HomeMy WebLinkAbout02-03-2014 Planning Commission MinutesFebruary 3, 2014
Planning Commissio n Minu tes
The Planning Commission met Monday, February 3rd
, 2014 at 5:00 PM at the City
Municipal Complex, 161 N. Section Street in the Council Chambers.
Present: Lee Turner, Chairperson; George Roberds, Vice-Chair; Tim Kant; Bob Cl ark;
Dick Charles; Bernie Fogarty; Jennifer Fidler; Hollie MacKellar; Councilmember Diana
Brewer; Jonathan Smith, Planning Director; Nancy Milford, Planner; and Emily Boyett,
Secretary
Absent: None
Chairman Lee Turner called the meeting to order at 5 :00 PM and announced the meeting
is being recorded. The minutes of the January 6th, 20 14 me eting were considered and
Dick Charle s moved to accept the minutes as written and was 2nd by George Roberds.
Motion carried with one abstention by Hollie MacKellar.
Mayor Kant introduced Hollie MacKellar and welcomed her as the newest Planning
Commissioner.
IR 14.01 Request of C.P. Achee Builders, LLC for an Informal Review of Point
Place Subdivision, Pat Achee. The property is l ocated on the north side of County Road
44 (a.k.a. Twin Beech Road) just west of Battles Road. Jonathan Smith gave the staff
report saying the property was originally located in Baldwin County and unzoned. On
July 24, 2006, the property was annexed into the City of Fairhope as R-1 Low Dens ity
Sing le Family Residential District. The subj ect property consists of 4 lots on
approx imately 5.21 acres. The subdivision has never bee n develop ed to date and
currentl y exists with no impro ved road system, only a gravel private drive, as approved
by the Planning Commission. The applicant wo uld like to rezone the property to a PUD.
The subject property is surrounded by unzoned property on all but the west side of the
property. The west side of the property is bordered by R-1 zoning district property. The
applicant would like to propose a plan for a development of very restricted homes that the
applicant compares to the 18 lot ;'Poplar Place" within Sandy Ford and the l O lot cottage
section of "The Waters at Fairhope". The applicant is proposing a PUD and lo ts 90 feet
wide. The goa l is to fill a niche of high end smaller lots to accommodated empty nest ers.
The applicant would like to keep the street narrow and preserve trees. The appli cant
contends that the b e nefit to the C ity wou ld be to improve an abandoned vacant
subdivision.
The appli cant, Pat Achee, prov ided a hand-out to the Commission and addressed them
saying he has been a builder in Fairhope for 20 years. He stated he h as developed several
projects like this one. He referenced Sandy Ford's Poplar Place saying those lots are 75'
wide with 22 00 square foot house minimums. He explained there are lots of people in
this area that are lo oking to scale back from their larger hom es and this proposal will
meet this niche . Mr. Achee stated there are lots of trees on tb e property and it is his goal
to keep as many as po ssi ble although there are severa l that are diseased. He described a
14 lot subdivision that would keep with th e subdivi sion , Point Clear Court, to the west of
the subj ect property . He is proposing 90' wide lots, a 35' landscaped buffer alon g Battles
Road in additi on to the existing 22', and non-traditi onal drainage. Mr. Achee mentioned
the 10 lot "Cottage" section in The Waters sub divis ion and explained that since 2008
there has bee n a shift in th e t ype, size, and cost of what peop le want in a ho me. He said
peop le want the old Fairhope sty le house but in a smaller s ize. He stated he is proposing
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2000 to 1800 square foot minimums and aimed at empty nesters and owners with
multiple homes. He st ated he is looking for a street scape and to get away from front
entry garages. He said these lots are substantiall y large r than Watershed subdivi sion
which is across the street. He is also proposing to ext end th e right-of-way to the east to
connect w ith the adjacent property.
Mayor Kant asked w hat t ype of drainage is proposed and street width. M r. Achee
responded he is lo oking at Low Impact Development designs and a 4 0' ROW with 18 ' of
pavement w ith a ribbon curb. He added he is proposing p ervious co ncrete and asphalt for
t he street a nd to u se the la nd scaping as part of the detention. Mrs. F idler as ked if
anything w ill be done to Co leman Trail and Mr. Achee stated he h as no intention of
doing anything to it. Mr. Clark questioned the proposed density compared to the ex isting
surroundings and Mr. Achee r es ponded it is the same as the adjacent s ubdivision but
much less than Watershed. Mr. Clark asked wh y they are proposing a PUD and Mr.
Achee explained a PUD allows mo re fl exibility w ith sizes, setbacks, right-of-way w idth,
and he is use d to dealing w ith a PUD. Mr. Fogarty stated the proposal fits in w ith the
surrounding area a nd he likes the overall idea of a softer development. Mr. Turner stated
he likes the proposal and said it does fit in. He also said he likes the use of a LID
detention design. Mr. Ch arles asked w hy they want to chan ge wh at's there and put more
lots . M r. Achee stated the original plan was done in 2007 and ob li vio usly it d idn 't sell so
they are trying something different.
Ken Co le of 304 Poplar Place -Mr. Ac hee built hi s house and he lo ves it, but he would
li ke to move closer to Lakewood. He said that man y of hi s friends would love to
downsize into sma ll er, more affo rdabl e hou sin g in the Lakewood area. He added he
bought his lot on Poplar Place because of the trees.
M rs. MacKellar stated there are never houses for sale on Poplar Place and if one is li sted
is does not stay long. Mr. Roberds said he likes the plan and recommended Mr. Achee
talk to the nei ghbors a bout hi s proposal. Mrs. Brewer stated sh e l ikes the design and is
g lad to see talk abo ut using a LID. Mrs. Mac.Kellar asked if sid ewalks will be insta ll ed
and Mr. Ac hee responded yes, sidewalk s w ill be in stall ed. Mr. R oberds asked who th e
engineer is and Mr. Achee stated he is not certain at this time but h e h as been looki ng a t
Trey Jinri ght. There were no further comments and Mr. Achee thanked the Commi ssion
for their input.
New / Old Business
Sign Ordinance -Mr. Smith suggested seiecting a committee to review it prior to
bringing it back before the Commission or sending it to the Co uncil. H e stated he sent a
draft to Chri s Gill for comments and he has made add itio n a l c han ges . Mr. Smith said he
wi ll e-mail the revised draft to the Commissioners to get thei r comments.
Comprehensive Plan -Mr. Smith stated the ACE results w ill be given at the Ci ty
Counci l meeti ng next week and he will set up a meeting in February for th e
Comprehensi v e P lan Co mmittee .
Planning Operations Update -Mr. Smith stated staff is currently working on several
projects primari l y for lon g range planning u pdates .
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Having no further business, George Roberds mo ved to adjourn and was 2nd by Dick
Charles. Motion passed unanimously. The meeting was duly adjourned at 5:40 PM.
Lee Turner, Chairman
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