Minutes - Planning Commission - 08/25/2022

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Commissioner Anderson commented that there are times accessory structures are placed in the wrong location and therefore he would still want checks and balances. Planning Manager Larson replied that the zoning permit does not have inspection, so it is still up to the resident to properly place the shed on the property. Senior Planner Anderson stated that typically the very same process is followed in the sense that the resident would reach out and ask questions about what they want to do. He stated that what would change is that the resident would not have to formally submit the plan that goes through the plan review system, which is then reviewed by planning and engineering. He stated that if there is an issue related to placement, staff would not know about the issue until there is a complaint which is the same whether a zoning permit was required or not. He stated that the only thing that would change is the review of the permit and issuance of the permit. He stated that in most cases residents do reach out to the City to determine if there is anything they need to know but there will always be property owners that do what they want. He stated that the enforcement side would not change whether or not there was a permit issued. Commissioner Walker asked if it would be possible to keep the permit only for the fact of providing rules and regulations. He stated that the City would know what is going on for tracking purposes. He commented that would make it easier for staff to know which properties may need to be followed up on for code enforcement. He stated that he would still agree with removing the need for plan submittal and staff review. He agreed that some residents will continue to do things without permits, but for those that do apply for the permit, they could still be given the applicable rules. Planning Manager Larson commented that part of this is also the value of the $25. He stated that in that scenario the resident would be paying $25 to receive the rules, which are also available for free on the website. He stated that Brooklyn Park does not have this type of permit. He stated that it was the personable responsibility of the resident to follow the rules and code enforcement would be used for those that do not follow the rules. He stated that this would be a better service to the residents rather than requiring them to go through all the steps without an inspection to know it was done right. He commented that the $25 fee does not even begin to cover the cost for staff review as well as the added delay to residents. He stated that if the cost is increased to better cover the staff cost, more people will skip the step of getting a permit. Acting Chairperson Gengler commented that this seems beneficial to both residents and staff. Councilmember Woestehoff stated that using the data, there have been about 100 zoning permits per year, and he would believe that there are many more residents completing these projects without permits. He asked the time staff is spending on these permit reviews. City Planner McCann stated that when a resident submits a permit, he estimates that the review would take about one week. He estimated that each staff member involved in the process spends at least 15 minutes. Planning Commission/ August 25, 2022 Page 25 of 27