Planning Commission - Regular Meeting

[Music] Heat. Heat. N. [Music] [Music] I feel down. [Music] Okay, let's call this meeting the Hazville planning commission to order. First item of business is roll call. Williams here. True here. Coleman here. Asia here. Wallace Rinky here. Blood here. Next item in business is the presentation and approval of minutes of May 22nd, 2025. I move we accept them as presented. Second. The motion second to approve the minutes as presented. All in favor? Those opposed? Any extensions? I one. No public forum. Correct. Nope. Under new business, we have a public hearing for request of partial vacation or utility easement generally located at 940 East Dietrich the rights of all parties involved in an order to create an opportunity for everyone to speak their opinions, present information. The Hazel Planning

Commission follows a specific procedure in reaching a decision. A copy is available by the door. We are now formally open for the public hearing to consider a vacation of a portion of the plotted utility easement. Do members of the planning commission have a conflict of interest in this case? No. Do any members receive any written or electronic communication in this matter? No. No. No. No. Please present. So again, this is a vacation quest for the property located at 1940 East Direct Avenue. The applicant is requesting said vacation because they have constructed an accessory structure for their um air compressor and three AC units all on concrete pads in the utility easement. Um these were all built without a building permit. Um and they were discovered by the city earlier this year by our building inspector when I believe he was out on a some site inspections. But these structures encroach on the utility easement on the north side of the property um by about 5 1/2 ft. The easement is only 10 ft in width and the applicant is requesting said vacation to come into conformance with city code. After we discovered them, we had to issue a violation because per city code, no structures are allowed in any easements. We have not seen any public comment on this vacation request yet. Um but it was sent out for review by all utility companies and our city engineer. Um Kansas One Gas had no conflicts. Um Cox noted that they had a line going underneath one of the AC pads, but that is 1940 East Dedric, so that's not a concern. Um but there was one that could potentially need removed if the vacation is approved. Evergy and AT&T did object um with no leniency. They were not um no recommendations to get that approved with them. Um and because they were objecting, staff is having to request denial. Um it's best if the utility

easement remain as it is platted. so that all utility companies have proper access and service to it and to avoid the high cost of relocation for the property owner. So upon denial of the vacation, the accessory structure and the AC units would remain in violation of city code um and the applicant would have to remove these structures if a utility company requested it at their own cost. Any questions for staff? Are the applicants or their agents present? Yes, one of the property owners is here today. You wish to speak at all or No, it um it's pretty straightforward. We just uh hired some companies that didn't pull permits and we know any better. So, unfortunately, we'll we'll work with it and do what's needed. So, thank you. Okay. Any member of the public wish to speak? Seeing none, uh, no questions for the public from the commission. No rebuttal, I assume. Public comment is now closed for commission action. The floor is open to commissioner comments, thoughts? None. Um, do you have any idea what it would cost to to have that removed? The estimates that we got is going to be about $140,000. Wow. But, I mean, we're we're a machine shop, so they're not small air conditioners. Yeah. For our size of a building, it would heat or cool much larger spaces for regular How long have they been sitting there in violation? Eight years. And

although EverGee and others object to it, they've got equipment in the easement now and are functioning and serving not only you but your neighbors. Yes, sir. Without any problem. AT&T ran a line last summer and we didn't, you know. Yeah, they worked around it. Any question? It's it's not ideal. But no, the I think our issue with vacating it would be that that easement would have no benefit to us and could hinder any other utility's ability to not only serve you but serve your neighbors. And that's what the easement is for, for their ability to serve all the customers within that area. But if they've got their facilities in there to be able to serve it, I don't see any reason why you can't leave that until it becomes a problem for someone and then deal with it down the line. But the vacation to cut that easement effectively in more than half is is personally where I have the issue. You know, once we do that, we can't go back on it. And I think the the easier thing to do was just let that sit in violation knowing that if ever somebody needed to go through that easement and couldn't get it done in the remaining 5 and a half ft. That's a something we'll address when we get there. But no reason to move it right away at especially at that cost that you're describing. So we we greatly appreciate it and we would work with if it needs to be moved We'll move it. Well, I and I think that's what staff's saying is, you know, it's not ideal and we definitely would encourage everyone else in town to not place items in the easement because this is what happens. But in this one case, I think it's better for everybody if we deny this vacation, but let that equipment sit until it becomes a point where it can't sit there

any longer. So, what's the penalty for the violation? How how long can that go on now that it's become aware? It would be up to like staff discretion to actually um enforce the penalty, but the penalty I believe is $500 max fine or imprisonment, six months in jail, I think, for a combination of the two. But we usually only um go to those extents when the property owner is not willing to work with the city and they've obviously demonstrated willingness to work with the city because we have our vacation application in. Do we have the ability to um deny the vacation but also um formally refuse to enforce the penalty unless a company has a reason to object? I I don't know that the refusal to apply what is the effective ordinance or whatever is making that is our decision. I think that should be left up to council, but that could be our recommendation. But I I don't honestly see that that's the direction this is heading both for us and for you. jail time sounds pretty serious to me, but and I'm a little surprised that that's what's on the table here to be honest. But I think leaving it to where if if something needs to be moved to accommodate a utility in there that it's your responsibility to move it is I'm comfortable with. It sounds like you're comfortable with. Yes. Um, and I I honestly hope that it it wouldn't get to that point, but I I would be hesitant for us to wave that when I think it's probably council that has the actual ability to wave that. Maybe not us. I don't know that for sure, but that'd be my

expectation. We have plans to grow. I mean, we're we we're an aerospace machine shop, so we're finally getting over the the hump of a new business. So we we will need to grow. So we looking at plans of expanding on the property and when we do the new building would have the structure where we could put the air conditioners on the roof and we'll build a room inside for the air compressors. So then we can yeah clear the whole thing out. And honestly, I I don't know for sure, but I would guess that staff would not issue a building permit for that without addressing the equipment that's in the fair. I'm okay with that. That's Yeah, that seems fair to me as long as it does to you. But I mean, being a business owner, I didn't realize when you hire a good, reputable air conditioning, two different air conditioning companies and a third company to build the little lean to for our air compressors that they didn't pull permits. So yeah, it's I'm learning the hard way. So well, for ourselves and our what I'm assuming is tens of viewers, I appreciate this as a cautionary tale so that at least hopefully some good can come out of it and we can educate everyone else so that they know that the correct process is to pull permits and make sure that you have everything in order. Otherwise, things like this can happen. So, yes, as a as the the best thing that could come of this, hopefully that at least is it. I think a lot of people see permits as an obstacle, but really they're to protect you, make sure everything's done right and stuff doesn't come up later and the city. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I know better now. I wish I would have checked on the companies, but you know, they were doing the work, but So, uh, in the interest of progressing this along, well, is there a way that we could offer an exception or a recommendation? I I

think we can recommend to council that that I would like extreme case, however you want to word your motion, but I would just be hesitant to say that we have the authority to do that because I'm not sure that we do. Yeah, I I can go ahead and move that we um question. Yeah. Can I ask one more question? So, what if in a year down the road or before you build the building that somebody needs in that easement and they need that stuff moved, can they put it back where it is currently sitting until it needs to be moved until the other building's built or whatever? So, if if they need in and they need that stuff moved, can he pull it out? They do what they need to do underground or whatever. And could he put it back until or would it have to be once it's removed, it couldn't go back? I'm not putting it back. No, I'm saying if I'm moving it out just to get to give them the right away, the money I'm spending to do that, it wouldn't be worth it to put it back. So, you'd have to bring a crane in to move it is what you're saying. And for two two of the air conditioners, yes, a crane will be needed. So, I mean, that's how they went in. So, you know, I assumed with cranes and stuff like that that the company we hired did all the right due diligence, but you know, so I just didn't want you to have to move everything in a year and then not or six months and then not be able to put it back, you know, and be rushing to try and figure out how to do it. That's that's where that especially in the summertime, the air conditioner is totally critical for our machines. we can't hold tolerance on the parts and everything without it. So, um it would be and the air compressors, we can't do anything without those. So, um it it would be a very stressful uh time for us, but we make it what makes things work. I mean, that's it's what we do. So

I I would just want to at least have the recommendation that it stays with the property and is known because I'm not saying your business is going to go out of business, but we all know that change things change within an economy, but the the building and the equipment is going to be there. So if something changes, we just need to be aware that if they're going to make changes to that building that that needs to move if there are changes that happen on the That would be triggered by any building permit, I would assume. Correct. Yeah, I think um we should have in our ordinance that a building permit wouldn't be issued if there was a code violation. Okay. Sorry. I will move that we deny the vacation request, but also that we recommend to the council not to take any enforcement action unless there comes such a time that it's required that they have to move it for the utilities. I'll second that. Sorry, just thinking that wording through. Okay, I have a motion and second to deny and recommend to council that the sorry uh that they don't follow up on any enforcement activities at this time. At this time. Uh all in favor? Those opposed? Thank you and best of luck. Thank you. Uh, next item under new business is a review of the bicycle and pedestrian master plan. So, this is our annual review of the bike and pedestrian plan. We updated all of the page numbers and our table of contents to make sure they were accurate for what's actually in the document. now um and updated some of the completed projects. Um under the

the priority improvement section, those are updated. Um and then on the fourth page, I believe we've added in that Wambo is going to be doing automatic um counters for bike and pedestrian counts. Um and they're going to test those out in Hazeville this fall. But those are the extent of our updates for this year. mechanical counters. Um, automatic. I think as they bikes go through, it should count automatic. Yeah, the the old We've been doing this for a while and the old method was to set someone out there and have them make tallies on a sheet. So, we still are doing that. Okay. But we should also But we're trying out the new ones. Yes. Right. Okay. Good. What is the mechanical one? It It's depending on which unit they have. It's either a radar unit or a pneumatic unit where you'd roll over the tubes, but a radar unit would just trigger anytime anybody passed by. And usually you would chain it to a pole or something at about chest height so it would pick up okay pedestrians walking by. And we covered all the new sidewalks that have been built or or currently being built and updated the plan to make it current and updated all of our maps as well. And what do you need from us? Um, recommendation to approve the changes. Motion to approve. This doesn't need to go before council. Okay. I move that we accept the plan and recommend forward it to the council for adoption. No. No. Sorry. She just said we have to approve it ourselves, not forward. Then I recommend that we approve the plan. Okay. Presented. Thank you. I'll second. Have a motion and second to approve the plan as presented. Uh all in favor? I. Those opposed?

No. Old business? Nope. No correspondence. Off agenda. The next meeting date July 10th. Sorry, what? July 10th. Item nine move we adjourn. I'll second that. A motion to second to adjurn. All in favor? I those opposed. Thank you everybody.