Planning Commission - Regular Meeting

call the North Plain Planning Commission for April 8th to order at 6:00. Will you rise for the pledge of allegiance? I aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Could I please get the roll call? Thank you. Chair King here. Vice Chair Levante here. Commissioner Hal here. Commissioner Miller I have not heard from. Commissioner Noneam here. Uh Commissioners Kenodell and Tara are excused this evening. And tonight your ex officio is councelor Christa Yugar present.

All right. Item number four is public comments uh for any comment on planning commission business. It's not on the agenda that let the record show there's no one in the audience. Is there anyone on Zoom? Not on Zoom.

Record show Commissioner Miller is now present.

All right. Move on to item number five, the approval of the minutes for March the 11th, 2026. There any changes? I'll entertain a motion. I move to approve the March 11th, 2016 regular session as written. I'll second. Who are you gonna pick? Chair

been moved by Commissioner Leonte, second by M. Commissioner Dunning Camp for approval of the March 11, 2026 minutes as presented. Is there any discussion? Hearing none. All those in favor say I. I. Opposed. Minutes are approved. Item number six is unfinished business. Do we have any unfinished business now? No new unfinished business or new recurring unfinished business. Sorry. Any unfinished business with any of the commissioners? Okay, we'll move on to new business. Any new business? No new business. Thank you.

Is there any new business of any of the commissioners? Hearing none, we'll move on then to the land use applications and city project monthly report. There any questions of those documents? I was looking at the 3J consulting report dated March 16 and it released The copy I had didn't have the Jesse made sidewalk project on it anymore.

It the Jesse's product is not included. Yeah. Um, I believe that Brian may only include

actually I'm not entirely sure what Brian's because it's logic for not including it on this report. Yeah, it's been on it every time before. So, I just noticed that it wasn't up but it may just be an oversight on his behalf. I will check in with him. Any other comments, questions on those reports? Okay. Um, next item then is item nine, the planning commission comments. U, we have the UGB pack meeting update. We haven't had a pack meeting. So, do we know when the next one is planned for?

Um, I will elaborate under staff comments, but for now, we do not have a date certain for the next path. All right. Great. Thank you. Is there any other planning commission comments? Um, getting bombarded again with solar sales and questioning where the badges are. You need to contact me because otherwise I don't know that it's happening.

Well, he told me he wasn't willing to spend the money to get a permit. I said, "Well, I'm not willing to listen to you." Then you what you if that happens then you need to call non-emergency and they will send an officer out and he will direct him to come to me or he will direct him to leave the city. Simple as that. Any other comments planning commission? Hearing none and item 10 is city council comments. Okay. So, welcome counselor Yugar. Gartara.

Thank you. I did finally change my name to my very name. So, councelor Yugard.

Um, thank you. I think this might be a record, you know, for the quickest meeting as exio. Way to set the bar so high. Um, this is uh councelor. Um, just a couple quick updates from city council. Um we just recently held a work session to discuss potential URRA building improvement incentive programs. So thinking through um facade improvements, thinking through how to maintain current businesses we have. Um we had consensus as a council um for staff to bring new programs to the UR for formal review in the future. Uh we also um asked Marina Associates to propose a cost for producing monthly finance department reports so that we can keep a close eye um within the city and and audits as we progressed forward. And I would share maybe the last update um is that the city council upheld the decision to um place a loading zone for downtown businesses on commercial street rather than 314. And with that, I am open for any questions or comments.

There any questions or comments from any of the planning commission?

I have a uh under and I'm not picking on you because I'm picking on city council. Um on the 16th of March uh workshop, you discussed the boards and commissions subcommittee update is what the workshop was about. And it seems like we spent about a half an hour uh talking about terms for the boards and commissions. And I just wondered first of all what's driving that? Is there something wrong with the boards and commissions that they need to consider terms and yet the city council didn't even discuss terms for themselves?

Great question. Um, again, I can't speak on behalf of my peers. Um, I know as a general theme, the council currently is really focused on creating consistent processes and consistent um, rules and bylaws. I think again without speaking on behalf of my peers, I think that's really the intent behind that. Um I know during that particular work session, there was discussion about the value that not placing term limits, especially on commissions such as this this body right here. Um how much value that can add to have tenure amongst a particular body. Um, so I will absolutely take that feedback back to city council and review as well because I know um it it's not a clear and concise for across the board and and sometimes it's not always the best fit. Um, so thank you for providing that feedback. Well, I have a little additional too that you can take back and I can only speak for the planning commission and I can only go back so many years because the um records for the um planning commission only go back so many years. that in the last four years of the planning commission at the complete cycle of the entire body of the planning commission that's seven positions. I went through all the different records for our minutes and there were a total of nine applications for seven positions. One of those applications was withdrawn. So technically there was only eight. one was filling a commissioner position who could no long was no longer qualified. So that means

that six of them were u incumbent replacing their own positions and only one person was not picked and of course as you know city council selects anyway so it's not like it's our decision we make recommendations so I would think that the city and the city council would be happy to have people volunteer for these transitions. And I just think the idea of saying, "Oh, we're going to limit it." It's like, "Hey, thanks a lot. Uh, you've already been here too long, so you so I just be concerned, you know, now other boards, they may be different, but just for the planning commission, it's rare to get people to sign up and it's a thank's job as you know." And uh so um I just think seems like a lot of energy that city council doing to fix the problem that I don't think exists. That's my opinion.

Well, thank you again for sharing that feedback and you know I don't know why anyone wouldn't want to join this commission. We're only 10 minutes into a meeting. It's almost over in a an empty room. So uh not like Monday, right? The only thing that would make this meeting better would be some mints or snacks or something. Oh, no. But thank you again. But I will I will share that during my next council report as well with my peers. So, thank you for sharing that.

Maybe I'll just add to that as sort of one of the newer members like one of the most valuable pieces from the other longer term members is their uh historical knowledge. And especially when we get to doing code updates, it's amazing that you are able to come forward and say, well, I remember five years ago when we were working on this thing, the reason we were doing it is this and this and this and that is invaluable. Um, and so it would be a shame to lose that kind of historical.

Absolutely. And I I that was actually a topic of discussion during that particular meeting. Um again just you know knowing the knowledge and again that tribal knowledge that does get passed down. Um you know even as a resident I moved here in 2014 and hearing um you know a previous council member share about a time when the city was almost cut in half by Highway 26 over change. And those are the the anecdotes that I I feel like they do bring value and especially in a in a board like this when you are making such critical decisions and there has to be a level of knowledge that most people if unless you're doing this for fun or for your job um don't necessarily have that innate knowledge. So um 100%.

Thank you. The one other thing I'd add too is I know that there was discussion of rotation of the chair and about I heard that it was to make it a suggestion and I just show a hands how many people want to be the chair. I thought you were going to ask how many I don't want to be the chair. So but you know so I don't know why I've rotated just throwing it out there. Okay. No one's going to be volunttoled. I try to get her to be a chair. She was groovy out. Okay. If there's no other city council comments hearing none, staff comments, please.

Thank you, chair. Uh, I have a few updates regarding some of the projects um that we've been working on. Uh, staff does intend to bring forward the zoning and development code update strategy that you all have been workshopping over the last couple months. um during the second city council meeting this month. Uh we are still waiting on some final edits from uh Heather Austin at 3J and we will be also putting together um in conjunction with 3J an updated legislative tracker to keep track of all of these new bills that are coming out of the state legislature. Uh we did just have a s short session which generated some new bills. Um, a lot of those from the last two years will take effect um, anywhere between June and December of this year. So, being uh, on top of those is going to be very important for staff. Um, as well as next year's long session is expected to generate um, quite a batch of new bills affecting the land use planning system. Um, so look forward to more uh, on that update later this month. Um, as mentioned by councelor Yagare, we did uh present to city council on Monday about the history of the North Plains Food Bank land use application and code enforcement uh that's been going on as well as the uh effort between planning and public works to establish a downtown loading zone on Northwest Marshall Street east of uh 314th Avenue. Um concept planning is still underway. I know there hasn't been a bounty of updates for this body or for pack members. We will be having the first TAC technical advisory committee on uh meeting on Friday where we will bring together a number of representatives from agencies who specialize in transportation, different utilities and service providers for

North Plains uh to meet and discuss uh some of the draft project materials and then do a site tour of um various sites throughout the region that we are using as inspiration for the urban form that would develop in the potential UGB expansion areas. Um so that will be uh kicking off the next round of public engagement. That'll be followed by community focus groups and by another pack meeting. Uh we have had a influx of developers and residents who are interested in uh conducting some development activities in the city. So, we've been excited to bring those folks in um talk about their opportunities and the available sites in the city. Um I'm personally very excited to see what comes over the next year or so uh with this activity. We have some interesting proposals coming into the office um in in the pre pre-application phase. Um so, be on the lookout over the next six months for some of those to come forward and and be on your uh applications. I think that is all the updates I have. I'm open for questions.

So, as far as the pack, we don't you still don't have any a date that they're proposing. It's just waiting for the tax meets and then figure it out from there. Yes, we're waiting to complete the TAC meeting and for city staff to get a finished draft memo three. Um, most likely the pack meeting will be either late April or early May. It'll be about three-ish weeks. So, is is the TAC meeting open to the public or not? The TAC meeting as a staff level meeting um that be public. Okay. Any question? Go ahead. Governor Lante,

in your uh discussions with people about potential development, was the um I'm sorry, I don't remember the address. the old insurance building on Glenville Road. They've been reciting and they tore down all those trees that Oh. Uh, Miss Miss Andy McNab and the All State Building. Yes.

Yes. Um, I haven't heard from Miss McNab in a few months now. Um, I know that she had some general interest in looking at options for her property, but I haven't heard from somebody. Just cleaning it up. So, do we have approval then to move forward with our code updates? Where are we at finance wise and stuff? So, we'll be bringing that forward to city council at the second meeting which is not next week but the week after. Okay. Or the 20th, right? 20th.

Yeah. One final question on the Glenco opportunity site. Are the are they done with that or once? So the Gleno opportunity area we've been conducting debris cleanup um and brush cleanup. Uh the next step is going to be disassembly of the barn on that property. Um and then it will be structure demo and tree removal. Um and then we are still waiting for action from the EPA to finalize our grant. Um and once that is done, we're looking at about a year and a half to two years to complete all of that grant um before we can begin development activity on the property.

But it doesn't the soil contaminants only on the back half of the property. Why can't the soil contamination is the entire property must be scraped and hauled off? Oh, I guess I've heard it was back in the butchered butcher. That's not the case. the the entire so for the the grant that we received it's to uh remove I believe it's almost a thousand tons of soil which equates to the 5 acres 12 in deep remove that soil and haul it to Hillsboro landfill for prop for proper disposal. Has

anyone considered Kemer View and all the contaminated soil under those houses? Uh I believe that we have done all of the necessary testing that when we scrape the soils everything will be removed. No, I understand that but there's a subdivision behind there that was the major part of the orchard where probably contamination were and now there's components. So I'm just surprised that we got a problem with our five acres but the houses don't have a problem with contaminated soil. I'm not sure exactly how they went about their development, but

yeah, I'm I'm confused because I actually had a discussion with Bill once and the site the gas station portion on the front on the southwest corner didn't have any contaminant on it. So, they were talking about possibly developing early phasing it. So, I'm surprised it has to be scraped.

Yeah, I don't have the exact details from the environmental assessment. Um, but I can tell you that the conclusion was that we do need to scrape between 6 to 12 in of soil across the entirety of the site. And that's not strictly speaking that every cubic foot of soil we remove is going to be contaminated, but because we need to remove the soil in order for the site to be geotechnically sound. And because it may be contaminated, it has to be hauled off for proper disposal. We're not going to sit there and test every single truckload of soil.

We just have to assume that everything might be contaminated and fall off. So, that being said, you have to clear cut the entire property, leave no trees. Yes. and and it was if you look at the proposed development from Rumbled um who was our development pro uh partner when we first uh put out proposals for or the RFP for the property. You'll see that the site is um fully developed with that proposal. Thank you. Okay. Of course. Any other staff comments? Uh nothing. Thank you. Any questions to the planning commission to council on staff and comments? Go ahead, please.

Council, just a quick question and Rowan, you might not know this answer, but I know um during some previous community listening sessions, there was discussion of um the hope to be able to salvage some of the wood from the barn that's currently on site. Is that something that is possible or you're aware of? Yes, we are working on salvage. Okay, great. and we've identified a partner um and we're working on the ability to salvage that and to potentially reuse some of that in city facilities to reflect heritage and what we have that's special about North Plains. Yes.

Okay. Any other comments? Any other plan commission business? We have a reminder that our next regular meeting is May 13 at 6 o'clock. We don't have any work schedule I'm assuming at this time. So with that we are turn 622.