A regular meeting/public hearing of the Planning Commission of Alexandria Township was held on the 26th day of August, 2013 at the Alexandria Township Conference Room, 610 Fillmore Street.
Roll Call: Commission members present were Julie Haar, Larry Steidl and Linda Dokken-McFann. Also present were Bonnie Fulghum, Deputy Clerk, and Ben Oleson, Township Zoning Administrator. As said members formed a quorum and the meeting was called to order by Chairman Steidl at 6:00 p.m.
Agenda: Dokken-McFann, seconded by Haar, made a motion to approve the agenda as written. Motion carried unanimously.
Minutes: Haar, seconded by Dokken-McFann, made a motion to approve the minutes of the 07/22/2013 meeting as written. Motion carried unanimously.
Commissioner Hacker joined the meeting.
Chairman Steidl recessed the meeting to open the public hearing on the conditional use/interim use application by Freehealer Asset Holdings, LLC (Benjamin Miller).
Public Hearing: The applicant, Benjamin Miller, is proposing to construct a new building to house his business Blue Ox Timber Frames. The new building would be located on the same property as an existing cabinet-making business, Collins Cabinets. Mr. Miller was accompanied by Beth McComb and Deb Collins of Collins Cabinets. Ms. McComb stated they are in support of this project and the expansion of the business.
The applicant’s intention is to add just under 7,000 square feet of shop space to the property that is currently being used by the cabinet shop. The new building would be located on the east side of the existing parking lot and would have a shared entrance off County Road 9. It would be housed together with the cabinet shop, essentially a merger of the two companies with respect to similar processes and traffic flow.
Commissioner Dropik joined the meeting.
Ms. Collins stated that it would be a good fit with their company. Ms. McComb said it would be very positive for the succession of the business.
Zoning Administrator Oleson stated the Collins Cabinets business has been in place for 40+ years. At the time the business was established, the use was allowed and the business expanded. It was zoned commercial/industrial and was considered a legal non-conforming use. The property is currently zoned Rural Residential. Under the township ordinance, a request for expansion to the business can be made provided it doesn’t create a nuisance, such as traffic, noise, etc. It can be allowed as either a conditional use or interim use. He said this is not for re-zoning (for commercial or industrial type purposes) but limited specifically to what is being proposed.
Commissioner Hacker asked how many loads/week were anticipated for deliveries of materials. Ms. McComb said Collins Cabinets has 1 – 2/week. Mr. Miller said Blue Ox has approximately 1 – 2/month. She asked if they foresee this changing once the two businesses operated out of the same site, and they responded no.
Chairman Steidl asked about outdoor storage. The applicant stated there would be minimal storage outside on the south lot, primarily when the truck would be unloaded and materials sorted. The finished product, however, would be stored inside. Chairman Steidl also mentioned there appeared to be existing screening, citing tree cover. The applicant stated his intention to provide additional screening.
Chairman Steidl opened the hearing for public input. Hearing none, he closed the public hearing and re-convened the meeting.
Chairman Steidl asked if the sewer system would need to be updated to accommodate the new building. The applicant stated his intention to either update and add on to the existing system or install a system for the new building.
Chairman Steidl asked about signage. Zoning Administrator Oleson stated the signage would be a separate issue subject to separate permits. The applicant stated their plan is to utilize the existing signage structure to accommodate both businesses.
Chairman Steidl asked if they planned to utilize the existing driveway, and the applicant responded affirmatively.
Commissioner Haar asked for clarification on deliveries. The applicant responded there would be 1 – 2 trucks/month for the timber frame business and 1 – 2/week for the cabinet business.
Zoning Administrator Oleson explained the possible impact on the businesses if the town granted an interim use as opposed to a conditional use.
Commissioner Haar questioned condition no. 5 in the staff report where it states “3 – 4 deliveries/week”. It was her understanding this pertained to semi loads. Oleson explained that the combined businesses are limited to a certain number of deliveries/week. The two businesses will function as separate entities but be managed and owned by the applicant. Oleson also stipulated that the permit would be for the property itself, to expand the existing cabinet repair business. The applicant also stated that he felt the condition allows for flexibility and did not perceive requiring more deliveries/week until there would be a need for further expansion of the business.
Commission Haar asked if both businesses will abide by the CUP, to which Oleson responded affirmatively.
Oleson said he had spoken with county personnel and they confirmed the county road could accommodate the additional traffic flow. Chairman Steidl noted that a number of semi-trailers already utilize the road.
Motion by Haar, seconded by Hacker, to recommend approval of the conditional use application by Freehealer Asset Holdings as written in the staff report page 4(a) – 12, items 1 – 5. Roll: Dropik – yes, Hacker – yes, Dokken-McFann – yes, Haar – yes, Steidl – yes. Opposed: none.
Motion carried unanimously.
Chairman Steidl recessed the meeting to open the public hearing on the preliminary plat application of Tim Rock.
Tim Rock, 1966 Liberty Road, also owns the adjacent parcel at 2044 Liberty Road. His intention is to split off the back 8 acres (4 from each 10-acre parcel) and sell it as non-buildable farmland with access off County Road 73 via a driveway and/or easement. He is opposed to applying for variances. The staff report stated variances may be required due to no road frontage to the back 8 acres and the requirement of connecting to the sewer line for new subdivisions.
Chairman Steidl asked if the access road is legally his. The applicant stated that when the driveway was put in, it encroached upon other property. An easement was allowed to the person who installed the driveway; therefore, through succession of purchase of the property, he has accessibility to it.
Chairman Steidl asked if he had a registered document for the easement. The applicant said yes.
Zoning Administrator Oleson said the subdivision ordinance states sanitary sewer shall be required as a condition of all subdivisions located within public sanitary sewer district boundaries and the Urban Residential district. He said the applicant’s argument is that the two existing homes have private sewer systems and the back lot would be deemed unbuildable, thus requiring no sewer system. The other issue is that the subdivision ordinance states all lots are required to have public road frontage. The applicant’s argument is that the back lot is for farming purposes only and thus the easement should be sufficient.
Chairman Steidl asked if there were stipulations on what could be done with the property when he initially purchased the two lots. The applicant responded no.
The applicant provided a copy of the easement. He stated he felt the ordinance was geared for developments with many homes rather than someone in his situation. He said he is creating eight acres of farmland with access. The two 6-acre remaining parcels have existing mound systems. He stated the public sewer is approximately one mile away and would the cost to extend it to this area would be prohibitive.
Commissioner Hacker asked if there would be a problem accessing the land in the future if the owner of the driveway were to change. The applicant stated he felt there were actually four owners of the driveway.
Bernie Rachel, 2231 Hazel Hill Road SE. Mr. Rachel’s opinion is that Gary Brundell owns the road. He also expressed concern about the sewer line being expanded to this area and the subsequent assessment to landowners.
The applicant stated when the driveway was installed, it encroached on Mr. Rachel’s property and that Mr. Rachel granted an easement. His opinion is that it is partially owned by four property owners.
Harold Koep, 3504 County Road 73. Mr. Koep believes the easement was given with the understanding that only one person was able to use it. Mr. Koep owns the first length of driveway and Mr. Brundell the second. Mr. Koep also stated he thought the notice from the township was misleading since it states “a three lot residential subdivision.” He didn’t realize part of this subdivision was to remain farmland; hence the corresponding problems of moving equipment, etc.
Alden Just, 4805 County Road 73. Mr. Just expressed concern about the possible expansion of the sewer line and the amount of footage to be assessed.
Dean Logan, 1886 Liberty Road. Mr. Logan agreed that the notice was misleading, stating residential lots when in fact part of the subdivision was to be farmland. He was also concerned about the sewer line being extended and the subsequent assessment to landowners. Mr. Logan stated he would be in favor of having the easement rights clarified.
Commissioner Hacker stated the portion of the notice that appears to be misleading to the public is the “three lot residential subdivision”.
Chairman Steidl closed the public comment portion of the meeting and re-convened the meeting.
Commissioner Dokken-McFann asked if this is zoned Urban Residential, would he still need a variance to put the land into agriculture. Oleson responded no. The two variance issues would be the lack of road frontage for the back lot and the connection to sewer.
Motion by Dokken-McFann, seconded by Hacker, to table for a legal opinion on the road/easement issue, the 10-acre requirement, and that a corrected notice be sent to the neighbors once the issues have been resolved. Motion carried unanimously.
Zoning Administrator’s Report: Discussed drainage patterns as applicable to new homes.
New Business: none
Old Business: Tabled training and discussion on comprehensive plans.
Adjournment: Being no further business Dokken-McFann, seconded by Haar, made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Meeting adjourned at 7:43 p.m.
Respectfully submitted…
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Bonnie Fulghum, Deputy Clerk
Approved this ____ day of ___________, 2013
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Larry Steidl, Chairman