6.
City Council Work Session
- Meeting Date:
- 10/09/2012
- RE
- Path Forward for the 2012 Amendments to the Flagstaff Zoning Code
- FROM:
- Roger Eastman, Zoning Code Administrator
- Department:
Co-Submitter:
Information
TITLE
Path forward for the 2012 Amendments to the Flagstaff Zoning Code.
RECOMMENDED ACTION
This report is based on the CCR previously provided to the City Council on the path forward for adoption of the 2012 Amendments to the Flagstaff Zoning Code. At this work session staff will be seeking from the Council:
- Agreement and consensus on the path forward for the 2012 Amendments to the Flagstaff Zoning Code
- Solicitation of ideas and recommendations from the Council on possible amendments to the Zoning Code. These will be compiled with the other amendments and forwarded to the Planning and Zoning Commission for their recommendation, before being submitted to the City Council for final approval.
INFORMATION
DISCUSSION
On November 1, 2011 the City Council, by unanimous vote, adopted the new Flagstaff Zoning Code. This action concluded over three years of work by City staff, elected and appointed officials, and Flagstaff residents in a commitment to rewrite the former Land Development Code (LDC) as a modern, integrated, user-friendly hybrid code.
At the time of the Code’s adoption, staff notified Council that within 6-9 months a round of amendments to the Zoning Code would be presented to the Planning and Zoning Commission and City Council for approval. With a document as complex as the Zoning Code it was realized that some standards or issues would be incomplete or incorrect. Over the past few months City planning staff who work with the Zoning Code on a regular basis (i.e. from the engineering, traffic, stormwater, housing or legal sections/divisions), have documented sections of the Code where amendments would be required. Through a series of meetings that are still ongoing, staff from all these sections/divisions is discussing the noted corrections and reaching agreement on how the Code should be amended and corrected. Ideas for amendments submitted by Flagstaff residents have also been included, and over the coming months, members of the public will have opportunity to share their suggestions with staff.
Consistent with the City Council’s direction provided at the time of the Code’s adoption, staff has only documented minor amendments that need to be corrected at this time. These minor amendments include text and/or standards that need clarification, correction, or amendment. In essence these are simple” fixes” to provisions or standards that might not have been stated clearly or correctly – some examples of noted amendments are described below. Staff have not identified any major amendments requiring a policy discussion by the Council.
While staff has not identified the need for any major amendments, it is the perogative of the City Council to direct staff to bring forward major amendments to the Code to be considered as a part of the 2012 Zoning Code Amendments.
Once the Regional Plan is ratified, staff will be completing a comprehensive review of the Zoning Code to ensure consistency with the goals, policies, and strategies of the newly adopted Regional Plan. At that time more major Code amendments could be entertained. The tentative schedule for Regional Plan adoption by the Council is October 2013 with voter ratification to follow in March 2014. An example of an amendment that falls within this category is that of sustainability and sustainable development. Depending on how this topic is ultimately addressed in the adopted Regional Plan, amendments to the Zoning Code may be necessary to ensure that the Code accurately and completely implements the policies of the Regional Plan.
Therefore, staff suggests that there are three levels of amendments to the Zoning Code for the Council's consideration:
Staff is still working on the proposed minor amendments to the Zoning Code, and a comprehensive list of these amendments has yet to be completed. To give the Council an idea of what is included in these amendments, a few are listed below:
1. 10-20.30.100 Final Decisions on Page 20.30-13
2. 10-20.40.150 Temporary Use Permits on Page 20.40-29
3. 10-30.60.030 General Site Planning Standards on Page 30.60-6
4. Table 10-40.20.020.A Zones on Page 40.20-02
5. 10-40.40.070 T4N.1 Neighborhood Standards on Page 40.40-25
6. Division 10-50.60 Landscaping Standards
8. 10-50.100.070 Temporary Signs
In order to complete text amendments to the Zoning Code, the procedure established in Section 10-20.50.040 will be followed, and it will involve the major steps identified in the proposed schedule for the adoption of the 2012 Zoning Code Amendments included below and documented on the attached flowchart:
CONCLUSION
In summary, this report is prepared as a work session item in order to generate Council discussion and general direction on:
On November 1, 2011 the City Council, by unanimous vote, adopted the new Flagstaff Zoning Code. This action concluded over three years of work by City staff, elected and appointed officials, and Flagstaff residents in a commitment to rewrite the former Land Development Code (LDC) as a modern, integrated, user-friendly hybrid code.
At the time of the Code’s adoption, staff notified Council that within 6-9 months a round of amendments to the Zoning Code would be presented to the Planning and Zoning Commission and City Council for approval. With a document as complex as the Zoning Code it was realized that some standards or issues would be incomplete or incorrect. Over the past few months City planning staff who work with the Zoning Code on a regular basis (i.e. from the engineering, traffic, stormwater, housing or legal sections/divisions), have documented sections of the Code where amendments would be required. Through a series of meetings that are still ongoing, staff from all these sections/divisions is discussing the noted corrections and reaching agreement on how the Code should be amended and corrected. Ideas for amendments submitted by Flagstaff residents have also been included, and over the coming months, members of the public will have opportunity to share their suggestions with staff.
Consistent with the City Council’s direction provided at the time of the Code’s adoption, staff has only documented minor amendments that need to be corrected at this time. These minor amendments include text and/or standards that need clarification, correction, or amendment. In essence these are simple” fixes” to provisions or standards that might not have been stated clearly or correctly – some examples of noted amendments are described below. Staff have not identified any major amendments requiring a policy discussion by the Council.
While staff has not identified the need for any major amendments, it is the perogative of the City Council to direct staff to bring forward major amendments to the Code to be considered as a part of the 2012 Zoning Code Amendments.
Once the Regional Plan is ratified, staff will be completing a comprehensive review of the Zoning Code to ensure consistency with the goals, policies, and strategies of the newly adopted Regional Plan. At that time more major Code amendments could be entertained. The tentative schedule for Regional Plan adoption by the Council is October 2013 with voter ratification to follow in March 2014. An example of an amendment that falls within this category is that of sustainability and sustainable development. Depending on how this topic is ultimately addressed in the adopted Regional Plan, amendments to the Zoning Code may be necessary to ensure that the Code accurately and completely implements the policies of the Regional Plan.
Therefore, staff suggests that there are three levels of amendments to the Zoning Code for the Council's consideration:
Level 1: Minor Amendments
These are the “fixes” to the Code to correct and clarify text and standards, and for which there are no policy implications as a result of the amendment. Staff has identified the majority of these, and it is conceivable that the Planning and Zoning Commission and City Council may identify the need for other minor amendments.
Level 2: Major Amendments
Level 2: Major Amendments
These are amendments to the Zoning Code as directed by the City Council which should be considered as part of the 2012 Zoning Code Amendments process. These major amendments may be considered at the same time as the minor amendments, considered separately, or combined with the Level 3 amendments.
Level 3: Major Amendments post-Regional Plan adoption
These are amendments to the Zoning Code as directed by the City Council which should be considered for adoption after the Regional Plan has been ratified as part of the comprehensive review of the Zoning Code.
Staff is still working on the proposed minor amendments to the Zoning Code, and a comprehensive list of these amendments has yet to be completed. To give the Council an idea of what is included in these amendments, a few are listed below:
1. 10-20.30.100 Final Decisions on Page 20.30-13
Paragraph B. (Notice of Decision) requires that when a final decision is made on a new development, the Director must submit a Notice of Decision to the applicant explaining in writing the decision made. As currently written this section requires the Notice of Decision to be mailed to the applicant at the mailing address on record with the application. Staff suggests that this be written to allow the Notice of Decision to be submitted to the applicant via other means as well, such as e-mail.
2. 10-20.40.150 Temporary Use Permits on Page 20.40-29
Paragraph C.1 (Concerts, Carnivals, Farmers Markets, Flea Market, Vehicle Sales, and other Special Events) includes standards for temporary signs. These standards duplicate standards already provided in the Code and can, therefore, be deleted. Instead a reference inserted to the relevant section of the Code, in this case Table 10-50.100.070.A (Standards for Temporary Event Signs).
3. 10-30.60.030 General Site Planning Standards on Page 30.60-6
Paragraph H. (Built Environment and Land Use Context) lists the important contextual influences that should be identified, analyzed, and considered in the planning process for a new development. This list omitted bicycle facilities and the locations of existing or proposed transit facilities. As these are important when planning a new project, staff is suggesting that they be included.
4. Table 10-40.20.020.A Zones on Page 40.20-02
At the bottom of this table a new row for the POS (Public Open Space) land use category needs to be inserted as it was inadvertently omitted from the current Code.
5. 10-40.40.070 T4N.1 Neighborhood Standards on Page 40.40-25
The Single-family Cottage building type is not included in Table C. (Allowed Building Types1) in the current Code. As this building type is permitted in T4N.2 and is appropriate in the T4N.1 transect as well, staff suggests that it be included.
6. Division 10-50.60 Landscaping Standards
Staff is recommending that a new Section 10-50.60.090 (Violations and Enforcement) should be included in the Code, similar to the one included in the Parking section to address how to deal with trees and landscaping that is removed without authorization and to establish standards for the planting of replacement landscape materials.
7. 10-50.80.080 Parking Spaces, Parking Layout, and Design
Prior to the adoption of the current Zoning Code, the Disability Awareness Commission supported a proposal to require more ADA parking spaces in new developments than the federal regulations call for, and for them to be slightly wider. It has been suggested that these standards should not be more restrictive than the federal standards, and that the federal ADA standard should be inserted into the Code.
8. 10-50.100.070 Temporary Signs
As an acknowledgment that the former LDC was overly restrictive with regard to temporary business signs, and as a result of input from the business community, staff recommended and the City Council supported and ultimately approved, amendments to the Sign Standards that now permit temporary business signs. Many Flagstaff business owners have taken advantage of these more lenient standards, and A-Frame signs, banner signs, and vertical banners are now common in commercial zones. As a result of feedback from the business community, staff is recommending that the number of days per calendar year that temporary signs may be permitted should be increased from 60 to 90 days.
In order to complete text amendments to the Zoning Code, the procedure established in Section 10-20.50.040 will be followed, and it will involve the major steps identified in the proposed schedule for the adoption of the 2012 Zoning Code Amendments included below and documented on the attached flowchart:
October 9, 2012: Work session with the City Council to review the path forward for the 2012 Zoning Code Amendments and to solicit ideas for possible amendments to the Zoning Code from the Council.
November, 2012: Public meeting with the Planning and Zoning Commission. This meeting/open house or citizen review session is required by statute, and it will provide Flagstaff residents with an opportunity to share their ideas for possible amendments to the Code.
December, 2012: Public hearing with the Planning and Zoning Commission. This hearing also provides the public with an opportunity to share their ideas and concerns. It will conclude with a formal recommendation from the Commission to the Council on the proposed amendments.
January, 2013: Public hearing with the City Council. This hearing provides the public with an opportunity to share their ideas and concerns with the Council. The Council may also declare the proposed amendments a public record.
February, 2013: First Reading of Ordinance to adopt amendments. Consistent with City policy, the first reading of the adopting ordinance follows the public hearing and declaration of the amendments as a public record.
March, 2013: Second Reading of Ordinance to adopt amendments/adoption.
February, 2013: First Reading of Ordinance to adopt amendments. Consistent with City policy, the first reading of the adopting ordinance follows the public hearing and declaration of the amendments as a public record.
March, 2013: Second Reading of Ordinance to adopt amendments/adoption.
CONCLUSION
In summary, this report is prepared as a work session item in order to generate Council discussion and general direction on:
- Consensus on the path forward for the 2012 Amendments to the Flagstaff Zoning Code
- Solicitation of ideas and recommendations on possible amendments to the Zoning Code. These will be compiled with the other amendments and forwarded to the Planning and Zoning Commission for their study and recommendation before being submitted to the City Council for final approval.
Attachments
Form Review
- Form Started By:
- reastman
- Started On:
- 08/23/2012 04:02 PM
- Final Approval Date:
- 10/03/2012