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HomeMy WebLinkAboutP&Z Minutes 2021-05-27 RegularCITY OF FRIENDSWOOD PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION THURSDAY, MAY 27, 2021 - 7:00 PM Minutes MINUTES OF A FRIENDSWOOD REGULAR MEETING HELD AT 910 S. FRIENDSWOOD DRIVE, FRIENDSWOOD, TEXAS, FRIENDSWOOD CITY HALL, COUNCIL CHAMBERS STATE OF TEXAS CITY OF FRIENDSWOOD COUNTIES OF GALVESTON/HARRIS MAY 27, 2021 1.CALL TO ORDER MINUTES OF A REGULAR MEETING OF THE FRIENDSWOOD PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION THAT WAS HELD ON THURSDAY, MAY 27, 2021, AT 07:04 PM 910 S. FRIENDSWOOD DRIVE, FRIENDSWOOD, TEXAS CHAIRMAN JOSEPH MATRANGA VICE-CHAIRMAN RICHARD SASSON COMMISSIONER RICHARD CLARK COMMISSIONER MARCUS PERRY COMMISSIONER TOM HINCKLEY COMMISSIONER TRAVIS MANN CITY ATTORNEY MARY KAY FISCHER DIRECTOR OF CDD/PLANNER AUBREY HARBIN DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR BECKY BENNETT COUNCIL LIAISON GRIFFON WAS ABSENT FROM THE MEETING. 2.Communication from the public/committee liaisons (To comply with provisions of the Open Meetings Act, the Commission may not deliberate on subjects discussed under this agenda item. However, the Commission may direct such subjects be placed on a later regular Commission agenda for discussion and/or possible action) None. 3.Consent Agenda These items are considered routine or ministerial in nature and will be enacted with one motion. There will be no separate discussion of items unless a commissioner so requests in which case the item would be removed from the consent agenda and considered separately. **Commissioner Richard Clark moved to approve Consent Agenda. Seconded by Vice-Chairman Richard Sasson. The motion was approved unanimously. A.Consider approving the minutes for the Planning and Zoning Regular meeting held Thursday, April 22, 2021. 4.Action Items According to the Planning and Zoning Rules of Procedure (R2019-15), all action of the Commission shall be made by an affirmative vote of four (4) or more members of the Commission present at such Commission meetings. A.Consideration and possible action regarding the partial preliminary plat of Avalon at Friendswood Section One, a private subdivision being 68.101 acres of land out of the Mary Fabreau Survey, A-69, Friendswood, Galveston County, Texas **Vice-Chairman Richard Sasson moved to approve Consideration and possible action regarding the partial preliminary plat of Avalon at Friendswood Section One, a private subdivision being 68.101 acres of land out of the Mary Fabreau Survey, A-69, Friendswood, Galveston County, Texas. Seconded by Commissioner Tom Hinckley. The motion was approved unanimously. Harbin explained the commission had previously approved preliminary and final plats for this section but with only 50 lots. She said the limitation on lots was to allow time for the boulevard to be constructed so the subdivision would meet requirements for the number of egress points. Harbin said the boulevard will be completed before the subdivision so the developer is opting to plat all the lots instead of processing a replat at a later date. 5.Discussion Items A.Discussion regarding possible amendments to Appendix C, Zoning Ordinance, Section 7.Q.3. Area and Height Exceptions regarding exceptions for maximum building height Harbin said the commission reviewed the building height ordinance last year, specifically for a church wanting to construct a tall cross in the Downtown District. She said staff and the commission focused primarily on attachments to the top of buildings but did not explore increasing height, in general. She said this discussion is to allow taller buildings in other districts outside of the Downtown District (DD). She said currently 40-foot is the maximum height allowed in districts other than DD. She explained there are some exceptions such as properties adjacent to residential districts are allowed to reach 50-feet provided the building is setback at a 45 degree angle. Harbin said a few developments have increased height using Specific Use Permits (SUP) or Planned Unit Developments (PUD). Harbin said the impetus for this discussion is there is an upcoming application in the CSC/OPD district interested in building a taller structure. She said staff is sensitive to developers wanting taller buildings but also wants to protect the residents, as well. Matranga asked if the proposed height would match up to that in the Downtown District or would it depend on how close the buildings are to residential districts. Harbin stated one idea is if you want a 70-foot tall building then the setback would be 140-feet or something to that nature. Perry said applicants can use an SUP or PUD to increase their height. Harbin explained staff is trying to get away from using SUP/PUD for one item, such as height. Perry stated he is not against the subcommittee looking into it. He said traffic and density are more concerning than building height. Sasson agreed with avoiding PUDs for single issues. He said he would prefer to establish the rules instead of trying for exceptions. He asked the commission to think about why would you allow or not allow 70-foot tall buildings outside of DD. He said he walked around the existing Tannos building that is 65-feet tall and feels a two to one setback would be reasonable to protect nearby homes. Mann also said he is not against looking into changing the maximum height but that the commission needs to put a lot of time and energy into it. Hinckley said he is not a fan of PUDs. Clark agreed the ordinance could be researched. He said he is not against PUDs but there are reasons for PUDs and building height is not one. Matranga stated the city is running out of space and the taller buildings are more economical. Matranga said he would not want to go too high, though. B.Receive an update regarding the Panhandle PUD zone change request - a zone classification change located along FM 2351 consisting of 34.3288 acres to change from Community Shopping Center (CSC) and Industrial (I) to a Planned Unit Development (PUD), the 34.3288 acres consisting of three tracts (9.5455 acres, 15.0371 acres and 9.742 acres) Harbin stated the applicant has withdrawn their PUD application following several meetings with staff and a subcommittee. She said the group worked together on tweaking existing ordinances to help the developer achieve the majority of their goals. Matranga said he sat on the subcommittee and explained the property is in a unique area with unique challenges such as oil wells. He also said the panhandle area is lacking residential properties. Mann commented on the outstanding work by staff. He said the end result will be the developer following rules set forth by the city, the city making minor adjustments to city ordinances, and overall, both making progress. Sasson stated staff did a lot of back and forth with the developer to make this work. 6.Consideration and possible action regarding future Planning and Zoning Commission meeting dates A.Consideration and possible action setting the next two Planning and Zoning Commission regular meetings on (i) Thursday, June 10, 2021and (ii) Thursday, June 24, 2021. 7.Communications A.Receive information from Commissioners to include but not limited to suggestions for future agenda items, general comments and/or updates from liaison assignments. Perry announced public forums will begin for considered changes to the Future Land Use map. He said upcoming dates and events will be on June 5th at the Farmer's Market, June 11th at Concert in the Park, a Town Hall meeting on June 14th, and display in the library. Sasson said the subcommittee has a couple ordinance changes being worked on. He welcomed Kathy Koerner as she would soon become the next planning and zoning commissioner. And Sasson stated the Friendswood High School baseball team is currently experiencing an undefeated season. B.Receive an update on tasks from the Planning Subcommittee. C.Receive an update on tasks from the Ordinance Subcommittee. D.Receive general comments and communications from City Council from City Council Liaison, Robert Griffon. Mayor Mike Foreman attended the meeting as Council Liaison and offered no comments. E.Receive information from Staff regarding commercial and residential project updates, City Council action and ordinance updates. Harbin said the DRC report for April was included in the back up material. She stated the TxDOT sidewalks, curbs, and ramps program was starting construction next week. She said TxDOT agreed to install conduit for future light posts, as well. Harbin said the scope of work also includes six intersections to have mast arm fixtures and should be complete by December. Harbin said TxDOT will also be working on bridge repairs and the Leisure Lane light will be installed in the next few months. Bennett said ordinance changes are in progress for tree mitigation and the subdivision ordinance. She announced the Zoning Board of Adjustment had received an application for June. 8.ADJOURNMENT This meeting was adjourned at 07:46 PM.