Public Hearing for Resolution No. 2016-31: A resolution of the Flagstaff City Council amending the Flagstaff Regional Plan 2030 by amending Chapter 3 to change the categories of Major Plan Amendments and establishing an effective date. 

There is no financial impact related to this resolution.

COUNCIL GOALS:

7) Continue to implement the Flagstaff Regional Plan and focus efforts on specific plans

8) Improve effectiveness of notification, communication, and engagement with residents, neighborhoods and businesses and about City services, programs, policies, projects and developments

 

REGIONAL PLAN:

Policy CC.1.3. Design development patterns to maintain the open character of rural areas, protect open lands, and protect and maintain sensitive environmental areas like mountains, canyons, and forested settings.

Policy LU.1.1. Plan for and support reinvestment within the existing city centers and neighborhoods for increased employment and quality of life.

Policy LU.1.6. Establish greater flexibility in development standards and processes to assist developers in overcoming challenges posed by redevelopment and infill sites.

Policy NH.6.1. Promote quality redevelopment and infill projects that are contextual with surrounding neighborhoods. When planning for redevelopment, the needs of existing residents should be addressed as early as possible in the development process.

Goal ED.1. Create a healthy environment for business by ensuring transparent, expeditious, and predictable government processes.

Policy ED.1.2. Steadily improve access to easily understandable public information.

No.

Major plan amendments are inherently rare.  There have only been a handful since 2001, when the last Regional Plan was adopted. It is difficult to determine if the result of any change to major plan amendment categories would result in greater or fewer major plan amendments. The amendments proposed to Chapter 3 are intended to correct factual errors in some of the language, vague descriptions that make it difficult to understand the categories for amendments, incomplete information about the relationship of the Plan to other laws and regulations, and illogical gaps in the categories provided in the ratified Regional Plan.

Adopting this amendment will make the procedures for the Flagstaff Regional Plan 2030 more transparent and will provide a fair process that helps the public and the applicant.  It will also ensure that major plan amendments are applied for projects with requests tied to alter the underlying assumptions and balance of the Future Growth Illustration. 
 

City staff is proposing minor plan amendments to the Flagstaff Regional Plan 2030, Chapter 3 How the Plan Works, as described in the Regional Plan Annual Report 2015. The Flagstaff Regional Plan 2030 (Regional Plan) is the General Plan for the City of Flagstaff. The amendment includes several types of proposed changes:

1. Changes proposed to major plan amendment categories and criteria (with options for addressing changes from Rural to Suburban Area Types),
2. Clarifications regarding minor plan amendment categories and procedures,
3. Adopt a clear and legally accurate description of specific plans,
4. Clarifications about the role of the City Council, and
5. Non-substantive editorial changes to the Chapter.

The reasons for these proposed changes are because of factual errors in some of the language, vague descriptions that make it difficult to understand the categories for amendments, incomplete information about the relationship of the Plan to other laws and regulations, and illogical gaps in the categories provided in the ratified Regional Plan.

The key considerations for this decision is whether or not the proposed amendments to Chapter 3 will:

1. Provide for clear and effective implementation of the Flagstaff Regional Plan,
2. Accurately reflect the legal environment of plan implementation,
3. Promote a fair and predictable government process applicants, and
4. Give the community ample opportunity to participate in decisions regarding plan amendments of all types.

Consult - The Comprehensive Planning Manager met with individuals and groups that were involved in the development of the Regional Plan and asked about their thoughts on major plan amendments before developing a detailed proposal for the public to review.  This early feedback influenced several criteria in the table, including making goals and policies a major plan amendment category.

Involve - Staff provided a traditional public review period and posted the sections that changed the most on the Flagstaff Community Forum for the public to comment on and share ideas about how the changes could be different or clearer. 

Staff’s original proposal for the Rural to Suburban category was to have all plan amendments in this category be minor, because conditions of approval cannot be as effectively enforced when attached to a plan amendment compared to a zoning case. Public comment since the Planning and Zoning Commission’s review has been centered on this issue and staff is offering to City Council three options for consideration.

• Option A: Treat all changes from Rural to Suburban as minor amendments (original proposal).
• Option B: Keep current major plan amendment category of Rural to Suburban greater than 20 acres.
• Option C: Only require a major amendment for Rural to Suburban area type proposals more than ¼ mile from an activity center.