HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-05-2004 Regular MeetingThe Planning & Zoning Commission met Monday, January 5, 2004 at
5:OOPM at the City Municipal Complex, 161 N. Section Street in the
Council Chambers
Present: R.N. Charles, Chairman; Tim Kant, Bob Clark, Dan
McCrory, Larry Green, Lee Turner, Ed Brinson, Mike Ford, Jean
Wilson. Betty Rivenbark, Secretary and Christopher Baker,
Director of Planning and Zoning. No one was absent
The December 2003 minutes were considered and approved as written on
motion by Larry Green, 2"d by Ed Brinson and unanimously carried.
SD04.01 Preliminary Plat of Arlington Farms(Generally located east of
Cty Rd 27 and north of Fairhope Avenue) Klumpp Family Ltd made the
application and EDS is representing the Klumpp's application . Christopher
Baker in his comments said this is 18.5 acres and they are proposing to
divide this into 37 lots. He said the request is consistent with the plan, no
greenspace is required because the average lot size of more than 15, 000
sq ft and there is an existing drainage ditch on the northern end of the
property that will be relocated so that it does not cut through the rear of the
platted lots. He said further drainage is a major concern as River Mill
should not be further impacted. Staff recommendation was to approve.
Joe Bullock spoke for EDS saying they realized drainage was a concern
and that they could not dump any more water into River Mill. He said they
looked at the existing basin and determined the best way to handle this is 'O
provide a greater detention basin and have certified this will have no
adverse impact due to the fact they are providing a larger drainage basin.
Further discussion followed with many questions regarding the common
area, danger of large open basin area, responsibility of taking care of
detention pond, piping basin area. This led to question regarding anything
in writing on homeowners associations and responsibilities in subdivision.
Christopher Baker said there is nothing but he will be glad to work on
something and present it to the commission. A motion was made by Lee
Turner to approve the preliminary plat as requested. Ed Brinson 2nc, the
motion and it carried unanimously.
SD04.02 Informal Review Colony Park was withdrawn.
SD04.03 Preliminary Plat of Sandy Ford, Phase 3(Generally located
adjacent and east of Rock Creek) Mr. Baker said Steve Pumphrey of
Volkert & Assoc. is representing the Sandy Ford Land Development Co.
and that this is a PUD that was approved several years ago. This is the last
phase of the project containing 26.48 acres and 48 lots. He said the
developer is proposing another detention pond for this phase and another
access point to the east and everything is in order. Recommendation was
Planning & Zoning Commission
January 5, 2004 — Page two
to approve with understanding additional phases will not be accepted until
another eastward access point was secured and provided. Discussion
followed and all questions were answered satisfactorily, Larry Green
moved to approve preliminary plat as submitted with staff recommendation.
Dan McCrory 2"
d the motion and it carried unanimously.
SD04.04 Informal Sketch Plan review Melissa Mahan(Generally located
at Fish River and Hwy 104) Mr. Baker said this has come before the
commission as an informal sketch review and the property is outside the
city limits but in the Planning Jurisdiction containing 77 acres and proposed
83 lots. He said this is not consistent with the plan it is purely a leap frog
development and does not meet the infrastructure and development
framework planning goals set forth in the comprehensive plan. He said city
water is available but they are proposing to use septic systems.
Recommendation was to give input. Seth Moore was present representing
Ms. Mahan and said they have not done a topo so they do not have
high/low points, have no definite plan just sketch presented tonight. He
said the lots would be in excess of 20,000 feet. He said the lots have very
sandy soil which is good for septic tanks. He said city water is available at
Langford Road and this will be done in phases. Seth said they have
provided 5 connections to adjacent property owners, will have common
area and homeowners association will be on the plat and recorded. They
will have divided highway at the entrance with de and acceleration lanes.
When he finished Mr. Charles asked him why they are planning private lots
on the river, why not donate this as common area. Larry Green said he
had a problem with the stub outs and them not meeting block length of
subdivision regulations. The cost of bringing sewer to the subdivision was
discussed. Christopher Baker said he saw 3 issues : putting lots right
against the river, flooding, and septic tanks on Fish River. Frank
Leatherburry spoke saying that he is very familiar with the property and
that there is a lot of flooding here. He said he would like to see the
property along the river set aside for public use. That the Weeks Bay
Estuary tried to buy it and had developed a protective design with
subdivision layout but it was cost prohibitive. He wanted to emphasize how
important the design is. Ms. Mahan was asked if she wanted to comment
and she said she would like to see the design Mr. Leatherbury has.
IR04.01 Adoption of the Natural Resource Inventory. Christopher
Baker commented that having used grant monies the Natural Resource
Inventory has been developed resulting in the report(filed in Planning &
Zoning Office)which breaks the jurisdiction down into watersheds. He said
they have held public hearings and received input. He said this is not a
Planning & Zoning Commission
January 5, 2003 — Page three
regulatory document and will use this document in each of the watershed areas
to put together the greenspace plan. Further, that the natural resource
inventory is the important foundation upon which we can make educated
decisions and focus on resources. He recommended approval. A motion
was made by Larry Green to adopt the Natural Resource Inventory as
presented. Bob Clark 2"d
the motion and it carried unanimously.
Under old/new business — continued wetlands discussion was held.
Christopher Baker said we need to go forward have a solid approach with
arms around wetlands based on what the county requires, mainly where
lots in wetlands can be subdivided but have to have sufficient building
acreage on an upland area and leave wetlands as is, not allow filling. John
Parker, and Red Wilkins spoke regarding the Breland application that is
coming up again in February and is in regards to wetlands and their
property. They were part of a group from the area that would be affected by
this development. Mr. Parker said he had been fighting this fight 15 years
and cited letters he had received from Eldon Blancher and Frank
McFadden in October wherein they had reviewed the information regarding
the proposed Battles Wharf subdivision and cited problems that would
evolve from filling in the wetlands upstream and downstream and how
critical wetlands are in the eco system. He promised to furnish copies to
the Commission for review before the February meeting. Dick Charles
commented the commission cannot tackle 208 acres in one big bite,
analyze on a micro scale and look at one area at a time. Further discussion
led to Larry Green moving to recommend to the city council that they enter
into an arrangement with a third party, get an independent assessment, to
get input on wetlands development. Bob Clark 2" the motion and it carried
unanimously. Mr. Wilkins pointed out that under Alabama law the
municipality or Planning Commission has the inherent authority to make its
own determination whether certain lands are suitable for development.
There being no further business meeting was duly adjourned at 6:30 pm.
i Lm * — xh 41,1 4
BettyRivenbark, Secretary R. N. Charles, Chairman