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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMin - City Council - 1987 - 05/14 - WorkshopALLEN CITY COUNCIL ALLEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION CALLED - SPECIAL JOINT WORKSHOP SESSION MAY 14, 1987 / Present: Allen City Council Members: Joe Farmer, Mayor Pro Tem Jerry Wilson Bobby Glass Jim Pendleton Jack Pennington Absent: Donald P. Rodenbaugh Mayor Jim Wolfe Planning & Zoning Commission Members: Ken Browning, Chairman Wayne Armand, Vice Chairman John Garcia Charles Lee Carolyn Latimer Dan Contreras Absent: Eileen Karlsruher, Secretary City Staff: Jon McCarty, City Manager Marty Hendrix, City Secretary Bill Petty, Director of Community Development Tom Keener, Development Coordinator Michael Stanger, Administrative Assistant The called - special joint workshop session of the Allen Planning and Zoning Commission was called to order by Chairman Browning at 7:31 p.m. on Thursday, May 14, 1987, in the Council Chambers of the Allen Municipal Annex, One Butler Circle, Allen, Texas. The called - special joint workshop session of the Allen City Council was called to order by Mayor Pro Tem Farmer at 7:31 p.m. on Thursday, May 14, 1987, in the Council Chambers of the Allen Municipal Annex, One Butler Circle, Allen, Texas. Approval of the Minutes of the April 14, 1987 Workshop (Agenda Item II) Chairman Browning advised the Council and the Commission that the floor was open for a motion to approve the minutes of the April 14, 1987 Workshop Session. Commissioner Armand posed a question on the minutes regarding the lengthy discussion on economic development. He advised that he felt that the minutes did not reflect that discussion. City Secretary Marty Hendrix pointed out a paragraph regarding that dicussion on page 3 of the minutes and advised that she did not try to express in detail all of the thoughts in the discussion on the various items posed under the topic of "economic development" but just generalized the discussion on the subject. MOTION: Upon a motion made by Commissioner Armand and seconded by Commissioner Garcia, the Council and the Commission voted 11 for and none (0) opposed to approve the minutes of the April 14, 1987 workshop session as presented. The motion carried. ALLEN CITY COUNCIL/ ALLEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION CALLED - SPECIAL JOINT WORKSHOP SESSION MAY 14, 1987 Page 2 Statement of the Purpose of the Meeting (Agenda Item III) Chairman Ken Browning read the purpose of the meeting into the record as follows: "To provide an orderly, progressive, and meaningful dis- cussion between the City Council and the Planning and Zoning Commission to consider recommendation of specific sections of the text of the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance, to review use and area regulations for proposed zoning districts, and to receive input from the City Council on conceptual planning issues presently being examined by the Planning and Zoning Commission." The Council and the Commission discussed putting a time limit on the meeting and concluded that they could try to wrap up the discussions around 9:00 p.m. Mayor Pro Tem Farmer pointed out that in addition to the purpose of the meeting stated previously, the Council and the Commission should add additional wording that includes the discussion of economic development as reflected in Agenda Item VI. After a brief discussion by the Council and the Commission, it was agreed that the purpose of the meeting would also include discussion of the issue of economic development in the city. Review New Zoning Districts (Agenda Item IV) Chairman Browning opened the floor for discussion on the "Corridor Commercial" district. The Council and Commission discussed previous concerns stated at past meetings regarding the "Corridor Commercial" district, the mishmash of uses proposed in this district, if there was a need to develop this type of district or simply use planned development for the areas involved, and the concern that if the district is an approved district, then more rezoning requests would appear for this district and its uses. Bill Petty, Director of Community Development, spoke before the Council and the Commission on this proposed district from the city staff's view point and any concerns they had with this proposed district. There was further discussion on whether to have "Corridor Commercial" as a new district or to delete it altogether. Chairman Browning asked for a show of hands from everyone that was in favor of not creating a "Corridor Commercial" district and leaving the districts was they have been proposed. There were five (5) votes shown in favor of this position. Chairman Browning pointed out to the Council and the Commission that review of the new zoning districts had been completed with the exception of the "Corridor Commercial" district. Chairman Browning advised the Council and the Commission that previous discussion had centered on whether the Corridor Commercial district was needed, the locations for the proposed Corridor Commercial districts on U.S. 75, and just what uses were to be allowed in this district. Bill Petty, Director of Community Development, spoke briefly before the Council and the Commission on the fact that a request had been submitted for Planned Development - Corridor Commercial on one of the pieces of property along U.S. 75, thus leaving only two more properties to be zoned in that category. Chairman Browning opened the floor for discussion on the "Corridor Commercial" district. The Council and Commission discussed previous concerns stated at past meetings regarding the "Corridor Commercial" district, the mishmash of uses proposed in this district, if there was a need to develop this type of district or simply use planned development for the areas involved, and the concern that if the district is an approved district, then more rezoning requests would appear for this district and its uses. Bill Petty, Director of Community Development, spoke before the Council and the Commission on this proposed district from the city staff's view point and any concerns they had with this proposed district. There was further discussion on whether to have "Corridor Commercial" as a new district or to delete it altogether. Chairman Browning asked for a show of hands from everyone that was in favor of not creating a "Corridor Commercial" district and leaving the districts was they have been proposed. There were five (5) votes shown in favor of this position. ALLEN CITY COUNCIL/ ALLEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION CALLED - SPECIAL JOINT WORKSHOP SESSION MAY 14, 1987 Page 3 Review New Zoning Districts (cont'd) (Agenda Item IV) Chairman Browning then asked for a show of hands from those who were in favor of creating the new "Corridor Commercial" district. There were four (4) votes shown in favor of this position. Since there were 11 individuals present at this meeting, two individuals had abstained from voting on either position. There was further discussion by those abstaining that they did not feel a strong position one way or the other. Discussion continued on this district and the fact that it had been referenced in the city's Comprehensive Master Plan and when that plan was developed it was felt that this district was needed in the city and a lot of work had been done to create this district and the proposed uses for it. Discussion continued on the fact that some members felt that this district provided flexibility to developers and that they could see the permitted uses allowed in this district and whether it would be compatible for their development. Other points discussed by the Council and the Commission were if the uses proposed were valid on U.S. 75, what type of impression did the city want to have on U.S. 75 and S.H. 121, and the fact that when the comprehensive plan was approved, the use of the Corridor Commercial district was not seen or understood to contain the mishmash of uses proposed. Discussion continued on the image that the city wants for U.S. 75 and the desirability of campus type developments, how economic development can relate to the position to be taken on the "Corridor Commercial" district, a decision needing to be made on whether this will be an allowable district and not bogging down the entire review process on this one item. Chairman Browning asked again if another straw vote should be taken on the "Corridor Commercial" issue and there was dis- cussion on just what the straw vote was to be used for and if it was determined that the "Corridor Commercial" was a viable district, did that mean it was approved as presented or would there be an opportunity to review and discuss the proposed uses in that district. Mayor Pro Tem Farmer posed the question to city staff to define what the full meaning of a "straw vote" was. City Manager Jon McCarty advised that it is a nonbinding indicator to establish a method for coming to a consensus on an item. It is used as a method to determine direction on a question or an item. There was discussion to clarify that this straw vote did not represent the final official vote on this issue and there would be another opportunity to officially vote on this matter. Chairman Browning asked for a show of hands on the question of whether to move in the direction of establishing a "Corridor Commercial" district and agreeing upon those uses in that district at a later date. The vote was eight (8) in favor of the question and three (3) votes in opposition to the question. Therefore, it was determined that the direction would be to move forward with the establishment of a "Corridor Commercial" district, with the uses for that district to be determined at a later time. Bill Petty, Director of Community Development, spoke before the Council and the Commission on the fact that there was still another new district to be reviewed and approved, that being the "Light Commercial" district. ALLEN CITY COUNCIL/ ALLEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION CALLED - SPECIAL JOINT WORKSHOP SESSION MAY 14, 1987 Page 4 Review New Zoning Districts (cont'd) (Agenda Item IV) Mr. Petty spoke before the Council and the Commission on the reasoning behind the development of the "Light Commercial" district. There was considerable discussion on what this new district would resolve and what zoning problems would be solved by this district, what are some of the examples of the uses that are allowed in this district, allowable uses in this district as compared to "General Business" or "Local Retail", and where this type of district could be located in the city. After the discussion, Chairman Browning asked for a show of hands for approval of the "Light Commercial" district as a new district in the comprehensive zoning ordinance. There was a unanimous vote by the Council and the Commission on approving the "Light Commercial" district as a new district in the city's comprehensive zoning ordinance. Review Commission Recommendations on the Schedule of Uses (Agenda Item V) Bill Petty, Director of Community Development, spoke before the Council and the Commission on the schedule of uses for each of the zoning districts and explained what the symbols on the schedule of uses represented. He advised that all new districts and uses were marked with an "X" in the margin to indicate that they are new to the schedule of uses. He pointed out that areas with no markings indicated the uses are not permitted in that district, the uses showing an asterick with a one and a two indicated that it was an allowed use by right previously and that it is an allowed use by right proposed, an "S" means a Specific Use Permit, a "T" means a temporary use permit, and a "C" means a conditional use. There was discussion on the appropriate way to begin the review of the schedule of uses and it was determined that the Council and the Commission would review each page and make any comments necessary. Chairman Browning pointed out that he had hoped each member had reviewed their documents and made the necessary notations to make this review easy and quick. In further discussion, Mayor Pro Tem Farmer advised that he felt the Council had not had an opportunity to meet together and review and discuss the schedule of uses and that perhaps was necessary before discussing the schedule of uses with the Planning and Zoning Commission. After further dis- cussion on this matter, it was concluded that the City Council should schedule a workshop session to review the schedule of uses and that issue should be addressed as an agenda item at the next Council meeting. Bill Petty suggested to the Council that a representative of the Planning and Zoning Commission might need to be present at the workshop session in order to explain why the Commission had made various decisions on the schedule of uses. It was concluded by the Council that it would not be necessary for a Planning and Zoning Commission member to be present at the workshop. The Council and the Commission also discussed scheduling another joint workshop session after the Council has had an opportunity to review and discuss the schedule of uses at their workshop session. At the joint workshop session, the Council and the Commission can discuss any differences that exist on the districts or the schedule of uses in those districts. ALLEN CITY COUNCIL/ ALLEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION CALLED - SPECIAL JOINT WORKSHOP SESSION MAY 19, 1987 Page 5 Discuss Economic Development (Agenda Item VI) Chairman Browning spoke before the Council and the Com- mission regarding the previous discussions that had been held on economic development. He began the discussion on the agenda item by reading a letter from Commissioner Eileen Karlsruher, who could not attend the meeting. The letter expressed Mrs. Karlsruher feelings and concerns regarding economic development for the city. Chairman Browning advised that in previous discussions the topic seem to center around the city developing a policy, posture, or direction regarding economic development for the city. Since several organizations in the city, such as the City of Allen, the Chamber of Commerce, the Allen Independent School District, the Allen Industrial Development Corporation, etc., are all working on the subject of economic development, it was suggested that a direction be determined in order for all of these organizations to.. focus on that position. Chairman Browning opened the floor for discussion on the subject matter. Councilman Wilson requested that the City Manager advised the Council and the Commission of the results of a meeting that was held between the City of Allen, the AISD, and the Chamber of Commerce regarding this subject matter. City Manager McCarty advised that Michael Stanger, Administrative Assistant, would speak before the Council and the Commission on the TEXCEL Program, which stands for the Texas Cities Economic Leadership Program. Michael Stanger advised the Council and the Commission of the establishment of the TEXCEL Program in the State of Texas and how it was developed as a program to help train local governments do their own economic development programs. Mr. Stanger explained that individuals from the city and the Chamber had attended an orientation session and three workshop sessions on this program and explained what type of information was presented at the workshop sessions. Mr. Stanger went on to explain that there was a certification process for cities involved in this type of program and reviewed briefly the ten fundamental steps for a city to be certified under this program with the state. City Manager Jon McCarty then spoke before the Council and the Commission on the fact that the city has accomplished seven of the ten fundamental steps in the TEXCEL Program and has three steps left to achieve. Mr. McCarty advised of the methodology to be used in achieving the other three elements. He stated that the City of Allen, the Chamber of Commerce, and the AISD have had several meetings to discuss entering into a formal agreement and creating an authority; making a commitment by each of the entities to provide money for economic development; and finally the development by the entities of an economic development strategy. Mr. McCarty went on to explain other aspects of the program and pointed out that a formal presentation on this matter had not been made to the City Council, AISD Board of Trustees, or the Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. There was discussion on the need for the city to take either an aggressive stand or a passive stand, or somewhere in between, on economic development in the city, that someone needs to take the leadership in the program presented by city staff, that some of the methods used to encourage economic development in the past are not effective now, and that due to the economic conditions thoughts need to be given to determining stands on providing tax incentives. There was further dis- cussion on the fact that in the past the act of the city in economic development was more reactionary than actually going out and seeking companies and businesses to come to Allen. nr ALLEN CITY COUNCIL/ ALLEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION CALLED - SPECIAL JOINT WORKSHOP SESSION MAY 14, 1967 Page 6 Discuss Economic Development (cont'd) (Agenda Item VI) There was further discussion on actions being taken by other cities to encourage economic development; a clarification by city staff that the creation of the authority between the city, the school district, and the chamber for economic development would not take any development authority, zoning authority, or platting authority away from the city officials; that there is a need to establish a strategy so that developers will know what the city has to offer up front; and that with a more aggressive stand more developers will be brought to the table to negotiate their needs rather than them feeling nothing can be work out in the beginning. The City Manager spoke before the Council and the Commission on the progressive stand he feels the city has taken in capital improvement projects and preparing the citizenry for the growth that Allen will experience. Mr. McCarty also spoke about the maintaining of the quality of life in the city and the presentation of those factors to the developers. There was further discussion on what an aq;ressive stand would be in economic development, whether the community is willing to accept the growth or is it going to have to be forced upon them, how the city's tax rate is in comparison to the school district and other cities in this area or of comparable size, and just what is to be accomplished on this topic at this meeting. The. Council Members discussed why this particular topic was on the agenda and what was to be accomplished on this topic. It was pointed out that this agenda item had been included do to the discussions on the uses in the Corridor Commercial district and by opening up the uses in the Corridor Commercial district, it was felt this would help economic development in the city. After further discussion, it was concluded that the City Council would include this subject an a workshop agenda or at an upcoming City Council meeting. It was felt this was a very critical topic of discussion and one that would need a lot of review and discussion. Review Hearings Process (Agenda Item VII) The Council and the Commission discussed this agenda item and asked the city staff for a clarification of it. Bill Petty, Director of Community Development, advised the Council and the Commission that in the past after a document has been finalized and the public hearings are ready to be held, it has been the practice of the Council and the Commission to hold a joint public hearing and take joint action on the document. The city staff wanted to clarify that that process will be done on this matter. After a brief discussion, it was the consensus of the Council and the Commission that the joint public hearing would be held as had been the practice in the past. There was also a brief discussion on whether there will be a need to hold another workshop session between the Council and the Commission on the schedule of uses after the Council has had an opportunity to review it. It was concluded that the number of changes to the document would determine whether there would be a need for another workshop session. ALLEN CITY COUNCIL/ ALLEN PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION CALLED - SPECIAL JOINT WORKSHOP SESSION MAY 14, 1987 Page 7 Adjournment (Agenda Item VIII) MOTION: Upon a motion made by Councilman Glass and seconded by Commissioner Armand, the Council and the Commission voted 11 - 0 to adjourn the called - special workshop session of the Allen City Council and the Allen Planning and Zoning Commission at 9:51 p.m. on Thursday, May 14, 1987. The motion carried. p These minutes approved on the / day of 1987, by the Allen Planning and Zoning Commission. Ke/: rown , CHAIRMAN 1 Eileen Karlsruher, SECRETARY These minutes approved on the 6th day of AUGUST 1987, by the Allen City Council. ATTEST: Marty Hendrix, ITY SECRETARY 4 :••e*i B