HomeMy WebLinkAbout20131969.tiffHEARING CERTIFICATION
DOCKET NO. 2013-43
RE: A SITE SPECIFIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN AND USE BY SPECIAL REVIEW PERMIT,
USR13-0024, FOR A KENNEL (75 -DOG BOARDING KENNEL AND 25 DOGGIE
DAYCARE FOR A MAXIMUM OF 100 DOGS) AND ANY USE PERMITTED AS A USE
BY RIGHT, ACCESSORY USE, OR USE BY SPECIAL REVIEW IN THE COMMERCIAL
OR INDUSTRIAL ZONE DISTRICTS (VETERINARY CLINIC, DOG GROOMING, AND
RETAIL SALES OF DOG FOOD, SUPPLIES AND TOYS) PROVIDED THAT THE
PROPERTY IS NOT A LOT IN AN APPROVED OR RECORDED SUBDIVISION PLAT
OR PART OF A MAP OR PLAN FILED PRIOR TO ADOPTION OF ANY
REGULATIONS CONTROLLING SUBDIVISIONS IN THE A (AGRICULTURAL) ZONE
DISTRICT - ROBERT E. EHRLICH, LLC, CIO JEFF CHILDS
A public hearing was conducted on July 31, 2013, at 10:00 a.m., with the following present:
Commissioner William F. Garcia, Chair
Commissioner Douglas Rademacher, Pro-Tem
Commissioner Sean P. Conway
Commissioner Mike Freeman
Commissioner Barbara Kirkmeyer
Also present:
Acting Clerk to the Board, Susan Brown
Assistant County Attorney, Bob Choate
Planning Department representative, Diana Aungst
Public Works representative, Jennifer Petrik
Health Department representative, Lauren Light
The following business was transacted:
a I hereby certify that pursuant to a notice dated June 14, 2013, and duly published
June 19, 2013, in the Greeley Tribune, a public hearing was conducted to consider the request
of Robert E. Ehrlich, LLC, c/o Jeff Childs, for a Site Specific Development Plan and Use by
Special Review Permit, USR13-0024, for a Kennel (75 -dog boarding kennel and 25 doggie
daycare for a maximum of 100 dogs) and any use permitted as a Use by Right, Accessory Use,
or Use by Special Review in the Commercial or Industrial Zone Districts (veterinary clinic, dog
grooming, and retail sales of dog food, supplies and toys) provided that the property is not a lot
in an approved or recorded subdivision plat or part of a map or plan filed prior to adoption of any
regulations controlling subdivisions in the A (Agricultural) Zone District. Bob Choate, Assistant
County Attorney, made this a matter of record.
Ea Diana Aungst, Department of Planning Services, presented a brief summary of the
proposal and entered the favorable recommendation of the Planning Commission into the
record as written. She reviewed referrals, the site location, and surrounding land uses, noting
the closest residence is 200 feet to the south of the south property line. She said 20 letters of
opposition were received expressing concerns regarding traffic, noise, property values, safety,
and compatibility. On Wednesday, June 30, 2103, the applicant held a neighborhood meeting,
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and this transcript is included in the planning packet. A screening plan has been submitted and
a lighting plan has been requested. The site is within the three mile referral areas of the Town of
Mead and the City of Longmont. Mead's Agriculture District permits indoor animal care boarding
and sales; the dogs will be housed inside at night. Ms. Aungst showed images of the site and
plan.
• Jennifer Petrik, Department of Public Works, provided a brief overview of the
transportation plans and requirements, stating access will be off County Road 32. Ms. Petrik
reviewed the Planning Commission's concerns regarding the road maintenance and discussion
with the maintenance supervisor, and she said there would be a maximum of 58 trips per day.
Ms. Petrik also reviewed road maintenance near the proposed entrance.
• Lauren Light, Department of Public Health and Environment, reviewed the water and
sewer provisions; there will be a septic system, approved through the Board of Public Health,
and kennels will be cleaned daily, with waste stored in sealed containers. She said staff
requests a revised Waste Handling Plan pertaining to the addition of veterinary care, as well as
a revised Dust Abatement Plan. She said that noise is restricted to the non -specified level,
which is 55 decibels from 7:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m., and to 50 decibels from 9:00 p.m. to 7:00 am;
the noise plan states that the dogs will be inside at night in a sound -insulated building.
l Jeff Childs, applicant, gave an overview of the proposed facilities layout and services. He
said he is going above and beyond noise requirements, his residence will be on the site as well,
and his plan is that the rest of the site remains agricultural. He showed a plan for the proposed
building and his personal residence/barn. He reviewed hours of operation and dust abatement.
He said the kennel will have 24 -hour supervision and good landscaping, any dog that
continuously barks will be put back inside the building and not welcomed back and the exercise
area will be very large, which also reduces barking. According to state rules for boarding, there
has to be one person for every 15 dogs. He said all waste will be immediately cleaned and
stored in sealed trash cans and the kennels will be cleaned daily. He discussed the route he
will recommend to his customers and insert in all marketing materials. He addressed
neighborhood concerns and described his outreach to neighbors, reporting that, on June 12,
2013, he hosted a neighborhood meeting and distributed a letter addressing mitigation to abate
their concerns. He said his business will service a need in the community. In response to
Commissioner Conway, Mr. Childs said approximately 20 neighbors attended the meeting and
he did attempt to adapt to their concerns. In response to Commissioner Rademacher,
Mr. Childs said that an isolation room where veterinary services can be provided in certain
situations is required, but it will not be an actual veterinary clinic. In response to Commissioner
Conway, he said his marketing plan covers Mead and Longmont and the 1-25 corridor. He
predicts most customers will come from within a 10 -mile radius. In response to Commissioner
Kirkmeyer, Mr. Childs indicated where the facility will be located on the property, with the kennel
to the northwest, and the residence to the northeast, as far from other residences as possible.
El Chair Garcia opened the floor to public comment prior; however, none was offered prior to
recessing for lunch at 12:00 p.m.
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(Clerk's note: the hearing is back on the record at 1:05 p.m.)
Chair Garcia opened the floor for public comment. Sahila Greff, surrounding property
owner, presented a PowerPoint presentation, marked Exhibit "D", which focused on several
issues, including recent decisions of the Board regarding other dog kennel operations. She
noted that the Town of Mead's referral requested an indoor facility only. Cherie Berthod
said she is 400 feet from the proposed kennel at a higher elevation; she would be looking
directly at the dog kennel and sound mitigation is unlikely to work. She also noted the economic
impact on her property value because proximity to a kennel is considered undesirable. In
response to Chair Garcia, Ms. Berthod confirmed that she did attend the neighborhood meeting;
however, she has not spoken directly with her neighbor because she does not believe a
commercial operation of this size is feasible under any circumstances. a Ms. Greff spoke
again; she said the plan has not been changed since the neighborhood meeting and stated her
opinion that, if approved, the dog kennel should be moved to a different spot on the site and
addressed the issue of increased traffic. El JoAnne Benedict presented a slide pertaining to a
Weld County Board of Commissioners Agreement with the Platte River Power Authority, dated
November 11, 1975, regarding CR 3 in which the County agreed to grant Platte River a
perpetual right to locate lines inside the County's right-of-way on CR 3. She showed a picture of
the poles next to the road and said if they have to be relocated the County would be
responsible. She noted the lack of traffic on this road, spoke about quality of life, and said the
road was referred to in the agreement as "farm access only." She questioned whether the traffic
generated would trigger a requirement to move these poles and wondered if approving this
application could trigger the approval of other commercial uses. She also noted Mr. Childs has
an option to buy contingent on getting the permit, but does not yet own this land. kEl Ms. Greff
reviewed alternative sites, including an existing dog kennel which is for sale. She reiterated that
she and her neighbors request denial of this application. She noted this is the first time Mr.
Childs has operated this type of business. She requested that, if approved, the business is
limited to 40 dogs, an additional noise ordinance is added to the Development Standards, the
site plan is altered, and that Mr. Childs be held responsible if the power poles need to be
moved. Chair Garcia noted that the two locations that she reviewed are close to municipalities
and Ms. Huff said they are zoned commercial and away from residences. In response to
Commissioner Kirkmeyer, Ms. Huff noted that the water lines would be costlier, but the dogs
could be placed further from the residences. Her presentation was entered into the record as
Exhibit "E" a Lynn Lewis read a letter from his mother, Corrine Lewis, entered into the record
as Exhibit "D", which addressed the development of her road since 1968, and expressed
concerns about traffic, water use, property values, noise, smell, garbage and dust. He asked
the Commissioners to consider denying this application because he was in the process of
building a new home on his property and will consider changing those plans if this kennel is
approved. Randy Johnson pointed out his residence on the map and addressed the issue
of traffic. He pointed out that the Longmont Humane Society only has a hundred animals, so
this is not a "mom and pop" operation. Ronald Grande spoke about current traffic
problems and his safety concerns turning onto County Road 3 from Highway 66. He noted
non -local people drive too fast on that road already and that 25 daycare dogs could result in up
to 50 vehicle trips per day. El Caroline Grande stated that her concerns are the number of
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dogs, and the safety of herself and her dogs when walking on the road, because people who
don't know the area speed on CR 3. Dan Borys stated that he believed the area would
remain agricultural when he bought this property. He said CR 3 is a dangerous road. He said
that residents ride horses in the area and it will deprive all the neighbors of their enjoyment of
their property. He said there are other, more appropriate, places for this business. He noted
trees don't provide mitigation because they take 15-20 years to grow and respectfully requested
denial or modification. Kermit Bohrer concurred with his neighbors. He said they all
moved to this area for the rural atmosphere. 0 Marilyn Uilk stated she moved there to ride
horseback on these roads and feel safe and additional traffic will make that more dangerous.
Mr. Childs addressed his neighbor's comments: there are no kennels on the outside of the
building, he will not market to retail customers outside of boarding pre-existing boarding
customers, the closet neighbor will be 600 feet away from the kennel and is also shielded by a
large barn, a realtor testified on his behalf at the Planning Commission in regard to property
values, the average customer will leave their dog for 5-7 days, the kennel will rarely be at
capacity, but during holidays he can accommodate customer need, the area is zoned
agricultural and the current landowner is in support because this is an agricultural type use, and
if the land does not sell to Mr. Childs he may sell it for additional residences, which would also
generate traffic and noise. Mr. Childs said he did a great deal of research before deciding on
this property. He also addressed the alternate properties presented as being for sale in public
comment and the location of the buildings on the site. He said currently the neighbor's barn
blocks a view of the kennel, there have been technological and other improvements in kennel
construction and management, and he will live on this property.
El Commissioner Conway asked why 100 dogs, and Mr. Childs said that there is a
substantial investment into this business and it will take a large number of dogs to pay up to 6
full-time employees and not operate on a shoe -string budget and to have a high quality facility.
He reiterated the business will rarely be at, or close, to capacity. In response to Chair Garcia,
Mr. Childs confirmed this is not a "mom-and-pop" operation and by law he must have one
employee per 15 dogs. In response to Commissioner Kirkmeyer, he said the dogs would be
inside for feeding. He said his access will be off CR 32, therefore it makes sense to build on the
north side. He also said that he could change the position of the kennel and the house, but then
the south neighbor would view the kennel instead of the house. Commissioner Kirkmeyer noted
the house to the west would then be viewing the house and not the kennel.
0 Commissioner Kirkmeyer said that she was leaning towards supporting this, but she would
like to see a meeting with the neighbors about altering the site plan according to their wishes.
Mr. Childs noted that he did have the neighborhood meeting and made his phone number and
address available for discussion. There was further discussion about the site plan. In response
to Chair Garcia, Ms. Aungst said that substantial changes may have to go back before the
Planning Commission, and Mr. Choate said that the site plan could be made a condition of
approval, and the applicant would then have the option to agree. Commissioner Kirkmeyer
requested a new Condition of Approval #1.J stating, "The property owner shall attempt to
address the requests of the adjacent property owners with regard to the location of the
residence," which was inserted by assent of the Board. He said putting the structure on the east
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of the parcel would require a water line costing $60,000. Commissioner Rademacher asked
about Condition of Approval #1.C, and Ms. Aungst said the Longmont Soil Conservation District
always asks for the highest and best use; this Condition of Approval is primarily for the
applicant's information. Commissioner Rademacher mentioned Condition of Approval #1.F, and
Ms. Aungst noted that it was an approximate number of parking spaces and could be changed.
Mr. Childs thought that number was high, especially since customers will not remain onsite long.
The number of required parking spaces was therefore reduced from twenty to ten, with one ADA
compliant, by assent of the Board. Commissioner Kirkmeyer suggested the Condition of
Approval simply designate submission of a parking plan to staff. Chair Garcia suggested
deletion of the last two sentences. Ms. Aungst noted the Code is not specific in regard to dog
kennel parking and she agreed the number could be reduced and recommended the Board
specify a number and delete the last sentence. Ei Commissioner Kirkmeyer suggested the
deletion of #1.A, as non -applicable and the route should be designated as CR 5. Ms. Petrik
suggested this be Development Standard #8, stating, "The preferred designated route is CR 5,
and the applicant will demonstrate diligent efforts to advertise this route." Both revisions were
done by assent of the Board. Commissioner Rademacher questioned Condition of Approval
#5.B, regarding open hole inspection, and Ms. Aungst said this is part of the building inspection
process. Commissioner Rademacher questioned the adequacy of the number of onsite
employees, and Ms. Aungst confirmed that includes anyone, including owner and family,
working onsite; therefore, Development Standard #4 was increased from six to seven full time
employees, by concurrence of the Board. Commissioner Rademacher suggested that
Development Standard #10 be amended to end after the word "site", and Development
Standard #5 was changed from building permit "may" replacing "shall" be required, and
Development Standard #25 "will" is replaced with "may," and the Board concurred.
Commissioner Kirkmeyer suggested a new Development Standard #25, stating, "Retail sales of
dog food and toys and grooming supplies shall be limited to customers of the boarding facility';
which was done by concurrence of the Board.
a� In response to Commissioner Garcia, Mr. Childs said he has reviewed and agrees to abide
by the Conditions of Approval and Development Standards, as amended.
Commissioner Kirkmeyer stated her perception that Mr. Childs has made an effort to be a
good neighbor and address concerns. She stated the Board is required to approve an
application with appropriate mitigation when possible. Commissioner Kirkmeyer said according
to science sound drops, as opposed to rising up an elevation, and with these changes the
sound should be within appropriate levels, even for the closest neighbor. Commissioner
Conway concurred. He also noted that the landowner was considering other potential
development on the parcel and said there is no perfect answer. He asked the participants to
dialogue, and he said the fact the applicant will also be a resident and neighbor makes a
difference and praised the applicant for having a meeting. Commissioner Rademacher
concurred; there could be worse uses on this property and the applicant has demonstrated good
faith. Commissioner Freeman also concurred. Commissioner Kirkmeyer said that the amount
of traffic does not trigger any improvements, but she said what was learned today about these
power lines would be considered for future land use cases in the area.
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Commissioner Rademacher moved to approve the request of Robert E. Ehrlich, LLC,
c/o Jeff Childs, for a Site Specific Development Plan and Use by Special Review Permit,
USR13-0024, for a Kennel (75 -dog boarding kennel and 25 doggie daycare for a maximum of
100 dogs) and any use permitted as a Use by Right, Accessory Use, or Use by Special Review
in the Commercial or Industrial Zone Districts (veterinary clinic, dog grooming, and retail sales of
dog food, supplies and toys) provided that the property is not a lot in an approved or recorded
subdivision plat or part of a map or plan filed prior to adoption of any regulations controlling
subdivisions in the A (Agricultural) Zone District, based on the recommendations of Planning
staff and the Planning Commission, with the Conditions of Approval and Development
Standards as amended and entered into the record. The motion was seconded by
Commissioner Freeman, and it carried unanimously. There being no further discussion, the
hearing was completed at 2:56 a.m.
This Certification was approved on the 5th day of August, 2013.
BOARD OF �Y COMMISSIONERS
WELD Fy7r�'"'' COL&DO
ATTEST:
Weld County Clerk to the Board
BY:
Deputy CI
Will F. Garcia, Chair
arbara Kirkmey= r
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