Agenda - Planning Commission - 02/07/2019

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Mr. Petro stated that it appears that the City' s only option is to rezone the parcel or tear down the building. Community Development Director Gladhill confirmed that the City' s only option would be to zone the parcel appropriately to support the uses that have been approved. Acting Mayor LeTourneau noted that the City is attempting to resolve a situation that has already occurred and uses that have already been approved. Mr. Petro stated that this property would be worth more money for the business owner as a business parcel rather than a residential parcel with a Conditional Use Permit. He believed that the neighboring property owners would be the ones to suffer if a restaurant serving alcohol until 2:00 a.m. is allowed on the site compared to the daycare which closes at 6:00 p.m. He stated that he does not mind the daycare use but would not support the additional uses. He believed that additional structures would be added to the property once the zoning is changed. Community Development Director Gladhill stated that the property owner relied on the City acting in good faith on its own ordinances 20 years ago. He stated that case law has since changed, and the zoning would need to be changed to list the allowed uses that have already been approved. He stated that looking at the existing use and previous uses, the site has been used commercially and the City is simply allowing the correction to the zoning to support uses that have already been approved and existed on the site. He stated that there is always a potential for expansion and new uses whether the zoning changes or not and he believed that it would be better to have the appropriate controls in place prior to receiving any requests. Councilmember Shryock stated that the Council understands the concerns of the community and attempts to make decisions based on input from the community. She stated that the Council would not permit activities that would not be appropriate because of the location. She asked for clarification on the difference between the neighborhood business district and general business district. Community Development Director Gladhill stated that the intent was to be very restrictive and selective on the uses. He noted that this would be much more restrictive than the Highway 47 corridor businesses, which is already more restrictive than the Highway 10 corridor businesses. He noted that there would be much more protection in this district compared to the other business districts. Councilmember Shryock noted that there is no change for the parcel at this time. She stated that, in the future, perhaps a small cafe or coffee shop would be considered but did not believe that the Council would allow a full restaurant on this site. Community Development Director Gladhill stated that there may be requests to expand in the future but noted that staff has rejected some proposals in the past because they would not fit on the site. He stated that this traffic corridor does not support high traffic businesses and therefore those businesses would not be looking at this site and would not be allowed on this site.