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08-22-2017PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION MINUTES August 22, 2017 A regular meeting of the Hopkins Planning & Zoning Commission was held on August 22, 2017, at 6:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers of Hopkins City Hall. Present were Commission Members Kristin Hanneman, Brian Hunke, and James Warden. Commissioners Laura L. Daly, Libby Goeman, Matthew McNeil and Emily Wallace Jackson were absent. Also present were Economic Development Intern Kurt Howard and City Planner Jason Lindahl. CALL TO ORDER Chair Hunke called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. ADOPT AGENDA Commissioner Hanneman moved, Commissioner Warden seconded, to adopt the agenda. The motion was approved unanimously. OPEN AGENDA — PUBLIC COMMENTS/CONCERNS — none CONSENT AGENDA Since there was not a quorum of the Commission present, the minutes of the July 25, 2017, regular meeting could not be approved. PUBLIC HEARING PA 2017 -11 -CUP & VAR (WITHDRAWN) Mr. Lindahl stated that the Porkorny Plumbing business, which is grandfathered to do business without parking spaces, has put the building on the market. The application that was withdrawn was submitted by a medical business that the City has been talking to for several months but was unable address the parking space issue adequately. OLD BUSINESS 1. Planning Application 2017 -06 -TA: Alternative Energy Systems Mr. Howard reviewed the SolSmart program requirements and application and updated the Commission on staff's goal of achieving the Silver designation from the program, which seems a reasonable yet meaningful goal. He presented a summary of necessary steps: • Creation of online solar permitting checklist • Cross -training of Inspections and Permitting staff • Provision for "Solar by Right" as an accessory use in all major zoning districts • Accural of at least 100 points from elective actions • Next steps: • Planning, Inspections, Fire departments coordinate and create permitting checklist • Creation of alternative energy ordinance • Submission of documentation of elective actions for approval by SolSmart Minutes of the Planning & Zoning Commission, August 22, 2017 — Page 2 Comments from the Commission: Smart to include wind and geothermal with solar. Is staff time the only impediment to going for the Gold designation? Mr. Howard responded that under the Permitting Foundational category is the requirement to provide a streamlined permitting pathway for PV systems of no more than 3 days. If able to achieve, points for doing so would put the City above the requirement for Gold status. Mr. Lindahl stated that when ordinance is drafted staff will bring it back to the Commission, but the rest of the actions will be accomplished by staff. In response to a question regarding landfill use, Mr. Lindahl stated that the existing landfill ordinance allows solar as a use, but it needs to be verified that the ordinance meets Solsmart requirements. 2. Planning Application 2017 -07 -TA: Sign Ordinance Update Mr. Lindabl reviewed progress on the sign ordinance update. He stated that the City Attorney has reviewed the ordinance and stated the City is in a good position regarding content neutrality. The areas the Attorney cited were definition of abandoned signs, removal of unlawful signs (remove language reviewing content), staff discretion (clarify that if a proposed sign meets the requirements a permit shall be issued) and mechanisms for enforcement of removal of illegal signs and poorly maintained signs. These will be added to ordinance. This fulfills the due diligence requirement for the ordinance, and a more detailed discussion about standards for types of signs and where they are located will be the next step. Comments from the Commission: Good to hear we're in relatively good shape. Agree with attorney. ANNOUNCEMENTS Mr. Lindahl updated the Planning & Zoning Commission on the following items: 1. 2040 Comprehensive Plan Update—Cultivate Hopkins A kick-off meeting for the Advisory Committee was held at end of July. The agenda included an explanation of the comp plan process, a professor from the U of M speaking on future planning challenges and emerging trends that could affect plan, and a very interesting discussion about planning trends nationally. Staff gave "Comp Plan 101" information to group and told them how staff envisions the framework of plan to go forward. Staff also compared national trends with Hopkins. The meeting concluded by discussing the four elements of the plan: built environment, social environment, natural environment and economic environment. The next meeting will focus on the built environment and land use to set the stage for the rest of the plan. Mr. Lindahl stated that Chairman Hunke and Commissioner Warden attended the meeting and asked for their comments. Chairman Hunke stated that he thought the meeting was great. He commented that he was impressed with Tom Fisher's talk on emerging trends and comparison of national data with Hopkins data, i.e., nationally numbers of families with young children are decreasing while in Hopkins they are increasing. He also cited the increasing the diversity and the fact that 70 different languages are spoken by the children in the district. Minutes of the Planning & Zoning Commission, August 22, 2017 — Page 3 Commissioner Warden agreed that it was a great meeting. Table seating facilitated meeting new people. He asked whether there were comments on social media. Mr. Lindahl stated it is hoped this will happen in the future to keep the comp plan in the public dialog. Mr. Lindahl pointed out that Professor Fisher talked about identifying underutilized resources in the community such as buildings, social, economic or environmental resources, using natural forces of the market to remove inefficiencies and maximize resources. Commissioner Hanneman asked whether presentations from that night were on the web site. Mr. Lindahl stated that yes, on the main page of cultivate Hopkins there is link to Advisory Committee. Unfortunately Professor Fisher did not provide a PowerPoint for his presentation, but there is a lot of good information from the night. Chairman Hunke stated that he has seen Professor Fisher before and he talks a lot about shared economies with less personal possessions and more services such as Spotify and shared driverless cars. 2. Artery The first section of the Artery is open to walk and drive. It includes historical markers on the pavement. The road will be completed by October. Staff is planning a grand opening in the spring when landscaping, lighting, etc., are complete. The Commission is encouraged to go see the results of their work and service to the community. ADJOURN Commissioner Warden moved, Commissioner Hanneman seconded, to adjourn the meeting. The motion was approved unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 7:10 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Shannon Smith