Planning Commission - Regular Meeting

All right, I got it. Good evening everyone. I would like to call to order the planning zoning board meeting for the town of Harrisburg today. And uh we have an agenda before us and welcome everyone online to and everyone here. We have an agenda that needs to be adopted. Do I have a motion to adopt the agenda? to adopt. Second. Second. All in favor? I I I. I. Okay. Um, we have no special presentations tonight. Is that correct?

Um, nobody has signed up for public comment. Do you see any hands waving online? Nobody's wanting to say anything online. Okay. So, we had a consent agenda. The minutes from last September 16th meeting. Anybody get a chance to see any errors or flaws in that agenda that we need to correct? Any motion to adopt that agenda as presented? Motion. Second. Second. All in favor? I. Okay, motion carries. We got that taken care. Um, we have no old business. We have no new business. So, it gets us to number five, staff updates.

Hi there. Look at you go. Okay. Good evening. Uh oh. Legislative.

Good evening. So, we thought we would uh take an opportunity to uh go over some training again. We have some new members. We have some veterans on the board. So, we'll go over it pretty quickly. Please ask questions and if you need additional information, we're always here to send you resources and answer any of your questions. and then we're going to wrap up the meeting with an overview of our new project which is the strategic comprehensive land use plan. So let's start with the training. So this board uh focuses on legislative acts. So the training tonight is on legislative acts. So all development goes through three types of approvals or there's three options. Some some cases go through two of them, some may go through one, some might go through all three, but they are legislative, quasi judicial, and administrative. So, the purpose of uh for the purpose of this board's training, we're going to focus on legislative decisions. Now, they adopt ordinances, policies, and standards that make up our regulatory system. They are text amendments. They could be tax amendments of the unified development or ordinance or actually our Harrisburg area land use plan. The hel uh we do zoning map amendments as well as adoptions of comprehensive plans. So legislative acts require a minimum of two public meetings. One before the planning board and then a public hearing in front of the council. The planning board is a recommending body. So you can you would hear any item in a public meeting. You can continue the meeting if you need additional information or pass it forward to the council with a

recommendation. The town council always makes the decision on a legislative act. So I'm going to focus on zoning map amendments. So does has anybody seen this map and know where it's at on our website? Oh, yeah. I've seen it. I just don't know how I got there.

Okay, great. So, I'll tell you how you get there. So, there's two places that you can look at zoning within the town of Harrisburg. You can go to map Cabaris and turn on the zoning layer and you'll see all the zoning for uh Cabaris County or you go into the town's UDO. So, you would go on to the planning and zoning website. You select the UDO and at the top ribbon you will see maps. This happens to be a picture of the interactive map. So you can select any parcel, do a search um by address and it will give you all the same information. So that is where you find this. Every parcel within the town of Harrisburg in our jurisdiction or in the town's ETJ has a Harrisburg zoning classification assigned to it. So each zoning classification is tied to certain performance standard standards as well as allowed uses. When doing a zoning map amendment, that is the act where we are either establishing zoning on a newly annexed parcel or changing the zoning on an existing parcel within the town. There are two types of map amendments. There are conventional map amendment and a conditional map amendment. And many of you have handled and made recommendations on each one of these. So conventional map amendment is when the use is not identified and they are simply asking to assign a zoning classification to the parcel. There is no ability to place conditions on it. So when the item comes before the board, you should

look at it and evaluate all the potential uses that can happen on that property when considering this because you can again cannot place a condition. You cannot restrict uses. It is against state law. So that's a conventional zoning. when it does develop, they still are required to meet all the development regulations in the UDO assigned to that district. We just cannot add conditions onto it. On a conditional map amendment, it's right in the title. We can place conditions on the uh map amendment to you look at it as a customized zoning district. It is sightspecific and does require a site plan. You can place conditions on it, but they have to be within reason. State law states that we cannot place conditions on it that we are not authorized, local jurisdictions are not authorized to do. For example, we cannot apply a uh impact fee because it's prohibited in uh North Carolina. We could not condition it to pay an impact fee. So we still have to f uh follow the law but it does give us a little flexibility in ensuring that we are addressing potential impacts. It also gives us a little flexibility in the consideration of a project. You can do very minor modification. So if somebody's going through a conditional zoning, you look at it as a negotiation. So, we're going to restrict the uses and require a larger buffer here, but to get that larger buffer, they may need a little relief in their parking numbers or a setback. So, you can do some minor modification. The intent is for a good

dialogue between the jurisdiction, the board, and the general public to customize a zoning district to the benefit of everyone. So, here is a flowchart of the process. Conventional zoning petition. First of all, any application that comes in goes through a pre-application meeting. Because it's conventional, there's no site plan or restrictions that are going to be placed on it. It goes right to formal application. Comes to the planning board for your consideration and a recommendation up to the town council for a decision. when it's a conditional zoning petition, it gets vetted out quite a bit. So besides the pre-application, they turn in a sketch plan. In most cases, when someone does a conditional zoning, there's usually a traffic analysis that may go with it if it's a large subdivision. So, while the sketch plan is being fine-tuned, uh we go ahead and we start uh working on the traffic study. Now in Harrisburg, the transportation consultant works for the town. The developer pays for the study. However, the town contracts directly with our consultant. Uh so we know they are working for us. So we work on the TIA sketch plan. We want that complete before they go to a neighborhood meeting. Uh in most cases when a project is going out to a neighborhood meeting, the first question that people want to know is how are you addressing traffic? So we try to make sure that the plan is something uh in compliance with the code that there's no major red flags in it and the traffic analysis is completed. Uh we take the neighborhood comments. We try to work it with the developer to address any

concerns that may have been voiced. Then we let them formally apply for the conditional zoning the zoning uh map amendment petition. Then it uh again it still gets vetted out internally with all the departments and any outside agency that may need to be involved. Goes to the planning board in a public meeting. There's a required public notice and ultimately to the town council for a public uh for a decision. Um that again is a public hearing. It's a little more formal. Uh but that public meetings are excuse me public hearings are where decisions are made. So are there any questions about the two processes? No. No. Okay. All right. So decision making. So the state legislature continues to change the rules at the state level uh removing some of the local jurisdictions authority. So more recently um 160D 601 uh speaks to downzoning where it states no amendment to zoning regulations or a zoning map amendment. So legislative act that downzones properties can be initiated, enacted or enforced without written consent of all the property whose property is subject to the downzoning amendment. So it's not a big issue is one property somebody comes in they want to change their property from commercial to residential that would be considered a downzoning. However, the applicants applied to do that. We have their permission for a zoning map amendment. So, it really affects when the town

wants to take an area and downzone, maybe reduce the density in in an area uh where we would have to get the property owners permission. So, uh, it really put a halt to that action as it relates to text amendments. Um, this board actually considered one where we were looking through our use tables and we I think it was for an outdoor landfill. We required it was allowed by right in many zones and then we said, "Well, no, it needs to be a special use permit. Now, what we had to check on that is were there any existing businesses without a special use permit that was already within these districts? If so, if we would have adopted the ordinance that way to either prohibit it or remove or require a special use permit, we would then make that business a nonconforming, which would qualify as a downzoning. So even when we do text amendments, we really have to evaluate this new legislation to make sure that we're not violating the state law. So that's something we work with our attorney with. We we uh we really try to vet it out before we bring it before you. So that's just something that this board should be aware of. Um, also that uh there are required findings when considering a text amendment or a zoning map amendment. So I'm sure you guys can name what the findings are. Anyone? Anyone? We required to typically make two findings when considered

consist consist consistency and um um reasonable

reasonleness. So yes. So, so first of all, we uh our ordinance speaks to making sure it's in compliance with the UDO, but then the state says that we have to uh make a finding whether it's consistent or not with the town's uh comprehensive land use plan. That would be our is it a reasonable reasonable request in the public interest. So you will hear us whenever we present to you present some recommended findings. Um now the law goes on to say that just because it's inconsistent with the comprehensive plan doesn't mean that you have to deny it. That's where you would if it's inconsistent you just have to state that it's inconsistent and why. And what are the reasons that we are going to still recommend approval of it? It's reasonable because if it's location, the type of use, and that's exactly what this board did with the pit road uh conditional or pit road conventional zoning that you heard last month. So, you can still recommend approval and the council can approve it. However, you have to put it into the record. So once the decision's made and it may be inconsistent with the comprehensive land use plan, what happens is when the council approves it, it automatically updates the land use map within the hallup. So, uh, that action just automatically goes goes through and a lot of times that happens because comprehensive land use plans really need to be evaluated every five years at a minimum uh to see what's changed out there. Is the town

moving in a direction of more economic development in a certain area um or different types of land uses? So, uh, the state recognizes it and has provided relief, um, within the findings in the state law. I had a a thing and I lost it. There it is. I'm sorry. So, planning and zoning action. So, uh, our typical process is we're looking for recommendation to the town council. The board can approve, recommend approval, approve with modifications or recommend disapproval to the town council. Again, findings. Is it consistent with the UDO? Is it consistent with the HALUP? Is it a reasonable request in the public interest? So that um so I'll quickly talk on text amendments. same process adding or amending development regulations in the UDO. Typically, they are staff initiated. Uh it's rare that we get one from the general public, but it's still a process where you have an application, it comes before the planning and zoning board and ultimately to the town council for decision. So, uh I want to say within the last five years, the state change updated their ordinance to uh or the state regulations to uh outline the process on how comprehensive land use plans are to be adopted. So, um first of all, they are required. The state says that any jurisdiction that wants to uh regulate development in their community through zoning has to have a land use plan or a

comprehensive land use plan. Uh these plans set forth goals, policies and programs intended to guide the present, future physical, social and economic development of the jurisdiction. the adoption uh is required to be reviewed by the planning and zoning board. It doesn't say that you really need to make findings. You just have to send a recommendation. Uh and it's to follow a legislative act specifically. They call out the process as of a text amendment. So the same process. So right now we are currently we have kicked off our strategic comprehensive land use plan process and besides some of you being on the steering committee and hopefully everyone involved uh in the process the document will come before this board for review and input prior to going to the town council for a decision. So that wraps up my training real quick. Do we have any questions? No. [Music]

Great. Thank you. Loved the refresher. Thank you.

Great. Great. So, uh, next I'd like to, uh, show you the website for the strategic comprehensive plan that we have currently gotten underway. So the title of this strategic plan is going to be one Harrisburg planning our future together. So name of the plan we have this wonderful website and I'd like to show you the website hoping that you will forward it if you're on any HOA email list. Just get your community involved in this. We have some information um for you that includes the brochure and the survey uh information. So this is the website you can get to it easily uh through a QR code actually within this pamphlet or if you just do a search for one Harrisburg you'll it will come up. Uh so this is the website and it has uh the project overview. It has the survey. So please encourage everyone to take the survey. Has everyone taken the survey already?

I have I mean how are we keeping it from taken more than once? How is it or is that not happening? I don't actually I don't know. I know this one's unique and maybe Zach can help address that. This is strategic. I think the survey company that does this all the time does have some methodology and um technical ability to um prohibit ballot studying if you will. That was my question. Yeah. Yeah. So um and this one is unique in that it's it's uh really a scientific survey that we wanted to make sure that um

the other is being evaluated like when your option was other but there was no like oh quick question uh did we ever decide I remember us briefly talking about it but I don't remember there was ever a consensus is this one survey per household or each adult in the household. Let me my husband take it. Okay. Well, yeah, that's that's a great question. I think you can do it individually. I don't think it's restricted to any one person or household. Um there is if when you take the survey, you can fill in your personal information and that qualifies you for the

is it five the chance to win $500 uh by sharing your information. Um, but I will follow up and double check that information with the survey company and make sure and email that out to you. So, just real quick on the um, so it's referred to as a statistically valid survey,

which is the same methodology used for political campaigns or other market, you know, analysis. And basically um the the process the methodology uh ensures that you have a certain percentage of confidence in this case it's 95% confidence level that the information or the results you're getting are accurate and representative of the community. Um you don't have to get 25,000 people uh if everyone responded to to have an accurate survey. And if you've ever seen national surveys, whether they're presidential or state, you know, 500 people surveyed said and and I think and I don't I haven't seen the numbers yet, but I think we're going to get well over 500. And so, you know, and when I did this in um uh in Huntersville at the time, Hunterville, population 40 45,000, uh we got about 1,300 surveys back. And so we had a really good handle on what the the flavor was and it was very uh clear what people wanted to see, what they did and and the intensity of their support or opposition. Uh so it really is um uh interesting that um you you don't need to get everybody but if you get a certain percentage and that's really what the survey company does and you have it um it has to be a random survey. We're not going all to one part of the town. So I don't want to reveal too much of their magic but uh they ensure that there's distribution throughout the community and uh there's ways that they'll do that. Um they also want to make sure that the uh responses are representative of the community. So for example uh they don't want to get

all uh you know one gender for one age. Uh they want to make sure that okay here's the demographic for Harrisburg. We have this percentage of this demographic. We have this percentage of this. want to make sure that and if we're starting to get uh something that's a little bit imbalanced, they can actually correct for that and they may even um push out more surveys to that demographic. So, there's a lot of different ways to be sure, but but I can tell you that just my own personal experience, I know Shel's done this before, too. um the uh the survey, the public meetings, the neighborhood meetings, the chats in the hall, they all start to say the same thing and you hear the same and and that's really what's important about the survey is it's intended to validate all the other uh ways to get information. So uh it it will be uh accurate and you know can look at it and and feel uh confident that you've got the uh you know the How do they know? Um because it's been posted like on the Harrisburg forum or whatever and a lot of people on that form aren't necessarily from Harrisburg. So how do they know like you know there's people

I do know that ask the question about are you a resident so people can lie obviously right but uh you know there and again even correcting for you know people do twice or they lie or something if you get a 1200 responses it'll it won't matter it's going to it's going to come out the wash you know it it really uh statistically uh is is insignificant [Music] Okay, thank you.

So, the survey has been open since October 10th and will close on November 21st. So, uh this little card, we have uh multiple ones. If you need some and you have a community center or amenity center in your neighborhood, please drop them off or share with your neighbors. Um, one other feature that is really interesting on our website is this map. Let me get to it here. This map feature and I actually played around and was testing it if Well, I just zoomed out. So, let me go back now. I don't know where I'm at. Let me go back.

Need to promote. Oh, we out in ocean.

We're in the ocean. Okay, let's go back. Okay, let's see if I'm working here. There we go. So, this map provides the ability to leave uh little notes on it in uh by location, geographic location. So you can you can make little marks of place I want to preserve where you want to see change. It could be you think there needs to be a signal at a particular intersection or something needs to be done about traffic at an intersection places you want to see growth and others. And what's interesting about it is you can actually see what somebody has put there and read the notes. And if you agree, thumbs up, but if you disagree, you could thumbs down. But it's it's uh really I'm hoping a lot more people uh put this information on the map. And uh besides this map being available through this process, this might be something we may want to keep on the town's website just to check on periodically uh feedback. So um

yeah, what is that? It's Bradford Park. So we had somebody's looking for a shopping center with local food. No fast food chains. This looks like Hickory Ridge and Rocky River Road intersection. And here somebody mentioned uh they'd like to see some wayfinding signs throughout Harrisburg uh and so forth. So you can put anything you want uh on here, but it's a still not a lot of use. Not a lot of comments. I think we really need to promote this a whole lot more. Yeah, I mean there's a lot of people that sit at home at night and possibly do that, but I haven't I have not seen any good social media promoting it yet. Not about the map. What about

Not about the map, but the plan I know is a lot has gone on. I just took the survey and I didn't explore the website. Right. I did too. I agree. I didn't.

So, what we'll do is we'll go to our um information officer and and give her your feedback and see if we can't just promote that map or promote the the website, explore the website. But that map is a really nice feature that we had added. So this is the timeline for the project. There are four phases. We're still in phase one. It is uh about a year year and a half process ultimately to the end. The most important component of the process is the community engagement. So again we we ask that you be ambassadors for um public engagement for this project. uh this board utilizes the HALUP and will you utilize this plan. So tell the story how you as a board member utilize the plan and so forth. So uh we have at least 12 neighborhood meetings besides um other engagements. Right now we have already kicked off our neighborhood meetings based on zones. We've um divided the town into six zones and have identified venues within the zone. And so uh you can go to this website or website and see identify which zone you're in, see when the meetings are, where they are, and what time they are. If you can't make the meeting in your zone, you can go to any meeting. So, what's important is just

try to go to the meetings cuz like on your phone you have to like click an arrow to see all the things that are at the top there. So, you know, it's kind of hard to read. People barely read, let alone navigate. Okay. I mean, I was one of them. So,

so some of the other events, many of them uh we've already completed. Uh we had various stakeholder groups like the multicultural focus group. We had a stakeholder group on housing, mobility, economic development. We were at rocking the berg. Uh we met with the youth council. That was fantastic to see all these high school age children or they're not children, young adults. High school age young adults. They were really into feedback and hearing about Harrisburg from their perspective, what they thought was needed. Uh they talked about walkability. It's hard to get around town if you you don't have your parents to drive you. It was very interesting. Uh we'll be at the trickor treat. We have the big open house. We hope to see you all at the open house on October 28th. Uh all of these are drop in format. This will be at the new YMCA. Uh various steering committee meetings and other open houses and so forth to the end of the adoption. So we will be taking public comment and input throughout the process. Uh the stay connected is a way just to ensure that you're on the emailing list for our monthly newsletter. That's where we're putting a lot of our print information about this um project is in the monthly newsletter. Uh we also uh do posting on all of our social media. So there's resources, contact us if anyone has questions. It comes right into the planning department and we uh try to address it. So, please share uh not just the survey but information about this great website and all the information on it. And we will do a special promotion

on this map feature. Yeah, on my phone doesn't even show up as a map. It's a link. Is it a link? It just shows up. But I would just bypass that. So, it needs something a little more interesting on there. It's got like the big survey button above it and then like the fun like the colored coded there. So it's in between that. Okay. So that's great feedback about how it looks on a phone. We sit at our desk all day. So we test I've tested this website just sitting. Yeah. It probably has limited functions on your phone. It's probably best done in a

way. Well, I mean, that's what people are going to be on their phone. I don't even know how to access, especially if they're at one of these meetings. They're going to pull it up on their phone. Yeah.

Right. Well, we have uh we keep a tablet at the neighborhood meetings. So, if someone wants to take their survey right there, explore the website, they can do that at the neighborhood meetings or any of our meetings. Uh so, please share the information and um you'll be hearing a lot more about it. And if you want to come and help out at any of our future meetings, just let us know. Um, so we've had two already, uh, two meetings. One was last night, we have one Thursday night, and then we'll be at the trickor treat in the park. Uh, so we're going to continue.

Will staff be dressing up for that event? You can come as an arborist. Huh? Dress up as a leaf. So, that's all I have this evening. So, I'll be glad to um answer any questions and if you need more material, just please let us know. Shel, as these meetings are happening, are is the third party sharing some of the feedback um you know, our consultant?

Yeah, the consultants are going to come back in here and kind of voice what they've heard or the town counselor. Is it kind of something that they're ingesting and then they're going to put together in a package? Well, uh, we get minutes from like the stakeholder meetings and all that. We actually record them and you can go back and watch them. Okay.

Uh, online the neighborhood meetings. We are taking feedback and we're compiling the information. That subject staff's doing the public outreach with the consultant. Uh, they are compiling it. We'll put all the information together. The goal is to get all the feedback and create that framework for the plan. uh get a vision statement. So what is our long range vision? What are the goals of this plan? You know, what are we hearing from the community? And then that goes back out to the public for input. Did we get this right? This is the vision. These are the goals.

This is the framework. It will come back before the steering committee. It comes back before the public and open house meetings. So what they're doing at the meetings, there's three or four broad topic questions and you get a sticky note when you come in. What did you like to see? What do you don't like to see? So right now there's just a pile of sticky notes. Well, I a lot of that information put over on a side and just bucketized. I was like, I guess that's where I need to be in on these meetings. So there'll be Yeah, we'll develop common pretty soon. Yeah. I can't tell you how many talk about traffic

and and that's the idea of all these different um ways to get information. Uh you ask it a little different way, but people answer it uh the same way. Um, you know, we we begin to see we've already seen certain things that people want to see and uh things that they don't necessarily like. So, you have anything else? No. So, um just real quick, some of you may be aware, but this is my last meeting. I'm leaving you all. Um and um don't feel bad for me. I'm I'm going I was going to say you're smiling pretty good. Yeah.

Blue bluer pastures. I'm going to do um um and uh that will be first week of November. Um so if anybody's down there, feel free to come by and take me out to lunch and it will be wonderful. I I'll take you to the best restaurant on the island. You do that. Congratulations. But um yeah, it's it's going to be a new adventure, but it will be good. Best of luck. Yeah. Wish you well. Good luck. Yes. Thank you for everything you've done for us. Appreciate it.

Any other questions from the board for staff. Well, with that, I guess we have a motion to adjourn this meeting. So moved. Second. Second. Meeting is adjourned. All in favor say I. I.