On January 4, 2016, Harmony Meadows, LLC, applied for preliminary major plat approval for Harmony Meadows, 2^nd Filing. The proposed subdivision would create 25 lots for commercial uses and multi-family residential development. The first filing of this subdivision was done as an expedited subdivision creating two large lots in December, 2012. The subject property is generally located on the south side of Elysian Road, just west of Mullowney Lane.  The property has multiple zonings of Community Commercial (CC), Highway Commercial (HC) and Residential Multi-Family Restricted (RMF-R).  The Yellowstone County Board of Planning will review the plat at this meeting and conduct a public hearing on February 23, 2016.
 

Staff recommends that the Planning Board recommend conditional approval of the preliminary plat of Harmony Meadows Subdivision, 2^nd Filing, to the City Council, and adopt the Findings of Fact as presented in the staff report. 

PROPOSED CONDITIONS OF APPROVAL
Planning staff recommends the following conditions of approval:

1. To ensure the provision of easements for utilities, prior to final plat approval the subdivider shall provide utility easements on the final plat as requested by the private utility companies.
2. To minimize effects on public facilities and for public safety, prior to final plat approval the subdivider will coordinate the layout of the proposed storm water detention facility in the public park with the City Parks Department and have a letter from the Department stating the proposal is acceptable. The facility also must meet the requirements of City Engineering Division and be approved by the Division prior to final plat approval.
3. To minimize effects on local services and ensure proper storm water management, prior to final plat approval the applicant will provide a storm water report to the City Engineering Division for approval.
4. To minimize effects on local services and to ensure proper maintenance of the detention pond in the public park, prior to final plat approval in the SIA under Section V Storm Drainage second paragraph, the last sentence shall be changed to read “Stormwater detention facility will be maintained through the creation of a Parks Maintenance District.”
5. To minimize the effects on local services and provide access control onto Elysian Road, prior to final plat approval the applicant will show on the face of the plat a controlled access strip along Elysian Road.
6. To minimize effects on local services and ensure proper access for pedestrians, prior to  final plat approval the applicant will add a paragraph in the SIA under Section III Transportation B, that all sidewalks will be installed at time of lot development with the exception of ADA ramps at the intersections. The ADA ramps  will be constructed at the time of road construction.
7. To minimize the effects on local services and contribute to intersections that may be impacted by this development, prior to  final plat approval, the applicant will submit an updated TIS to the City Engineering Division and offsite intersection contributions must be identified within the Traffic Impact Study.  These contributions must be outlined within the SIA detailing each intersection and timing of contribution.
8. To minimize the effects on local services and provide for coverage of possible future costs related to bridge construction, prior to  final plat approval, the applicant in the SIA under Section III Transportation A Streets will modify language in paragraph 2 and 3, the last sentence by removing the words ‘construction costs’ replacing them with,  ‘any overages incurred’ beyond the 50% that what will be contributed for improvements to cross Hogan Slough.
9. To minimize the effects on local services as per the City Engineering Division, prior to final plat approval the applicant will add language within the street section of the SIA, that reads:  “Upon construction of Phase IV, developer is required to construct Story Road and/or Stearns Circle between the eastern boundary of Harmony Meadows Subdivision and Mullowney Lane to the standards that are in place at the time of Phase IV construction.  Developer is also required to mill and overlay Mullowney Lane to City standards between Elysian Road and Story Road.  If the properties along Story Road have annexed into the City prior to Phase IV construction, the City may initiate a Special Improvement District and include Harmony Meadows Phase IV in the Special Improvement District for its proportionate share.”
10. To minimize effects on local services and ensure proper parkland dedication requirements, prior to final plat approval, the subdivider will meet with the City Parks Department and determine how much additional parkland will be provided through smaller park areas within the proposed lots in the subdivison and provide HOA language to outline how these smaller parks will be maintained.
11. To minimize the effects on local services, prior to final plat approval the subdivider will provide a letter from the United States Postal Service acknowledging its agreement with the placement of mail delivery facilities in the subdivision.
12. To ensure proper documentation for the proposed phasing of Harmony Meadows prior to final plat approval the applicant will include a Declaration of Restriction of Transfers, a Release, and a Certificate for each proposed phase of Harmony Meadows.
13. Minor changes may be made in the SIA and final documents, as requested by the Planning, Legal or Public Works Departments to clarify the documents and bring them into the standard acceptable format.
14. The final plat shall comply with all requirements of the City of Billings Subdivision Regulations, rules, regulations, policies, and resolutions of the City of Billings, and the laws and Administrative Rules of the State of Montana.

No variance is being requested.

• A pre-application meeting was held on October 22, 2015 to discuss the proposal.
• The preliminary plat application was submitted to the Planning Division on January 4, 2016.
• A departmental review meeting was conducted on January 14, 2016.
• The preliminary plat was resubmitted with revisions based on department reviews on January 21, 2016.
• The Planning Board will review the plat on February 9, 2016.
• The Planning Board will conduct a public hearing on February 23, 2016, and forward a recommendation to the City Council.
• The City Council will consider the preliminary plat on March 21, 2016.
• The 60 working-day preliminary plat review period ends March 30, 2016.

The proposed subdivision re-plats two large lots originally platted in the Harmony Meadows Subdivision, 1^st Filing into 25 lots for commercial and multi-family development. The subject property is located on the south side of Elysian Road, just west of Mullowney Lane.  The property has multiple zonings of CC, HC and RMF-R.  The subject property is bordered on the north by commercial development, on the south by a commercial development, and the Yellowstone River, on the east by the Catholic Holy Cross cemetery, and on the west by irrigated agricultural land (the future location of the McCall’s new development Josephine Landing).    
 
General location:                                             South side of Elysian Road and west of Mullowney Lane
 
Legal Description:                                           Lot 1 and Lot 2 of Block 1, Harmony Meadows Subdivision, 1^st Filing
 
Subdivider/Owner:                                         Harmony Meadows, LLC
 
Additional Owners:                                        James A Weber
 
Engineer and Surveyor:                                  Performance Engineering and Consulting
 
Existing Zoning:                                             CC, HC and RMF-R
 
Existing land use:                                            Irrigated agricultural land
 
Proposed land use:                                          Commercial and Multi-Family Residential
 
Gross area:                                                      92.55 acres
 
Net area:                                                          82.67 acres
 
Proposed number of lots:                                25
 
Lot size:                                                          Max:    7.21 acres
                                                                        Min.:    1 acre
 
Parkland requirements:                                   6.23 acres of parkland is required for the residentially developed lots. 5.25 acres will be met with one parcel on the south end of the subdivision by the Yellowstone River.  The remaining land will be provided with small parks developed among the housing, as per Parks Department approval.