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07-09-18 PC Minutes Regular Meeting of the Golden Valley Planning Commission July 9, 2018 A regular meeting of the Planning Commission was held at the Golden Valley City Hall, Council Chambers, 7800 Golden Valley Road, Golden Valley, Minnesota, on Monday, July 9, 2018. Chair Baker called the meeting to order at 7 pm. Those present were Planning Commissioners Angell, Baker, Black, Blum, Brookins, Johnson, and Segelbaum. Also present was Planning Manager Jason Zimmerman, Planning Intern Amy Morgan, and Administrative Assistant Lisa Wittman. Commissioner Pockl was absent. 1. Approval of Minutes June 11, 2018, Regular Planning Commission Meeting Blum referred to the first sentence on page four and asked that the word "electric" be removed. He also asked that collector, restored, and reconstructed vehicles be added to the list of things that are "not allowed" to be stored in a front yard rather than saying that they "may be" stored in a front yard. MOVED by Segelbaum, seconded by Brookins and motion carried 5 to 1 to approve the June 11, 2018, minutes with the above noted corrections. Baker abstained from voting. 2. Discussion — Material and Architectural Standards Zimmerman stated that the Physical Development Director, City Manager, and City Council are interested in exploring the possibility of adding material and architectural standards to the Zoning Code. Baker questioned the issue trying to be fixed. Zimmerman stated that generally, there have been few problems and that developers typically want to build high quality buildings. The concern is builders who might not want to do that so the City is considering regulating and overseeing materials and architectural standards. Zimmerman explained that development is typically subject to up to three types of aesthetic controls. The first is site design, which regulates where site elements such as structures, access points, parking, and landscaping can be located on a property. The second type of aesthetic control is architectural standards which usually dictate building elements that must me included, or prohibited in the design of new buildings, such as variations in wall depth, the presence of windows, doors, massing, and screening. The third type of aesthetic control is regulating the type and amount of various exterior materials used in construction. Baker referred to the research regarding other cities' requirements and stated that no cities appear to have material or architectural standards in their single family residential zoning districts. Zimmerman said he does not know of any cities that have regulations in their single family zoning districts. He stated that staff is looking for feedback from the Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission July 9, 2018 Page 2 Commission if this is something they'd like the City to regulate and a sense of what is practical. Blum stated that since he has been on the Planning Commission he has heard residents say that they want variety. He said he doesn't want to decide what is good or bad, but he does want variety, not sameness in the R-1 Zoning District. Morgan stated that the majority of surrounding cities have some sort of architectural standards and that some have massing standards which dictate architectural design elements such as height, building articulations, rhythm of openings, etc. She added that cities primarily look at the quality of materials and that they need to be something quantifiable and not subjective. She explained that cities typically break down building materials into different categories, often categorized as Class I, Class II, and Class III materials. Class I is the highest quality such as brick and stone and Class III is the lowest quality. Segelbaum asked if the classes are based on durability or aesthetics. Morgan stated that the classes are based on both. She noted that some cities state what they won't allow rather than listing everything they do allow and a lot of cities require different percentages by zoning district. She reiterated that the question is if the City wants to regulate by using materials or massing standards and if there should be a list of materials the City wants people to use, or if it should be regulated by zoning district. She suggested starting small and developing the standards over time. Segelbaum questioned if people have been able to get around the standards. Morgan noted that most cities have a discretionary phrase in their codes that grant exceptions or allow other suitable materials. Blum said he likes Brooklyn Park's language that states "Other materials not listed elsewhere as approved by the City Manager or as recommended by the Planning Commission." Segelbaum questioned how grandfathering in existing buildings would work. Zimmerman stated that the City could have regulations that would apply to any new buildings or additions, but not to existing buildings. Morgan added that the language in the existing I- 394 Mixed Use Zoning District requires buildings to be brought up to code if they are making changes that affect more than 500 square feet or 10% of gross floor area of the building. Blum said he likes the idea of requiring buildings to be brought up to code in a fair and reasonable way by a certain date even if that date is far in the future, because then a building wouldn't be left as-is or non-compliant forever. Zimmerman stated that this would require a sunset provision be added to the code language. Angell stated that Brooklyn Center uses the materials class system in different areas as they redevelop and it works very well. He added that he would like to see the City require Class I materials and a variety of styles. Zimmerman showed the Commissioners some photos of different buildings that used a variety of materials and different architectural styles. The Commissioners discussed what the liked and didn't like about the photos. Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission July 9, 2018 Page 3 Blum asked if there would be similar requirements for signage and if there would be requirements regarding the screening air conditioning vents. Baker said he doesn't want to eliminate the ability to provide affordable housing. Blum questioned if the same quality of building materials should be used on all sides of a building and not just on the front facade. Zimmerman stated that requiring the same quality of building materials on all sides of a building usually depends on the activities occurring such as a loading dock area on an industrial building. Blum questioned if landscaping requirements are a part of this discussion. Zimmerman stated that Golden Valley has a section of Code regarding landscaping and noted that some cities require more landscaping than others. Blum asked if burying utilities would be addressed because he would like to see that as a requirement in every zoning district. Segelbaum said he thinks requiring power lines to be buried in the Commercial zoning district makes sense, but he doesn't think the City should make the developer of one new house bury the power lines. Baker said he thinks any proposed requirements should use fewer, precise words and not get too prescriptive. Blum suggested having design rules that create diversity but don't restrict development from happening. Brookins questioned if the materials they received at the recent TOD meeting could be used. Zimmerman said that could be used along with the language that already exists in the Zoning Code for the Mixed Use Zoning District. Baker asked about addressing sustainable energy, energy efficiency, and the use of recycled materials. Zimmerman stated that many of those types of items are addressed in other sections of the City Code and in the Building Code, but any new Zoning Code language could help to incentivize the use of recycled materials and energy efficiency. Blum asked about the City of St. Paul's requirements regarding carbon-neutral buildings. Baker said he'd like Golden Valley to do that as well. Segelbaum said he would like to be in the middle of the most restrictive cities and the lease restrictive cities. He stated that the information they received at the TOD presentation seems to be the future and he would like to start by applying some of those regulations then get into recycled materials, etc. because he doesn't want the City to legislate itself out of development. Johnson questioned if they are looking at the right things and said Golden Valley is a fully developed city. He said the City should have a lowest common denominator and be on the same wave length as other cities but he feels it is hypocritical to tell companies what do and if energy efficiency is the route the City wants to take they should be looking at the whole city, including residential and not just commercial buildings. Blum agreed and said Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission July 9, 2018 Page 4 the requirements should be thoughtFul and reasonable and look at diversity rather than more prescriptive methods. Baker said the consensus seems to be that the Planning Commission is willing to embrace some of the standards from all three of the types of aesthetic controls Zimmerman discussed. He said he would also like to include residential properties in the discussion. Zimmerman stated that discussion seemed more about energy efficiencies and less about aesthetics. Baker reiterated that he would like to see some sustainability language added. Blum said he would like to see a carbon-neutral deadline date even if it is way out in the future. Black questioned if it is economically efficient to make every house sustainable. Baker said that they could look at certain features in the residential zoning districts that move the City toward energy efficiency. Brookins said he thinks the Mixed Use area should be the first area addressed since there are already some regulations in that district. He added that he is less inclined to do anything in the residential zoning districts. Johnson suggested looking at what has built within the last five years and how they would fit in with the recommended standards. Brookins said he would recommend grandfathering in every property until it gets redeveloped. Black questioned if these standards are required for minor changes or remodels if the City would be de-incentivizing developers. Segelbaum said people want to do developments in Golden Valley and that there should be some requirements regarding materials and architecture. 3. Reports on Meetings of the Housing and Redevelopment Authority, City Council, Board of Zoning Appeals and other Meetings No reports were given. 4. Other Business Zimmerman reminded the Commissioners about the Downtown Study kick-off on July 18. • Council Liaison Report No report was given. 5. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 8:25 pm. Minutes of the Golden Valley Planning Commission July 9, 2018 Page 5 i�kV�� S 'V'V �= c�o`. V�I Ro Blum, Secretary Lisa Wi an, Administrative Assistant