The City, in coordination with various local organizations and firms, hosted an Infill Workshop in Billings in April, 2011. Following that workshop, the City Council directed staff to start the process of developing a draft infill development policy for the City of Billings.  Some of the workshop attendees and others in the community formed an ad-hoc committee to develop the draft policy to present to the City Council for consideration in late 2011 (See Policy Drafting Time Line below). The ad hoc committee held five meetings and wrote an Infill Development Policy for Council consideration. Staff requests that the City Council conduct a public hearing and take action on the Infill Development Policy at this meeting.

The City Council should conduct the advertised public hearing and then may:
1. Adopt the Resolution and Infill Development Policy;
2. Adopt the Resolution and Infill Development Policy with modifications;
3. Not adopt the Resolution and Infill Development Policy; or
4. Postpone action on the Resolution and Infill Development Policy to a date certain.

There should be no direct financial impact from the adoption of the resolution and policy. This policy will provide guidance to the community to encourage and support infill development in areas of the City. Some implementation strategies outlined in the Policy may impact public or private financial resources but all will be considered through review, discussion, and approval processes by the City and community.

The City Council’s interest in encouraging infill development was first included in its strategic planning process a few years ago and fueled the current effort to develop an infill policy. Infill development means development of under-utilized or vacant parcels that are connected to or able to take advantage of existing infrastructure. Furthermore, it is development that is urban in nature, within the City limits, and designed and constructed to be compatible with existing neighborhoods while providing amenities that enhance community quality of life.

Following the Infill Development Workshop in Billings in April, an ad hoc committee made up of people from the local land development community, health, realty, engineering, and legal professions, as well as City staff and other interested residents, worked for the past six months to complete a draft Infill Development Policy (See Policy Drafting Time Line below). The Committee drafted the policy with the intent that it is a road map to guide the City in encouraging infill development. Adoption of the Policy shows City support for moving forward with strategies to encourage infill development and does not, in itself, change any regulations, policies or other processes the City currently manages. If this Policy is adopted, the community will have to choose a few of the implementation strategies per year to determine if they may be implemented. A great deal of additional community input and participation will be needed for many of these strategies to become reality, but the adoption of this Policy will provide direction that has not existed before.

POLICY DRAFTING TIME LINE
o April 26 and 27 – Infill Policy Workshop
o June 15 – First Ad Hoc Committee Policy Development Meeting
o July 20 – Second Ad Hoc Committee Policy Development Meeting
o August 24 – Third Ad Hoc Committee Policy Development Meeting
o October 5 – Fourth Ad Hoc Committee Policy Development Meeting
o October 6 – Discussion at Adjacent Neighborhood Meeting (Task Force Chairs)
o October/November: Outreach to Stakeholders, organizations about Infill Policy Development
o October 25 – Discussion at Home Builders Association Meeting
o October 26 – Discussion at Billings Association of Realtors Government Affairs Committee Meeting
o October 26 – Discussion with City Development Process Review Advisory Board
o November 8 – Discussion with Yellowstone County Board of Planning
o November 10, 5:30 pm, 3rd Floor of the Parmly Library – Public Meeting to Review Draft Policy
o November 15 – Ad Hoc Committee Meeting to review public meeting comments and other input on draft policy to finalize draft for Council Work Session
o November 21 – City Council Work Session to Review Final Draft
o December 12 - City Council conducts a public hearing and considers action on the Resolution and Policy

Formation of this Draft Policy started with more than 80 members of the Billings community at the Infill Workshop in April. Since that time, more than 40 people have remained on an email notification list that provides updates on the ad hoc committee’s meetings and work, and between 15 and 20 people have participated in the ad hoc committee meetings throughout the summer and fall.

As outlined in the Policy Drafting Time Line included in the Background section of this memo, the Policy has been shared and discussed by the Adjacent Neighborhood Meeting of the Neighborhood Task Force Chairs, several Neighborhood Task Force Meetings, the Home Builders Association, the Billings Association of Realtors Government Affairs Committee, the City Development Process Review Advisory Board, and the Yellowstone County Board of Planning. The Policy has evolved as the ad hoc committee has worked on it and input and comments from stakeholders have been incorporated into the final draft being presented to the Council. Some comments and concerns that were brought up repeatedly to the Committee and staff are provided below with brief answers:

• Changes in density allowances on existing neighborhoods, especially single family. Any consideration of density bonuses or changes in density would have to be vetted through a process that would include the public as issues like mapping of areas where density bonuses might work best and potential zoning changes would need to be considered.
• City provided information on City infrastructure and services in a central clearing house type system. The City has most of the data on condition of existing water, sewer, storm drain, sidewalk, curb and gutter, and other facilities. However, an implementation strategy of this Policy is to create some sort of data base or clearing house of this information that would be easily accessible to the public for potential redevelopment and development projects.
• Whether incentives might be tied to changes in permitting processes and fee structures. The ad hoc committee included this as an implementation strategy, and City staff is open to examining whether current permit processing procedures and fee structures might be able to be changed in the future to encourage infill development projects.
• Whether the Policy would negatively affect ongoing “greenfield” development on the fringes of the City. The Policy is designed to specifically focus on development and redevelopment of property that is near the urban core and in areas that are completely surrounded by the City Limits and served by existing City services. It does not address property on the fringes of the City and should not negatively or positively affect development in these areas.
• Improving the City’s response time to updating infrastructure if a redevelopment project involves significant infrastructure reconstruction. The Policy refers to targeting public investments by identifying areas of focus for improvements utilizing the Capital Improvement Plan and other options.
• Increased education and training on how to work with the Building Code when completing renovations of older existing buildings. Comments received at the time the draft policy went to the Council Work Session also suggested that education and training addressing working with electrical or natural gas utilities in existing urban areas also be included in future training sessions. The Policy recommends providing education and training on Building Codes, focused on renovation of existing buildings, as well as safety and training on working with and around electrical and natural gas utilities in developed urban areas.

The Infill Development Policy is consistent with the following adopted or soon to be adopted policies or plans:

• The City Council’s interest in encouraging infill development was first included in its strategic planning process in 2009 and fueled the current effort to develop an infill policy.
• The Yellowstone County and City of Billings 2008 Growth Policy Update also identifies Community Goals and Objectives that support infill development.
• The East Billings Urban Renewal District (EBURD) Master Plan adopted in 2009 supports development and redevelopment activities in this existing urban area of Billings.
• The Form Based Code now under development for the EBURD is designed to support and encourage development and redevelopment through new approaches to zoning in this area of Billings.
•  The South Billings Boulevard Urban Renewal District Master Plan now under development supports development and redevelopment activities in this existing urban area of Billings.