Planning Commission - Regular Meeting

Before I read the rules and procedures, we'd like to welcome our newest commissioner, Matt Connelly, is joining us tonight. Glad to have you. Um, and these are the rules and procedures for our meeting. The plan and zoning commission is generally an advisory body to the city council. The city council will hold a public hearing and make the final decision on all matters before the commission other than site plans and subdivision plats unless denials or conditional conditional approvals thereof are appealed. The applicant will be given 10 minutes to present the request. Proponents and then opponents from the public are then allowed to speak in that order with each speaker allowed a maximum of 5 minutes. The applicant is then allowed 5 minutes for a rebuttal. The hearing will then be closed and the commission will discuss and vote on the issue. All comments are to be gerine to the item under consideration and speakers are to maintain a courteous manner. Items listed on the consent portion of the agenda will not be individually discussed and will be considered for approval in accordance with the recommendation in the staff report unless an individual present or a member of the commission requests that the item be removed from the consent agenda and considered separately under the public hearing agenda. And could we have a motion to approve the minutes from our last meeting? So moved. Thank you. All in favor, please raise your right hand and abstensions. Thank you. Motion is approved. So, we'll move into the consent agenda. Item number one is a request from Greater De Moines Habitat for Humanity represented by Ryan Doyle for the following regarding two parcels in the vicinity of

1530 Arlington Avenue. Determination as to whether the resoning the requested resoning is in conformance with plan DSM. Reszone the property from N5 neighborhood district to N52 neighborhood district to allow subdivision of the property for three for the construction of three two household buildings duplexes with a total of six residential dwelling units. Is there anyone in the audience tonight who would like this item move to the public hearing agenda? Yes. Okay. So item number one, we'll move to public hearing. I don't think we need a motion to do that. So that does it for the consent agenda and we'll go into the public hearing agenda and Soshi will present for our city. Thank you madam chair. Sri Chakraarti planning staff. Um I'm presenting this um item on the agenda which is for a property at 1530 Arlington Avenue. The request is from Greater De Moine Habitat for Humanity and the request is to reszone the property from N5 neighborhood district to N5-2 neighborhood district. This is the subject property. This is located in the Riverbend neighborhood. It's uh generally between Clark Street and College Avenue. It's just um a couple blocks to the east of the 6th Avenue corridor. It's um generally surrounded by residential uses as well as other uses as you go further to the west nearing 6th Avenue with more of mixed uses and higher density residential. The property is currently um zoned N5 and includes an

existing single family structure with some vacant land both to the north and south of the of the house. This is a um site concept that was uh submitted by the applicant as described in your packet. They are intending to um uh use the existing land which includes a couple parcels. The intent is to combine and subdivide that um area into three separate lots with a two household um unit in each of the lots for a total of six units. So you can see here the entire um um area subject property is proposed to be uh replatted into three separate lots and you can see the the two units in each of the lots. There is proposed parking on the back side with access off of the alley. The applicant is not uh proposing to provide garage in lie of garage which is a requirement. they are to provide a shed as per the uh requirement in our code. This is a rendering of the um the the duplex unit that is proposed on each of the lots. They are uh by attached units. And uh here is uh another character um sort of sketch showing what they would potentially what the applicant is potentially thinking of in terms of the design of the of the houses. And this is just a um um description of the of the project which the applicant will also talk about during their presentation that was provided to staff. I have a p a few pictures to give you some site context. As I mentioned before uh this the subject property consists of two parcels. Currently there's a single family structure. You can uh see the

house right here. This is looking off of Arlington Avenue. This is uh zooming out a little bit so you can see the vacant area to the south. You can see the houses that are immediately adjoining to the to the west. This is another view looking north on Arlington Avenue. And another view of the vacant area that's to the north of the of the um existing single family structure. This is looking south uh towards Clark Street and the park that's uh the neighborhood parks park that's to the south of the of the block. And just another view um of the existing an existing driveway which was there at some point is in dis currently in disrepair and is generally um vacant land in that area. Staff reviewed this request and uh staff's recommendation is to um recommend approval of this request. Staff's rationale is that um the proposed project is um is it is something that would be suitable in this area. It would be a good use of the existing property which is currently underutilized with a lot of uh vacant land and the existing structure that is in disrepair. So this would uh provide additional housing opportunity in that area utilizing the existing infrastructure, the existing amenities in that neighborhood. Um the amenities along 6th Avenue corridor which includes transit, bicycle facilities, existing parks and schools in that area. Therefore, staff thinks that this uh project is appropriate so long as it is designed as per chapter 135 and other requirements of the city code. So with that staff is recommending approval. The uh applicant conducted a neighborhood meeting as required. The only person in

attendance was um the president of the neighborhood association. And uh here is a summary of the of the neighborhood meeting. And I'll just let you read through this really quickly. We also received a uh letter of support from Kathy Helster, the uh Riverbend Neighborhood Association president, uh in uh speaking in favor of the project and the reasonzoning request. We did not receive any comment cards either in support, opposition, or neutrality to this project. This is the consent map. And with that, if you have any questions, I'll be happy to answer. Any questions for staff? Thank you. Is the applicant present? If you'd like to add anything to the staff description of the project, you do have up to 10 minutes to present. Chief, if you can come to the mic,

come to the to the mic for our records. Thanks. My name's Carl Cotm. Uh Ryan Doyle wasn't able to make today, but uh nothing really to to add to uh the presentation, but just to continue, you know, thank you for everybody's efforts here and helping habitat support our mission server. So that's really if anybody has any questions for me as best of my ability.

Any questions? Okay, please do sign in on that white sheet also for our records. Okay, is there anyone in the audience tonight who would like to speak on this topic? Please come forward, state your name and address and then also when you're done, sign in on that white sheet and you have up to five minutes. Okay, can you hear me? Okay. Okay. I've I've never done this before, so bear with me. My name is Sheri Riby and I live at 420 College Avenue and I'm here to talk about the little house that it's my understanding if the project goes through it'll get torn down. And I just would really hate to see that because it was built in I think if I remember correctly 1916. And even though it's all boarded up, um I think it has some potential. Um my husband and I moved into the neighborhood 30 years ago and when we looked at our house the first time it was boarded up and um oh it was a mess inside. There was a big hole in the ceiling and the kitchen I would not cook anything in there. Um but the some people bought the house and and oh and it had been empty for like 18 months and but some people bought the house and they fixed it up and they sold it to us and it was a it's been a great family home for like 30 years. So, I just feel like um we're a historic neighborhood and hanging on to these older homes helps retain the character of our neighborhood. Um I know um it doesn't [clears throat] look great on the outside, but you know, it when I go buy it, it doesn't really have it doesn't it doesn't look all saggy and I mean it might look gross on the inside, but it doesn't look sagging and really bad. I've seen much worse um in the neighborhood and that usually get torn down eventually, but you know, it's got that charming little porch and kind of a turret style roof. Um and and it could

it could really be nice if they would um fix it up. But, um I think it just kind of takes the right mindset that you want to really preserve things. And I think by preserving those older homes, we can maintain the character of our Oh, yeah. There's there's the photo right there. It's just I mean it'd be a really great place to hang out on a nice summer evening and um but I think it's those architectural details and all the variety of architecture in our neighborhood that really give it character and when we don't um hang on to those homes we we lose some of that and then uh but having those homes um really brings in I think is appealing to people and and we are close to a lot of um fun places like East Village and downtown uh Um there are and it is small I know but there are some smaller homes in the neighborhood that I like this one is 1,112 square ft and um I looked up a couple of other homes in the area. There's one 15344th that's 770 ft and another one at 15154th that's 768 ft. So even these little tiny homes have I mean they are owned by the people living in them as far as I could tell and not like expert on this but it sure looked like they were homeowners and um so there's a market for these smaller homes and they it would certainly be affordable even if you fixed it up cuz I know that um Habitat built a house just across from me on fourth and um it's really nice looking. I'm I'm sure it's lovely inside. Uh but it it doesn't quite look his like it fits in the neighborhood. Like you could pick it up and put it in West De Mo and it would look fine there, too. I I think it's just these older homes. They have that unique look to them. And even I think I know um rehabbing a home is expensive, but new construction is too, as I'm sure you know, you know better than me. But

um I still think that um I mean that newer home wasn't super cheap. It was 232,000 is what the sale price was. But I think even with fixing this one up, surely it would be less. And smaller homes are cheaper to maintain. You know, there cheaper to heat, cool, you know, there's just smaller space to manage. So, I just wanted to come and ask you guys to please consider I don't know what can be done, but to please consider saving the home because even though it's little, I think it could be, you know, a charming home for somebody. And if not there, then I mean I think there's several empty lots down the way. Maybe it could be moved. I don't know. But um I just wanted to throw that out there for everyone's consideration. Thank you.

Thank you.

Applicant, you do have five minutes to respond if there are any comments that you'd like to respond to. Just a couple of items that I think we might want to just uh let you guys know the consideration that we took in choosing the the the plan have. We did want to uh in our review this particular parcels outside of the historic district, but we really wanted to conform with the u the feel of the neighborhood. So the renderings that uh were shown here um we put a lot of thought into those to try to be able to fit into the neighborhood. So it was something that was consistent throughout. So that's one of the things that we did take into consideration as well as you know the the cost would be to repair it and also the people served in having this be a little bit larger uh parcel or plan put together versus uh one family. we're able to serve six families and so that was also in consideration to using the space maybe more efficiently um than having a a rehab on a singular home. So all those type of things uh taken into consideration is how we formulated our plan here for this area.

Is it? Yeah, please.

Could we have the a picture of the existing building please? Yeah, thank you. Uh, this is my question. Uh, Steve Stimmel, uh, an a retired architect has done a lot of work with Proudfoot and Bird in the city of De Moines. Uh, this cottage has a really very complex roof. Uh, and they were quite interested in designs, Queen Anne designs like this and later on as well. This is my question. Um there is I assume in the inside but I have not been in the inside building materials of a historic nature. Would Habitat um be interested in salvaging those pieces and then using them and reselling them in the restore in sort of a way of good faith in terms of you having to you know destroy this building to erect something that has more efficiency. So my question is um would Habitat do that? Um, so even for this particular house, we did have our uh restore go through to see if there were salvageable items. And while there might been obviously historical uh material in there, we also want to see if it's usable if we uh demo it out, bring it to a restore, and have other people do it. So, we do have our team go through, take a look at it, and see if there's things that we can solve it.

I didn't quite hear all of what you were saying. if you could speak a little bit louder for me so I can hear. Yeah, we do have a team uh with the restore that would go through and they did go through this particular house. I know that the previous um owner also went through and may have took items that um they would need or would want to save, but Habitat has a a team that would go through and find items that would be able to be sold or in the restore. Uh and so if there's any salable items in there, we take a look at it from that standpoint. Any other questions, Leah? Chris, will this need to be go before the historic commission for a demo permit?

No, this is not in the local historic district part of Riverbend. However, um we do have the citywide um demo review process that applies uh to historic structure. So, this will have to go through that um that process. um will ask for you know about salvage and those sorts of things. I I know I wasn't directly involved but I I believe a a member of our team asked somebody habitat about the potential for this and there was some feedback about condition. Do you know anything about the condition? Because I I I I will say on the staff side our initial thought was why not you know do something too but I think that the feedback we got was there was concern about the condition. Do you what do you know?

Right. So, uh, any items that we'd want to have in the resort would have to be usable for the Well, I I mean the building's condition we had suggested. Could it be um a candidate for re or rehab and I and I don't remember um the name the project manager for this. I know you're filling in tonight. Yeah. Um so, we did look at it from that standpoint too. Uh but it would be cost pro prohibitive for us to be able to um put that um

but are you like are there um and again I'm transmitting secondhand knowledge. I it was a member of our staff that had this correspondence but do you like what are the needs of the building other than do do you know the needs of the building? I can't speak to that but it was extended. That's what I wondered. I know you said you're filling in so I I Chris, did you have a question? I guess is there a way because I think your focus is on salvaging what is sellable again? It sounds like the the community's question is whether or not someone else could see a value in salvaging the house and moving it on whole.

Has there been sort of a call out for folk that may have alternative means, they're greater than what you have that would want to actually move this? Has that happened or is it e able to just put out and say, "Hey, we've got this available. If you want to take it, everything you know is already out." Yeah. Could that be a good middle ground because then the market could determine whether or not this is actually worth moving? Um I don't know that has been done. I don't think it has. Um but it's something that I can definitely take back with the team to to discuss because it seems like tonight we're only talking about zoning. That makes a heck of a lot. This seems like a great great project to reszone, but something like that, a call out would address everyone's concerns if we at least make it available. Hey, anyone want this thing?

Sort of like a stove on the on the sidewalk at trash day. Thanks, Chris. [laughter] I appreciate that. I'm sure Sherman Hill will come pick it up. Hey, we got a stove next to our house.

Jason, could you explain that demolition thing you were talking about before? Yeah. So, uh, a decade or so ago, we, uh, the city adopted a demo review process that applies citywide for historic structures. Uh, for houses, um, for single family dwellings, it's 80 years old or older, and then other buildings are 50 years old or older. And, um, we also have the caveat if it's architecturally significant, it doesn't matter what the age is, but um, so it's largely an administrative process. As part of that, we sent do send an email notification to the historic preservation commission that this this request has been in. Uh we talk to that the applicants about if it's if it's a building of some interest or some significance. Um we talk to the applicants about alternatives and you know tell them about tax credits and different things. Um if it's worth having it documented, we'll document it. Usually that's just you know pictures. Um, we try to promote salvage. Um, and like I said, it's largely administrative. However, if it is a building that is we believe is landmark eligible, then we're required to send it to city council for their their sign off.

Would we be able to I'm sorry. Would we be able to approve the the [clears throat] action subject to that administrative process?

Well, they have to do it anyway. So, I I think you could um I think you could move forward with a recommendation approval and just um the applicant just know that we'll you know try to see if maybe somebody might want to move it. I will say that with the changes in the state tax credits, moving houses is going to be a lot harder to do moving forward. Um they've really kind of pulled that program back for single f owner occupied single family. Well, you did a study on the on Riverbend. Do you remember the position of this house? Do you remember towards a greater de mo you wrote the you did a huge historic study on the neighborhood

go south? We didn't go south of college really. Um and um and and and this is just a such a a wonderful example and particularly because of its scale, you know, it's it looks like an architect designed building, does it not? Um and so whatever is suggested in terms of another review by somebody in the city, I think makes good sense indeed.

Any more questions for the applicant? Thank you. I will now close the public hearing and open it up to the commission for more discussion and motions. I agree with I think Will and others. This is a gorgeous house. I think if it can be saved should be saved and I think it is something that if there is a call put out by um by Habitat to make sure it's known to be available by those who have the means to save it every effort there should be made to do that. However, I would be hopeful that we have the opportunity here to make sure we don't slow down access to six more opportunities for families to be housed. So, I'd hope that we are in our recommendation pushing towards let's make sure this project has a real reason to be prevented from going as opposed to running through every other means. It could slow down the opportunity to house six families in a great place for a great type of house would be my one hope. Jason, what would you suggest to as far as a process is concerned to do what we are hoping to accomplish?

Um,

yeah, I mean I think that the best the cleanest way because you know lot times in motions we throw in conditions and um but this is a zoning so it's going to be zoning conditions that run with land perpetuity. So, it doesn't really make a lot of sense to have a zoning condition that says, you know, put the house up for possible renovation, removal, movement. So I I guess I would suggest you move forward with the recommendation of approval and then just in your maybe in your motion so it's in the record just say that the commission also request that the applicant work with staff through the um to explore alternatives to demolition such as being moved you know follow the normal historic demo review process just as have a secondary it won't be a zoning condition that gets attached to the land but just to be in the record as like a secondary kind of request. So, as you motion, just does that make sense? I don't

I I would uh ask Michelle to couch that into language and move your [laughter] suggestion. Okay, we got it. Any discussion on that motion? All in favor, please raise your right hand. Okay, motion passes. Thank you. Um the only other bit of business tonight is with respect to our slate of officers and Jason's going to talk to us about

Yeah. So it's that time of year again for election of officers. Um we have you know the bylaws uh established that we need to have a nominating committee that brings a slate. We did uh we had nominating commi committee of Emily, Johnny, and Todd and uh they provided a written slate and I we did forward that on to you. Hopefully everybody's had a chance to look at it. Um the bylaws also allow for nominations from the floor, but I think the the value of this is that people are getting these these folks that have been nominated from the committee are aware that they're being nominated, had time to think about it. So, um I think that's the beauty of it. So um somebody can if everybody knows that the we have for chair the committee is um Leia, vice chair is Laura and second vice chair is Jane. Um anyway somebody could move that slate or if somebody wants to make you know an alternative nomination they can make that movement as well.

I will move the slate if it's okay to move as part of the committee. I believe there's nothing in the bylaws would say otherwise. So, go ahead. And I would like to thank Emily for talking to all of the nominees. Happy to do it, but it's the last time. All in favor of that motion. Please raise your right hand. Okay, motion passes. Um, I believe our next meeting will be here in this room and then we will move to our new home. So next time we'll be here. Maybe at the next meeting we'll have kind of instructions. We certainly will have them in time to email you in advance.

Yeah. After the next. Yeah, absolutely. Thank you. Thank you.