Planning Commision - Regular Meeting

Not at all, not at all, I'm just saying. And they're like, hey, and you know, they did like this fun thing for the BBC, just like, if people want to take a DNA test and see, you know, where any of you are.

And they're also like 20 or 30,000 years old. Yeah, yeah. And they're directly related to people within 20 miles of the game.

Yeah, well, no, they found one guy who was a direct descendant, and he was a high school civics teacher. And his family had lived in this area for literally as long as anybody knew.

So imagine being so rooted in a place that you're related to the Neanderthal that lived there 30,000 years ago.

It's amazing what you've learned being on the island. And I also learned that I'm never submitting my DNA. It's six o'clock.

It is 6 PM. The December 1st, 2025 session of the City of Eau Claire Plan Commission is called to order. If anyone in our audience wants to speak tonight, please complete a public hearing contact form located on the back table and give it to one of our planners at the front table. I ask that everyone turn your cell phones off or to silent mode. I will call the attendance roll. Commissioner Brewster. Present. Commissioner Erickson. Here. Commissioner Holzman.

Here.

Commissioner Lawson? Here. Commissioner Reid? Here. Commissioner Zoig?

Here.

And Commissioner Helgeson, we do have a quorum with seven members present. I will read our standard introductory statement for how we conduct business at our meetings. During tonight's meeting, Plan Commission members are participating in person to deliberate and take action on the agenda items before us. The Plan Commission attempts to conduct its public hearings in a relatively informal manner within the constraint that we must deal with the issues before us in an orderly and business-like fashion. We give the applicant an opportunity to speak first, and then others are each permitted to speak either for or against the proposal. We do request that everyone restrict their comments to the issues before us, avoid unnecessary repetition, and be prudent in the use of time. we want to be sure that we have adequate time to deal is carefully with the last items on the agenda as with the first if you wish to view but not comment at tonight's meeting it can be viewed through the live event link on the city's home page under public notices and meetings this meeting is being recorded at the same location We move on to agenda item three, which is the open public comment period for those agenda items that do not appear on tonight's agenda as a public hearing. Item six is a discussion among commissioners only. Item four, our consent agenda, is open for public comment at this time. Is there anyone here wishing to give public comment on agenda item four or any other comments not related to tonight's agenda? Seeing none, we will close agenda item three and move to agenda item four, which is our consent agenda. Tonight our consent agenda has two sub-items, item A, the approval of our November 3rd, 2025 minutes, and item B, the county line road transportation project plan. The public comment period for this item was offered during item three, and has now expired, the entirety of the consent agenda will be acted upon by a single vote. Are there any commission members that have questions, comments, or would like to see any of the two sub-items removed from the consent agenda and placed on the regular agenda? Seeing none, is there a motion to approve the consent agenda?

So moved. I second that.

We have a motion by Commissioner Brewster, second by Commissioner Reid. Any discussion on the motion? I will call the vote. Commissioner Brewster? Aye. Commissioner Erickson? Aye. Commissioner Holzman?

Aye.

Commissioner Lawson? Aye. Commissioner Reid? Aye. Commissioner Zoig? Aye. And the chair votes aye. That motion passes 7-0. uh... to zero uh... items five was the an item on a regular agenda but is has since been withdrawn so we will skip over that item and move down to a gen item six okay okay i moved to table decided is there a second I'll second. Okay. Motion to table indefinitely by Commissioner Brewster, second by Commissioner Zoig. Any further discussion on the motion? If not, I will call the roll on the vote. Commissioner Erickson? Aye. Commissioner Holzman?

Aye.

Commissioner Lawson?

Aye.

Commissioner Reed? Aye. Commissioner Zoig? Aye. And the chair votes aye. That motion passes. Oh, Commissioner Brewster, sorry. Aye. Yes. I started one notch below you there. We move on to agenda item six, which is future agenda items and announcements. Mr. Noel.

Not much for you, but we just want to say thank you so much for serving the city. All you guys do a great job. It's been a little lighter with our meetings lately and Your January 5th meeting may be canceled. We don't know yet, but there's no private sector applications that have come in. There was one that was incomplete, but it's a little slower right now. Holidays, interest rates and things. But we'll let you know if there's another city project, whether it's a transportation-type project or an easement or something like that. But right now, it's tentatively that we may cancel it after the new year. Other than that, that's all we've got for you.

I will be absent January and February, so tentatively planning for our vice chair, Commissioner Erickson, to chair the meeting.

I understand that the Plank Hill Park development is going before the Waterways and Parks Commission on December 3rd or something?

There is one on Wednesday. I don't know if they push or push. Are you on that commission? No longer. That was last year. I think they might have maybe bumped it earlier.

They usually meet the fourth Wednesday.

I think if it's just a master plan, it wouldn't have to, but if it's some sort of development that's going on there, then you would have a public zoning site plan that usually comes before you. So then what would be the next step with that? Well, the council would have the appropriate monies to build, say, a pavilion or something like that. But I think the project or that park is supposed to be a little bit more low-intensity development, where it's meant to be more passive. OK, that's all.

Any other comments, questions? Otherwise?

Oh, Commissioner Brewster. This is more a question for Ned. are there things coming up that, like, if we have a short meeting like this, that there's, like, presentations about, like, the one thing I'm thinking about is, like, if we do, like, a road diet for Farwell or whatever. Like, is that something that, like, having a short presentation on that for us that we have a chance to discuss when we have, like, a really short meeting or something might be worth considering in the future? I know it's not, you know, I mean... Yeah, I think we can...

Yeah, we can try to think of other things to keep you educated. The comprehensive plan is going to be coming up, so that will introduce probably some extra meetings as well. It'll be interesting with the land development ordinance, how that shakes out, because now there's more staff approvals through the administrative site plan approval process.

um but yeah whenever there might be a lot of us like we definitely have an item maybe to make more use of your time to add something else in there that's appropriate to the planning commission's scope of review yeah well i just think think about some of the stuff that we see at council that i think this uh would be really interested in just because you know i mean maybe i'm just speaking for myself but i think we all sort of like to have as many of the puzzles of what's going on with development and stuff in Eau Claire in our heads as possible. And, you know, like, for example, the presentation that Director White did last year about, you know, options for, you know, resizing and redeveloping part of the area, like out at Oakwood Mall, for example. Like, that would be something that might be kind of interesting to do a, you know, instead of a... A meeting that's only nine minutes because I'm talking, you know, throw an extra, you know, 15 on there and just, you know what I mean? Yeah. Things like that. And if I'm the only one that's interested, that's fine because I get it at council anyway. But I do think it's really fast, some fascinating stuff going on, and it might be worth it for you guys to hear, too. But no pressure.

Sounds good. We've completed our agenda. We are adjourned.

I tried to keep it under 10 minutes.

I can talk to you about a road diet. I did a lot of road diets.

That might be a record. We had a seven-minute council meeting the other day.

Oh, did you?

Well, happy holidays, everyone.