OCTOBER 27, 2009

1. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL: Chair Perry called the meeting to order at 2:00 p.m. Chair Perry and Commissioners Woodruff, Smolen, Power, Maré and Holland answered the roll. A quorum was present.
2. CITIZEN COMMENTS AND CONCERNS: None.
3. COMMISSION COMMENTS AND CONCERNS: Commissioner Holland noted that Carol-Ann Milligan, who had been on the Planning Commission for a number of years, had recently passed away. Commissioner Maré reported that he had attended the last meeting of the Yachats Planning Commission and there had been 51 members in the audience. The meeting was related to the plans for the property on which the Shamrock Lodgettes are located.
4. MINUTES: The Commission considered the minutes from the September 22, 2009 meeting. Commissioner Smolen moved to approve the minutes as presented. Commissioner Power seconded. Commissioner Maré asked about two issues in the minutes - the concern that Commissioner Smolen had regarding the commercial use of property in an R-3 zone, and the issue of visibility on Norwood Drive at the base of the hill. Mr. Lewis responded that on the former, he had apparently been looking at the wrong property and on the latter, the City Manager and the Public Works Director had already reviewed the matter and had taken steps to prevent large vehicles from parking in that area. The motion to approve the minutes carried unanimously on a voice vote.
5. CORRESPONDENCE: None.
6. PUBLIC HEARING - Case File #1-ZC-PC-09 - John Johnson: Chair Perry opened the Public Hearing, calling for abstentions, bias, conflicts of interest or ex parte contact. Commissioner Maré noted that both he and Mr. Johnson serve on the Port Commission, and he had also looked at the property in question. Commissioner Power reported that she was a neighbor of Mr. Johnson, and she had also looked at the property. There were no objections to either Commissioner participating in the hearing.
    Mr. Lewis reviewed the staff report, noting that the applicant was requesting a zone change from Planned Industrial to Residential. Mr. Johnson was unable to attend the meeting due to the necessity for a medical procedure. Mr. Lewis explained that the topography of the property was extremely steep, especially in the area off of Highway 34, which would make any industrial use difficult. The property can be accessed from the upper end, and there is an area of flat property there that would be suitable for building.
    Chair Perry closed the public hearing. Commissioner Holland noted that the applicant should have been aware of the zone restrictions prior to purchasing the property. Commissioner Smolen asked about the necessity for geotechs and Mr. Lewis responded that if certain portions of the property were developed a geotech would be necessary, but the area that Mr. Johnson is talking about building on was fairly level. Commissioner Woodruff asked if the intent was to further divide the property and Mr. Lewis responded that there had been some talk of that, but nothing concrete. Following further discussion Commissioner Power moved to forward the zone change request to the City Council with a recommendation to approve. Commissioner Smolen seconded, and the motion carried, with Chair Perry and Commissioners Smolen, Power and Maré voting "Aye", Commissioners Woodruff and Holland voting "Nay".
7. DISCUSSION/ACTION ITEMS:
    A. Planning Report: Mr. Lewis reviewed his written report. He indicated that the Commission could consider combining the November and December meetings due to their proximity to the holiday season. Following discussion, the Commission tentatively chose December 8 as the date for the next meeting.
    B. Other Issues: Chair Perry noted that all the amendments to the Comprehensive Plan have now been forwarded to the City Council for their review. The Council will be reviewing the Flood Hazard amendments at their meeting in November, and then in December they will be reviewing the Comprehensive Plan amendments.
    Commissioner Smolen asked if Mr. Lewis could include a followup on issues in his report, and he responded affirmatively.
    Following a brief discussion, the Commission also asked that the Code Enforcement report be included in their packet materials.
8. ADJOURNMENT: At 3:01 p.m., there being no further business to come before the Commission, the meeting was adjourned.