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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Minutes - Business Council Committee - Meeting Date: 6/18/2020MINUTES BUSINESS COUNCIL COMMITTEE GLENDALE CIVIC CENTER 5750 W. GLENN DR. GLENDALE, ARIZONA 85301 THURSDAY, JUNE 18TH, 2020 1:00 PM CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 1 PM. ROT,L CALL Committee members present: Chairperson Joyce Clark, Vice Mayor Ray Malnar, Councilmember Lauren Tolmachoff, Vice Chairperson Bart Shea, Dale Adams, John Crow, Yvonne Knaack, and Ricardo Toris. Committee members absent: None. City staff present: Lisa Collins (Development Services Director) and Shannon Beck (Council Assistant) were present. CITIZEN COMMENTS Christopher Budreski of Glendale voiced his issues with mobile food vendors parking and selling foods to children during the hours that children are leaving school. Mr. Budreski was asking why (according to city code) the vendors had to be 500 feet away from the schools, and he was wondering how this relates to the food vendors. Chairperson Clark appreciated Mr. Budreski's expression of his concerns, and then she suggested that Mr. Budreski discuss his concerns further with Mr. Klyszeiko and Mr. Pruett at a later time. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES A motion to approve the meeting minutes from January 16, 2020, was made by Ms. Knaack, and it was seconded by Bart Shea. All were in favor, and none opposed. ITEMS a. Presentation review by Matthew Klyszeiko and Adam Pruett from Michael Baker International regarding the code rewrite. Mr. Klyszeiko chose to speak first and noted that he would like to reserve some time during the meeting to discuss signage during the meeting as well. Mr. Klyszeiko asked for feedback regarding the content in the committee member packet (which includes the zoning analysis and annotated outline). The zoning project progress can be accessed by going to zoneglendaleaz.com to find the project outline, drafts, updates, and a survey. Mr. Klyszeiko and Mr. Pruett did what they could to capture data from the community to create the annotated outline. This outline was created in an effort to help aid in drafting the brand new zoning codes. Chairperson Clark began with her comments on page 7. Chairperson Clark commended their goals of making the codes more accessible and encouraging the codes which support new development and businesses. Chairperson Clark then asked for comments from the committee. Mr. Toris then asked how Mr. Klyszeiko and Mr. Pruett were able to connect with the community and get their feedback. Mr. Pruett stated they used emails, notices on the city website, and local periodicals to connect with the city. The committee began discussing ways in which they could expand community outreach, and Chairperson Clark suggested building the city's own database, and Ms. Collins stated that could be done. Ms. Knaack noted there should be more participation from the community in an effort to ensure there isn't any potential backlash after zoning codes are finalized. The committee continued to come up with other suggestions to make the residences aware of the pending changes. Mr. Adams appreciated the details of the annotated outline, but noted there needs to be acknowledgement of what the city is planning on doing to accommodate the growth of Glendale. Vice Mayor Malnar noted of the cyclical issues of community awareness of changes in codes prior to city meetings, but then Vice Mayor Malnar's connection was lost. Chairperson Clark moved the committee to page 8. Chairperson Clark asked for the annotated outline to specifically recognize the economic engines in the area (such as downtown, Westgate, Arrowhead, etc.). Chairperson Clark called for other comments on page 8. Mr. Toris noted this whole project is a work in progress, and it's important for the public to participate early on in the process of drafting. Ms. Knaack concurred and offered assistance with getting public feedback. Chairperson Clark suggested that everyone drafts and communicates their thoughts and ideas early in the process in an effort to avoid pushback later on. Chairperson Clark then moved onward to page 10. Policy UD 6.1. Chairperson Clark asked if there will be distinctions of separate areas in the city for each zoning code, and Mr. Pruett said yes. On page 11, Chairperson Clark asked for a definition of unified development code. Mr. Pruett explained there are different sections where someone might need to read in order to understand the development codes per each type of property. The unified development code would be a new chapter which would present development codes in order from which are used the most to which are used the least. Chairperson Clark questioned the layout of the code and wondered if this rewrite is meant to make it more accessible for staff or the city residences. Ms. Collins noted that this entire code editing process is occurring in an effort to have to edit it as little as possible in the future. Ms. Collins hoped to have handouts or checklists in the future to help lead the layperson through the codes. Mr. Shea noted that the unified development code simplifies the codes for property developers, but not for the layman. On page 12, Chairperson Clark wanted to discuss grandfathering. Chairperson Clark asked for the group to clearly define whether grandfathering will be enacted with the new code. Ms. Collins and the legal staff are working on what will be done with this. Chairperson Clark commented on the fifth paragraph on page 13, and she asked if there could be a glossary in the back of the code for the layperson, and everyone agreed it would be helpful. In the third paragraph on page 14, the implementation of a hearing officer has been proposed, but Chairperson Clark asked if that would mean the Board of Adjustment would no longer exist. Mr. Pruett noted that the hearing officer would be someone who would expedite the process. Chairperson Clark also noted the citizen participation plan is a strong concept, but the developments have grown more complex and conflicting with residences. On page 15, the committee discussed notification radiuses and variances within the process. Mr. Toris caution that the boundary specifically needs to be defined, rather than it being subjective, so there is no confusion for the applicant. 2 With that, Chairperson Clark stopped the discussion for the annotated outline, and the committee will continue on page 16 when they meet in July. Matthew Klyszeiko and Adam Pruett then began discussing signage. Mr. Pruett went through the slides to discuss the types of signs, process review, grandfathering, etc. in an effort to get direction and guidance from the committee. During the Reed vs. Town of Gilbert supreme court case, the court made a ruling regarding content neutrality. Generally, temporary signs were treated differently by the city, and ultimately it resulted in the abilities for cities to look at signs as "things" rather than "messages." There is a footnote, tough, which notes that cities can recognize the difference between commercial and non-commercial speech (ex: political protest signs are treated differently than business signs). The language of signage codes is aiming to be more specific for each type of sign. Mr.Pruett continued on to step 3, and he noted their goal is to specify the sign details into temporary signs and permanent signs. The goal is to examine nearby cities and codes not to emulate the codes completely, but to simply reference. In step 4, as they work through the details of the type of signs, the details of overlay might be of value to the city. Chairperson Clark acknowledged that the committee represents different areas of the community, and with that, Chairperson Clark asked for feedback. Mr. Toris first spoke about asking for PAD zoning and sign deviation. Mr Toris asked if the city wants sign deviation to be separate in order to streamline the process. Mr. Crow agreed with Mr. Toris and presented there should be a process of what to do when signage isn't up to code, but still works for the community. Mr. Adams added that each business is different, but it should be easier for everyone. Ms. Collins suggested sign variances and dispensing the current ordinances. Chairperson Clark suggested having clean, neat, well-maintained, non-offensive signs should be the only regulations needed. With that, Chairperson Clark asked for final comments from the rest of the committee. The committee then touched on the other areas they'll want to discuss in the coming meetings. Ms. Knaack believes the owner of the building should have the final say in who posts the sign, and she asserted that signs should be up to code (and not grandfathered in). OTHER BUSINESS No other business was discussed. STAFF REPORT No staff reports were discussed. COMMITTEE COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS There were no committee comments or suggestions made. NEXT MEETING The next regular meeting of the Business Council Committee will be held on July 16th, 2020, at 2:00 PM. ADJOURNMENT Chairperson Clark made a motion to adjourn the meeting. The meeting adjourned at approximately 3:05 PM. 3 Sherry Crapser, Recording Secretary