesn’t seem to be much north/south access to the school now with the exception of Road 90, the zoning on either side of both of these sites is R-1 and is in the City and it’s very likely the property to the north will likely be in the City very soon and also probably zoned residential so in the future, although the bond may pass and the schools may be built in a year or two and they may serve properties to the south, the may end up not serving any properties to the south once these areas to the north develop. Commissioner Alvarado said he had a request for future development from both the School District and the Planning Department to make sure that there are appropriate easements in the residential developers are informed of the design of the school to create good easements for the kids to get to school. And on another note, he added that it would be helpful to get a scale added to the maps in the future. With no further questions or comments the public hearing closed. Commissioner Bowers moved, seconded by Commissioner Portugal, to close the public hearing and schedule deliberations, the adoption of findings of fact and development of a recommendation for City Council for the November 16, 2017 Planning Commission meeting. The motion passed unanimously. E. Special Permit Location of a Beauty School (Maria Avila) (MF# SP 2017-016) Chairman Cruz read the master file number and asked for comments from staff. Darcy Bourcier, Planner I, discussed the special permit application for the location of a beauty school. The applicant wishes to relocate their existing beauty school to a commercial building just on the other side of the street at 746 W. Court Street. She had received a special permit for her current beauty school at the former address in 2016 but wishes to relocate to better serve her visitors parking needs. Beauty schools have been permitted within the city in the past and licensed as private schools. Within the proposed location there is an existing barbershop which has operated since 2013 so both the barbershop and beauty school will share the 1,600 square foot building. Training will be provided for approximately 6 students or less at a time. Currently there are 5 off street parking spots, including 1 ADA parking spot but the PMC requires at least 11 parking spaces for a building of this size. One option potentially available is to borrow parking from the Tri-Cities Community Health parking lot which contains 77 parking stalls located to the southwest of the proposed property. That building requires at least 73 parking spots so they have an additional 4 parking spaces that could be used to fulfill most of the schools remaining parking. However, even then they would still be short 2 spaces but parking is likely to occur on North 7th Avenue on the street and it should be noted that nearly all properties on Court Street have parking issues. Because this neighborhood hasn’t undergone a complete revitalization, parking will probably always be an issue. -9- Commissioner Bowers asked how many parking stalls are located at their current location. Ms. Bourcier said it was 3-4 parking stalls. The proposed location isn’t much better but there is at least parking on 7th Avenue. Commissioner Portugal asked for clarification on the parking spots they could share or borrow. Ms. Bourcier there were 4 spots that they could potentially borrow from the Tri-Cities Community Health Center as they have 4 additional spots than what is required for them. Commissioner Portugal asked if the applicant has already worked out a deal with the Tri-Cities Community Health Center. Ms. Bourcier said no, it was just a potential option. Nobody has contacted the Tri- Cities Community Health Center yet. Chairman Cruz said there may be enough parking on the street and the Planning Commission could possibly decide to accept less parking stalls because it is an existing location, not high traffic on Brown Street and parking available on 7th Avenue. While it would be better if they had onsite parking but based on the current configuration of the neighborhood and the surrounding area it may not be an issue if they are fully compliant with current standards. Commissioner Bowers asked for clarification on their current location. Ms. Bourcier responded that they are located to the north on Court Street. Commissioner Bykonen recalled that the previous time this applicant came forward with their original special permit for their current location, the owner of the barbershop on the north side of Court Street appeared at the public hearing and expressed a lot of concern about parking in a lot that he owns. She wanted to ask the applicant to make sure that there is a way for her customers or students to know or realize that parking in that parking lot is no longer an option. She had concerns for that business owner with his parking situation, even though it would require crossing Court Street but people cross Court Street all day and night. Ms. Bourcier said she didn’t think it would be any trouble at all to let students know where the parking would be for the new location. Commissioner Bowers asked if there had been complaints from that business owner about parking since their school opened. Ms. Bourcier said there had been no complaints. -10- Dave McDonald, City Planner, added that there were a number of complaints while going through the public hearing process for their original special permit but staff hasn’t heard from him since the school went in. On North 7th Avenue there are a dozen or more on-street parking spaces available. On Court Street there were none so there are a number of spaces that can be used at this new location. Evelyn Menzel, 531 S. 38th Avenue, West Richland, WA spoke on behalf of Maria Avila. One of the main reasons they are asking for relocation is due to the parking and not because of complaints from the students but because of the aggressive and combative neighboring business owner that Commissioner Bykonen was referring to. He parks his large truck and blocks the view and the students and customers can’t see when backing out and is dangerous for the students and customers. The same owner who owns their current location also owns the new location and he is will to let them continue to use the parking behind 926 Court Street and they have a parking contract there right now and they can continue that. He also owns the neighboring house and he will allow parking there. Their main reason for relocating is for the safety of their students and customers. The new location is also bigger on the inside and has handicap access. Most of their students don’t have vehicles but take the bus and right on the corner by the Tri-Cities Community Health Center is a bus stop making it convenient for them. With no further questions or comments the public hearing closed. Commissioner Portugal moved, seconded by Commissioner Mendez, to close the public hearing and schedule deliberations, the adoption of findings of fact and development of a recommendation for City Council for the November 16, 2017 Planning Commission meeting. The motion passed unanimously. F. Rezone Rezone from RT (Residential Transition) to R-1 (Low Density Residential) (Pahlisch Homes LLC) (MF# Z 2017-006) Chairman Cruz read the master file number and asked for comments from staff. David McDonald, City Planner, discussed the rezone application from RT to R-1. The site is approximately 144 acres at the southwest corner of Burns Road and Dent Road. The developer is one who specializes in residential subdivisions that are a little more planned or detailed than what the City normally sees. What they are proposing with this rezone is to do a master plan for the entire site that would involve various lot sizes that would take advantage of the views that would be available on that site because there is a lot of elevation changes from the east to west. They are also interested in provided open green space, trail ways and a community center for recreation and/or a little commercial but that part is unsure. The property has been in the City since 1998 and at that time it was zoned RT because there were no utilities in the vicinity. There is now a major waterline running east to west on Burns Road which would be able to serve this property. The City is also currently refining the Comprehensive Sewer Plan in an effort to figure out how sewer would get up through this area. The developer has been working with the Engineering Department to come to a solution to -11- provide sewer. In this case it may involve a lift station on the lower part of the site and have that pump back up to a sewer line at another location. The Comprehensive Plan for years has indicated this area should be developed for low-density residential. The City is currently working on the Broadmoor Area Plan which is in refinement of a couple of different plans done for this area. Commissioner Portugal said that the staff report discussed the creation of another residential neighborhood could improve the water stagnation. He asked for clarification on that. Mr. McDonald said that right now there is only one line that runs down Burns Road and goes down south into the Kohler Subdivision. That line is not connected to any other line and there are not a lot of homes down there yet. The line is quite long and large so the water line may not turnover as much as it would it a higher population neighborhood. When more homes are developed, more water runs through the line and addresses the concern of stagnant water. Commissioner Alvarado asked about the Sandifur Corridor Overlay and if it is just conceptual spacing as for what the zoning would be like versus the map for the rezoning. Mr. McDonald clarified the maps in the staff report and that the applicant would qualify for the smaller lots that he is proposing to do. Commissioner Alvarado asked if it is an adopted plan. Mr. McDonald said no it is being worked on currently and the property owners have been a part of the process. Mr. Wilson was present at the meeting and represents the family who owns the property and has participated in a number of these planning studies in the past. Rick White, Community & Economic Development Director, added that even though this work effort is occurring now, it is not a whole lot different than what has been proposed for this site since 2005. There has always been a concept to come up with a better product than a template subdivision because Pasco has a lot of template subdivisions and the City is trying to mix up the community a little bit so that there is a variation of lot sizing, the ability to have perhaps a small scale commercial at some locations where appropriate, larger regional commercial at the major intersections where appropriate and the current developer is interested in a community approach to a subdivision. So you may see starter homes, homes that people may not wish to have larger lots and then there will be homes in the middle. Chad Bettersworth, Pahlisch Homes LLC, 210 N. Center Parkway, Kennewick, WA, spoke on behalf of this item. Pahlisch Homes has been in Pasco recently in a few small spot lots but Pasco may not be familiar with how they typically like to do business. They are a developer and builder and like to do master plan type of communities where they are the only builder. They like to build community centers -12- and trail systems, parks and emphasize a more community approach with meandering roads rather than just linear roads. It is more costly to develop in this manner so typically they are a second-third time home builder and more in the move-up market. They are excited to be a part of the Pasco Community and to be a part of the master plan process. They have worked in areas in Hillsboro, West Portland and was about a 10,000 unit master plan area. Chairman Cruz asked if they have done developments in Bend, OR. Mr. Bettersworth said yes. Chairman Cruz asked what one of the more recent developments in Bend, OR that they completed. Mr. Bettersworth said, The Bridges, which is located on the east side of Bend. They also did McCall Landing in Bend. They build a wide variety of homes with various price points and product types all the way from attached alley loaded 20’ wide to almost excessively large single-family homes. This site will likely not focus on the extremes but more in the middle; 2,000-3,500 square foot homes. It is customer driven and what the community wants. Commissioner Mendez asked if there would be roughly 4 units per acres on this 144 acre lot. Mr. Bettersworth said yes but not all of the site may be developed. Some of it due to elevations may be too low to develop. The current unit count is something around 350-400 home range. The final number will have a lot to do with the master plan piece and how that will lay and out and how the transportation and other items will come into play. Commissioner Mendez asked if the parks would be developed. Mr. Bettersworth responded that their intent is to have a private community center that will be a part of a homeowner’s association with a pool and community area with decks and patios, outside barbeques and fire pits and then the rest of the community would be connected by a common trail system and not as much as a standard sidewalk but they would meander behind and between the homes to connect it in a more aesthetically pleasing way with landscaping. He encourage the Commissioner’s to visit their website, www.pahlischehomes.com, to view the work they have completed. Commissioner Bowers asked if the trail system would be open to the public or only open to the homeowners. Mr. Bettersworth said it would be open to the public. Only the community center would be private. -13- Jason Maddox, PBS Engineering & Environmental, 400 Bradley Blvd Suite 106, Richland, WA 99352, spoke on behalf of this item as their engineering firm. He stated that he has been working more on the technical side of the project. From a transportation standpoint, this site didn’t previously have access but it does now with Burns Road and developments happening to the north. There is also access to the water main and having additional flows and networks in the infrastructure. As development happens to the east it will all tie together and produce better water quality, water system connectivity and more fire flow. The sewer, due to topography constraints, many homes to the north are being served off of septic. In order to do this site and at the proposed density, they will need to develop additional infrastructure that would be done as public infrastructure and they are currently working with the City Engineering Department to create more of a lift station that would serve this community and be able to have that station potentially expand to serve other areas. Commissioner Alvarado asked if the site will be served with irrigation water. Mr. Maddox replied that currently this site is serviced by South Columbia Basin Irrigation District. There is an irrigation pivot on this site so there is irrigation water available to the site and some of the developments to the north of there was not irrigation water so this site is currently irrigated. They are in talks with South Columbia Basin Irrigation District on being able to utilize that water for this project but it has not been finalized. David Wilson, 10723 W. Court Street, spoke on behalf of this item. He said he is one of the owners representing his family. They grew up in the home on this site and they farmed the land. They then sold gravel to Central Pre-Mix and then American Rock bought out Central Pre-Mix. Pahlische Homes approached them and as they discussed this development and they looked at their products in Bend and other places, they were very impressed. It is nice to go see the developments they completed 15 years ago and see that it still looks just as nice and they are very well kept up. They have a great homeowners association and are maintained. His family wishes to leave a family legacy and this project would make them proud rather than leaving a whole in the ground when they are done selling gravel. Commissioner Bowers asked if any of the housing would be affordable housing. Mr. Wilson said he’d have to leave that to Mr. Bettersworth of Pahlische Homes. Chairman Cruz responded that they would likely be above entry level based on the development price point. Commissioner Alvarado said he is excited to see some new places to walk in the Tri- Cities and is appreciative that he was selective on how he is handing off his legacy. Chairman Cruz thanked Mr. Wilson as well. -14- With no further questions or comments the public hearing closed. Commissioner Bykonen moved, seconded by Commissioner Bowers, to close the hearing on the proposed rezone and set November 16, 2017 as the date for deliberations and the development of a recommendation for the City Council. The motion passed unanimously. G. Code Amendment Ordinance Amending PMC Chapter 26.28 Allowing Administrative Approval of Final Plats (MF# CA 2017-007) Chairman Cruz read the master file number and asked for comments from staff. Rick White, Community & Economic Development Director, discussed the proposed code amendment to PMC Chapter 26.28 which would allow administrative approval of final plats. State law changed in this last legislative session and rather than mandating that City Council approve final plats in municipalities they gave the option for cities the option to delegate that authority to an administrative person or staff. This was discussed at the previous month’s hearing but when the item finally proceeds to City Council for final plat approval, everything has been done and fulfilled. The Planning Commission holds the hearings for the plats, they are approved, recorded and the implementation of that approval gets done through the final plat process. It doesn’t proceed to Council until it’s done or until there is a cash guarantee for us to do it if the developer fails. Staff sees it as a way to decrease liability on behalf of the City but also to increase efficiency which would do away with roughly a 2-3 week process where it takes a developer to get the final plat to City Council for approval and having to show up for the hearing. With no further questions or comments the public hearing closed. Commissioner Portugal moved, seconded by Commissioner Mendez, to close the public hearing and schedule the deliberations and a recommendation for City Council for the November 16, 2017 Planning Commission meeting. The motion passed unanimously. OTHER BUSINESS: With no further discussion or business, the Planning Commission was adjourned at 8:17 p.m. Respectfully submitted, David McDonald, City Planner