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21 JAN 11CITY OF JACKSONVILLE, ARKANSAS REGULAR PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING JANUARY 11, 2021 6:30 P.M. – 7:49 P.M. OPENING REMARKS: The Planning Commission of the City of Jacksonville, Arkansas met in a regular session on January 11, 2021. Chairman Stroud opened the meeting at approximately 6:30 p.m. expressing appreciation to those in attendance. Chairman Stroud offered the invocation. ROLL CALL: Commissioners Mike Dietz, William Montgomery, Billy Hall, Jim Moore, Jeff Twitty, Dan Brown, Greg Bollen, Chairman Mark Stroud were present and answered ROLL CALL. Chairman Stroud declared a quorum. PRESENT (8) with Chair, ABSENT (1). CORRECTION AND/OR APPROVAL OF MINUTES: PUBLIC HEARING(S): a. REZONING 7814 T.P. White Drive from C-3 to R-1 Petitioner JADD White Properties Chairman Stroud opened the public hearing at approximately 6:38 p.m. Mr. Aaron Robinson of Bond Engineering recalled that the property was rezoned almost two years ago and now the house and garage are being sold as a separate piece of property. He added the owner is asking it be rezoned back to residential as opposed to developing it as commercial. He stated that they need it rezoned back to R-1 incase there were a fire, they would not be able to build back as a residential home. Commissioner Hall moved, seconded by Council Member Dietz to approve the rezoning of 7814 T.P. White Drive from C-3 to R-1. MOTION CARRIED. b. CONDITIONAL USE 1105 West Main for a used car sales & auto repair in a C-2 zone Petitioner Rodolfo Garza Chairman Stroud offered a brief history; explaining as Planners they are not tied to buildings but to land and its uses. He stated that he wanted to make it clear that what happened without the Planning Commission’s approval was in years past. He pointed out there was a building and commercial venture put there that the Planning Commission had not approved. He then made it clear that the City Council had not approved the building, noting that there has been a lot of talk about this being a C-3 building or at least there was a C-3 business there. He stated that there has been some confusion because there is a building there, the Planning Commission should somehow be leveraged, the Planning Commission needs to know that this has always been a C-2 area but had a C-3 business on it. He related that there are four lots that are now included in the request that would extend from the Main Street area toward the residential area. He noted that there has also been discussion regarding flooding in the area including surface waterflow from the development of the lot closest to Main Street. He noted that Commissioner Hall has recused himself and will address those issues later in the meeting. He then related our question will be to determine if the flooding will worsen. He then noted that on CITY OF JACKSONVILLE, ARKANSAS REGULAR PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING JANUARY 11, 2021 6:30 P.M. – 7:49 P.M. many occasions Ms. Britney Garza has pointed out that there are many dealerships up and down Main Street, which is true. He added that as Commissioners we need to know when enough is enough, adding that as Commissioners we should know that there is a City ordinance in front of the City Council now for used car lots in Jacksonville. This ordinance will set limits to the number of cars for a business. He stated that what we must ask ourselves as Commissioners is how will this conditional use materially alter the neighborhood, adding will it include one lot or all four lots at one time, and how can we as Commissioners be assured that there will be no more flooding. He asked can the Commission get assurance that there will be no used cars for sale that will be parked close to the residential area. Chairman Stroud opened the public hearing at approximately 6:47 p.m. Mr. Bob Price via Zoom asked to share some information for the Commission. He stated that last year when this first came before the Commission, he provided information in working with 15 of City of Jacksonville’s leading citizens to write a master plan for the City, which included economic development activities and one of the things included was a definition of downtown renovation. He explained that the plan was adopted by the Planning Commission and the City Council in 2017. He stated that it does not state specifically “no used car lots” but does state that the goal of the downtown area is to modernize the Main Street area with the types of businesses that are not defined necessarily as used car lots. He went on to say that with the beautification of Main Street and the plan was demonstrated with a PowerPoint presentation to the Planning Commission and City Council. He stated that he made those statements to the Planning Commission previously. Mr. Adam Childers, attorney for the petitioner, stated that the petitioner is requesting a conditional use of all four lots. He related there was discussion regarding the flooding and water runoff. He then related that the resident who had attended the meeting because her property was flooding lived 2/10 of a mile down from 1106 West Main; adding that he felt her flooding issues were a City issue regarding drainage. He then stated that his clients are completely open to mitigating or limiting any type of runoff or drainage to surrounding properties. He stated that the Garza’s are asking for a conditional use for a period of 5 years which is the commercial lease agreement that will be between Mr. Garza, as the owner, and his daughter Brittney Garza. He added that then Mr. Garza would be willing to come back in front of the Commission in 5 years and ask for another conditional use. He stated they are hoping this would mitigate any worries by the Commission regarding the business. He stated they have invested their entire savings into the property, and want to be able to operate a business. He pointed out that because this is the third CITY OF JACKSONVILLE, ARKANSAS REGULAR PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING JANUARY 11, 2021 6:30 P.M. – 7:49 P.M. time the Garza family has been before the Commission, this should show their dedication and desire to running a proper business with the City and neighborhood support. He added that it has been over a year since they have purchased the property. Chairman Stroud opened the floor for opposition to speak to the issue at approximately 6:55 p.m. Billy Hall stated that he feels for the Garza’s, saying that he hates they have gotten into this predicament. He then added that we are all kind of in this predicament, adding that he does not feel there is a person in this room who is not for the betterment of Jacksonville. He went on to say that he wishes we could arrive at an understanding to make everyone happy. He related that it is not fair to the Garzas because they have invested money. He stated that he feels like the Garza are suffering from some of the bad experiences regarding some of the other car lots in Jacksonville. He stated that everyone he has spoken to is afraid of the same thing. He emphasized that Jacksonville does not want this to be a bad situation for Main Street. Brittney Garza assured Mr. Hall that she does not want a determent to the City of Jacksonville; adding that she is just asking for the opportunity to prove herself. She related that her father has moved to Texas, and she will be running the business; adding that she will make sure that it is not an eyesore. She stated that she is here to compromise, asking the Commission to just let her know what they feel is necessary in order to make this happen. Chairman Stroud closed the public hearing at approximately 6:58 p.m. Commissioner Twitty acknowledged that part of Mr. Price’s long-term goals regarding beautification basically stated they are against car lots in the area. He related that if we go against that then we are going against the Planning Commission from two years ago when they adopted the plan submitted by Mr. Price. Chairman Stroud clarified that Mr. Price did not say that we cannot do it, but that it is not conducive to revitalization of downtown. Mr. Price concurred, saying that the Planning Commission and City Council endorsed the plan. He then added that a plan like this is inconsistent with the goals of the master plan for downtown. Chairman Stroud related his concern that the initial conversation was centered around the front lot with the building; it was noted that when during the public hearing the petitioner is asking for C-3 on all 4 lots. He stated if approved that would be turning it into a C-3 use all the way up to the residential area. He added as a Commissioner that is extremely troubling because it is major spot zoning, it was only a building and now it would be a whole strip of C-3. CITY OF JACKSONVILLE, ARKANSAS REGULAR PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING JANUARY 11, 2021 6:30 P.M. – 7:49 P.M. In response to a question from Commissioner Montgomery, Chairman Stroud stated that the conditional use would be for whatever properties it is approved for. He continued saying that he would like to know about time limits. City Attorney Friedman confirmed that time limits can be stipulated but agreed with Chairman Stroud that it would be problematic. Commissioner Moore stated that his understanding is that the conditional use is granted to the owner of the property; City Attorney Friedman concurred. It was clarified that the owner has made the request and his daughter would be the operator. Council Member Dietz stated that the mortgage holder would not have control over the property once the mortgage is approved for the buyer. Only a default would change the status of control and the use of the property would revert to that prior to any conditional use approval. Commissioner Moore stated that he favors phase two, because of the flooding issues to the rear of the property and further noting that there is a major gas line that has electrical aspects. He stated that in consideration for conditions, he would suggest that the grass area could not be used as part of the car lot regarding the parking of cars for sale, which is prohibited by ordinance. Chairman Stroud clarified that if that were implemented then the request for C-3 regarding the entire property would be granted to the lot with the building but not to the rear lots. He then asked if the petitioner would be willing to accept a conditional use of C-3 in the limited area. Mr. Childers, speaking on behalf of Brittany Garza, stated that they would be willing to accept a limited area. He emphasized that they would be willing to do whatever the Commission feels necessary. It was then clarified that lots 8 & 9 are the lots that are adjacent to Main Street and lots 10 & 11 are the rear lots. Ms. Garza then informed the Commission that her plans are to expand the parking lot in both the front and the back. She explained that the building occupies the first two lots, and in phase two as referred to by Commissioner Moore, there is a grass area between Mr. Hall’s property and this property, which she feels Commissioner Moore is saying that would be less problematic because it does not back up to the residential area. Commissioner Moore added that there is a lot that has to be done to the back lots to prevent erosion and flooding, the topography is downhill and to the east. He surmised that it would be very expensive to correct that, adding that approval for the front lot will get the business going. CITY OF JACKSONVILLE, ARKANSAS REGULAR PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING JANUARY 11, 2021 6:30 P.M. – 7:49 P.M. Chairman Stroud concurred, saying that any construction to rear would increase waterflow. He asked Ms. Garza if she would be willing to take this under advisement and come back after you consult with a flood engineer to offer a proposal to mitigate the flooding with just approval of the front two lots. Ms. Garza stated that she would like to be able to at least have a decision regarding the first two lot because she has owned the property for over a year and has not been able to make any money back from the property. She noted that they do a lot of sales during tax season which is coming up. She then related that she met with a company that gave her a $100,000.00 estimate to do all of the asphalt on the property. She stated that the company was someone who did all of the streets for the City of Batesville, adding if she is not mistaken. She stated that she made sure she got the best of the best. She added that she did tell the company that she wanted to make sure that the drainage is taken care of, saying that she does not want any water flowing to someone else, even if we have to put a drain around it or whatever we have to do. She stated that if she were going to asphalt, which she is not planning to do anytime soon because they have already put so much money into the property they do not have the capacity to even asphalt that side now. She assured the Commission that it will be done right, if it is going to be done. Commissioner Brown requested clarification, saying that when she was before the Commission previously he believed her request was for all of the lots 8 through 11. Chairman Stroud clarified that was one of the phases she submitted, saying that eventually they are planning to extend the asphalt all the way to the residential section. Commissioner Brown confirmed with Ms. Garza that she would be agreeable to get approval for lots 8 and 9 currently. Ms. Garza concurred. She stated that phase two included the side land that is between her property and Mr. Hall’s property. She then added that phase two would not affect the residential area. Chairman Stroud cautioned Ms. Garza that anytime asphalt is laid it will take quite a bit to stop the water more than just mitigation. He then recalled that the runoff for the football field at the new High School was handled with an underground system that kept all the water and slowed it down before slowly releasing it. He stated that developers sometimes talk about above ground retention systems, adding that he does not want the City to be in charge of maintenance. He stated that he would recommend that the City Engineering Department be involved with the petitioner’s Engineer designing the project and agree on a satisfactory underground system that will not put water on CITY OF JACKSONVILLE, ARKANSAS REGULAR PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING JANUARY 11, 2021 6:30 P.M. – 7:49 P.M. The residence or any other business. He stated that we need to make sure that any improvements that is going to speed up surface water runoff is taken care of as part of the approval of the Conditional Use. Commissioner Brown questioned if there would be any additional asphalting in the approval of lots 8 & 9. Ms. Garza stated that she believes the front two lots is where the building sits, so the front already has asphalt. Chairman Stroud noted that lots 10 & 11 are the rear lots with the biggest slopes with lot 11 being the one nearest the residential area. Ms. Garza requested that they focus the Conditional Use on the first two lot adjacent to Main Street and then in the future she would meet with the City regarding any further asphalting and come back and request the back two lots. She agreed to have her engineer meet with the City Engineer. Chairman Stroud thanked Ms. Garza for moving in that direction. She confirmed that her understanding is that if she ever wants to asphalt the back two lots she will meet with the City Engineer and have them meet with her engineer regarding a water retention system. She added that she is not planning on doing that any time soon. Commissioner Moore discussed the extent of the underground system for not only the High School but for one that is being developed at the Middle School. Ms. Garza clarified that they are now only discussing the front two lots with what was presented as phase two. Lots 8 & 9 for clarification with 10 and 11 for later use. She then clarified with the Commission, the side property that is part of the front can be utilized. She described it as the green area between her property and Mr. Hall’s property on the east side. Chairman Stroud stated that he would have to defer any development of the side green space to Mr. Oakley as to if it would be problematic for asphalting. It was noted that there is 8’ to 10’ of asphalt directly behind the current building. Public Works Director Jim Oakley stated that we cannot allow anymore impervious surfaces (asphalt) to be constructed until there is a drainage study done and adequate drainage preparation regarding any additional asphalt. Ms. Garza clarified that she understood whenever she plans to asphalt, she needs to come back with a plan to the Planning Commission for approval. CITY OF JACKSONVILLE, ARKANSAS REGULAR PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING JANUARY 11, 2021 6:30 P.M. – 7:49 P.M. Public Works Director Jim Oakley stated that if lots 8 & 9 are approved, it must be contingent that any surface work would need to be approved by the Engineering Department. Chairman Stroud noted that this would include any gravel work. Commissioner Moore stated that any development of the two rear lots would need to include the utilities because of the major gas line. It was clarified that there would be no surface improvements without a drainage study and plan. Chairman Stroud informed the Commission that contingencies would be a part of the motion. Commissioner Moore moved, seconded by Commissioner Brown to approve a C-3 Conditional Use for auto sales and inhouse repairs (excluding open public repairs) at 1106 Main Street regarding the front lots of Lot 8 & 9, contingent that no gravel or asphalt improvements will be done without an approved drainage plan per the Engineering Department and no parking of cars on grass or easements. Brief discussion ensued regarding placing a time review on any approval as well as traffic concerns regarding the offset of the streets leading from the Military Museum to the street beside the car lot. At this time, MOTION CARRIED with Commissioner Montgomery abstaining. REQUEST TO APPROVE PLAT(S): FINAL PLAT AHRJP Development Mr. Aaron Robinson related that the property is located along T.P. White Drive, which is a three-lot commercial subdivision that faces T.P. White Drive. He noted that the water main would have to be extended across the property and would need to be rezoned. Discussion ensued as to why the Final Plat was being requested prior to the rezoning of the property. Mr. Robinson related that his understanding was that the property was already zoned commercial, which turned out not to be the case. He stated that in conversations with the Engineering Department it was determined that it was still zoned Residential. He then noted that this is the last residential property on that side of the Freeway. He then noted that a preliminary plat was not submitted because there are no streets to build or sewer to be put in. He acknowledged that commercial is dealt with differently than residential, pointing out that the way the final plat is written is says R-1 and it needs to be rezoned to C-4. CITY OF JACKSONVILLE, ARKANSAS REGULAR PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING JANUARY 11, 2021 6:30 P.M. – 7:49 P.M. Chairman Stroud questioned if it would be beneficial, noting that Water is not onboard and they do not meet until January 27th and Sewer and stormwater have not been addressed. He continued saying that to move forward there are contingencies, asking if it would be better to table at this point and wait for the rezoning. Mr. Robinson stated that he does not feel it would matter if the site plan is tabled. Chairman Stroud noted that there are no stormwater as builts, or the retention design, or erosion control plan and the larger concern is that the property is not rezoned. Mr. Robinson noted that those things are usually submitted on a site plan, adding that with a final plat there are generally just the right-of-way dedication for the streets and to make sure that the streets are built to City standards. He then noted that there are no streets to build. He added making sure that the water has been accepted by the Water Department, explaining that the only reason he would like to go ahead and do the plat is because we are talking about different people and this will give them a 30-day advance on trying to set up their finances. This will at least give the bank the reassurance that it is going to happen and they have all the paperwork ready. He then answered Chairman Stroud that he did not submit it as a preliminary plat because there are no streets involved to be dedicated to the City. He stated that the only thing the City will have to accept is the water, noting that the Water Department has requested they construct a water main across the front of the property. Council Member Dietz expressed his support for turning residential into commercial, noting the revenue for the City. He stated that new business is good for the City. Council Member Dietz moved, seconded by Commission Moore to accept the final plat with the petitioner brining back the final site plans when other items are in place. MOTION CARRIED. BUILDING PERMIT(S): a. SITE PLAN Lot 1 AHRJP Development Chairman Stroud noted there are some contingencies on Lot 1 and 2: 1) to show proposed lighting, 2) provide detail on concrete swells, 3) crossing sidewalk on Lot 1, 4) add general note indicating ADA compliance, 5) ADH approval will be required on all sewer plumbing prior to issuance of building permit, 6) Jacksonville Water Works will need to approve proposed waterline existing under the parking lot. CITY OF JACKSONVILLE, ARKANSAS REGULAR PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING JANUARY 11, 2021 6:30 P.M. – 7:49 P.M. Public Works Director Jim Oakley assured the Commission that they would not issue a permit without all contingencies being met. Commissioner Twitty moved, seconded by Commissioner Dietz to accept the site plan with the aforementioned contingencies. MOTION CARRIED. b. SITE PLAN Lot 2 AHRJP Development Commissioner Twitty moved, seconded by Commissioner Dietz to accept the site plan with the aforementioned contingencies minus the one for concrete swells. MOTION CARRIED. GENERAL: Respectfully submitted, _________________________ Susan L. Davitt