Item #1. County Zone Change 691 – 3333 N Frontage Road - A zone change from Agriculture Open-Space (A-1) to Controlled Industrial (CI) on the easterly 9.16 acres of C/S 1734, Parcel 1, generally located at 3333 N Frontage Road. A pre-application neighborhood meeting was held on October 22, 2018, at the applicant’s office at 316 N 33^rd St in Billings, MT. Tax ID: D06413. Presented by Monica Plecker, Planning Division Manager
 

The Planning Division staff recommends approval and adoption of the findings of the 11 criteria for Zone Change 691.

OWNER: Terry Sieffert
AGENT: N/A
LEGAL DESCRIPTION: Easterly 9.16 acres of Tract 1 C/S 1734
ADDRESS: 3333 N Frontage Road
CURRENT ZONING: Agricultural Open
EXISTING LAND USE: Agricultural
PROPOSED USE: Industrial
SIZE OF PARCEL: 9.16 acres

None.

Zone Change 650, 2014, AO to CI in association with Lockwood Targeted Economic Development District (TEDD).

NORTH:	Zoning: Unzoned Land Use: Agricultural
SOUTH:	Zoning: Unzoned Land Use: I-90
EAST:	Zoning: Unzoned Land Use: I-90
WEST:	Zoning: HI & CI Land Use: Agricultural and Residential

The subject property is located at the dead end of the North Frontage Road in Lockwood just north of the I-90 and I-94 interchange. The property is on the boundary of the County 4.5-mile jurisdictional area and is bordered on the north, east and west by Controlled Industrial (CI) zoning and on the south by the interstate interchange. There are several industrial uses to the west along the North Frontage Road including Peterbilt, 2 truck repair shops, and a truck wrecking yard. To the north and west along Coulson Road, are large gravel mining operations with crushers and asphalt batch plants. Most of the land immediately adjacent to the property is used for agriculture either as pasture or irrigated land. The North Frontage Road is paved up to the entrance gates of the property. The surrounding properties in the zoning jurisdiction were changed from A-1 zoning to Heavy Industrial (HI) or Highway Commercial (HC) zoning in the 1970s although there were additional zone changes in the 1990s and again with the creation of the Targeted Economic Development District creation in 2016.
 
All the adjacent streets are considered local streets and the North Frontage Road would be considered a commercial local street for traffic purposes. No traffic counts are available for these streets. The posted speed limit on all these streets is 25 mph. Johnson Lane to the west is considered an arterial street and would provide access to the intestate system for trucks and other traffic generated by the proposed use. The property is not within the 5-year limits of annexation area for the City of Billings, and not within any Long Range Urban Planning Area on the City Limits of Annexation Map. The property is adjacent to agricultural uses to the west, north and east. The applicant conducted a pre-application meeting and the meeting notes are attached to this report. The Planning Division received no comments from County agencies or the surrounding property owners. The Lockwood Water and Sewer District does not extend to this section of North Frontage Road. All water and sewer systems will need to be provided on-site.
 
The County adopted the Lockwood Neighborhood Plan for this area in August 2006 and the Lockwood Growth Policy in 2016. The land use for this area is identified for industrial uses associated with the Targeted Economic Development District which was created in 2016. There are several commercial businesses in the general area already and additional area may catalyze future development. Public water and sewer is not available to these lots so uses will be limited to those not requiring public utilities. The adjacent agricultural uses should experience impacts from the change of zoning and new use since it will have only 1 access from North Frontage Road. Any new commercial development will need to meet the zoning code standards for landscaping.
 
Uses allowed in the CI zone could have an impact on traffic. The Planning staff must consider all potential uses on the subject property including retail, commercial office space, restaurants (with or without alcohol service), and industrial uses. If the property were developed for retail uses, then new traffic generated would likely be increased beyond what is anticipated with the proposed clothing warehouse and distribution center. A 5,000 square foot restaurant would generate approximately 200 new vehicle trips per day. A more intense use under the proposed zoning would require additional analysis of traffic circulation at the intersection of North Frontage Road and Johnson Lane to the west. The current zoning allows single family dwellings and all agricultural uses. The County does not have traffic counts for this section of the North Frontage Road but the street likely has a pre-dominance of heavy truck traffic given the uses to the west. This traffic is already blended with the local residential and agricultural traffic. Planning staff did not receive any comment from County Public Works regarding traffic generated by the proposed use.   
 
A neighborhood meeting was conducted by the applicant on October 22, 2018, at the Seiffert Law Firm in Billings. The meeting notes indicate no one was in attendance other than Mr. Seiffert. The minutes of meeting are included as Attachment B. The Planning Division did not receive any telephone calls or written comments concerning the application.
 
Planning staff has reviewed this application and is forwarding a recommendation of approval for the proposed zone change based on the 11 criteria for zone changes. The property is located near the boundary of the zoning jurisdiction at the dead end of North Frontage Road. The surrounding zoning is Heavy Industrial although agricultural uses are prevalent. The North Frontage Road has a pre-dominance of heavy truck traffic due to the uses to the west of this property. The 2016 Lockwood Growth Policy supports the proposed land use and zoning.
 

Planning Division staff recommends Approval of Zone Change #691 and adoption of the 11 criteria for this zone change.