Agenda - Planning Commission - 12/01/2005

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Mr. Shellerud explained less than half of the lots being proposed tonight are 70 feet wide, most' are 74 feet wide. The reason GM Homes has requested the 70 foot lots 'is because they have made the commitment to staff and 'the City Council that the building pads would be 50 feet wide, which gives them I0 feet of open space on each side of the homes. If the site remains under R-1 zoning there would be 15 feet between structures, while this proposal would have a minimum of 20 feet between structures. That is the reason for the PUD request. They are trying to make the streetscape as open and green, as possible with as much room between homes as possible. Chairperson Nixt stated he is troubled by the PUD, but there are clear reasons for it. He is not generally in favor of smaller lot sizes in a clearly Single family neighborhood, but this area will have Alpine Drive to the north, Nowthen Boulevard to the west, a new public street to the east, and Quasi-Public use to the south. . Commissioner Van Scoy inquired if the safety concerns of the adjoining neighborhoods will be addressed. Mr. Shellerud explained discussions during work sessions he attended hinged on the fact that the :;treets need to be hooked up for the accessibility of safety vehicles. Regarding the question about the street or driveway that comes up t° City Hall at this point, they will be widening the street according to City standards almost back to the parking lot at City Hall. They are proposing a reconstruction of that road and improvement of the road base. He explained the extension of Helium Street through their development and up to Alpine Drive is an extra four feet wide so ~mergency vehicles can travel it with relative safety, Commissioner Shepherd inquired if there will be a recommendation made regarding the park, which was discussed previously. Chairperson Nixt replied the issue is how to protect the land if it is not developed with a Quasi- Public use, which he does not have a solution for. City Engineer Linton indicated the Paek Board provided comments on this plan. One suggestion wa~s a potentiaI playground situated in the southeast corner of the site for the new F'ire Station, adjacent to the houses. The Fire Chief was comfortable with that suggestion. The Park Board will look at this plan at their meeting next week..Staff is recommending consideration of interim solutions, possibly developing some park land on this Quasi-Public land. However, you 'then ,;()me up against a determination on how much to invest into what could be perceived as a ~emporary solution. A field could likely be established} but in this area irrigation is needed for 15etds to be viable throUgh the year. The consideration is what the best purpose would be for this Quasi-Public land that could be used for a public purpose. Chairperson Nixt stated the record should reflect that the Commission recognizes Ms. O'Connell's concerns about 152"d Lane. He expresses his regret that what is fight for the ,:ommunity is not necessarily what is fight for Ms. O'Connell's neighborhood. Planning Commission/November 3, 2005 Page 17 of 27 P47