HomeMy WebLinkAbout20193965.tiffSUMMARY OF THE WELD COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING
Tuesday, November 19, 2019
A regular meeting of the Weld County Planning Commission was held in the Weld County Administration
Building, Hearing Room, 1150 O Street, Greeley, Colorado. This meeting was called to order by Chair,
Michael Wailes, at 12:30 pm.
Roll Call.
Present: Bruce Johnson, Elijah Hatch, Gene Stille, Lonnie Ford, Michael Wailes, Richard Beck, Skip
Holland, Tom Cope.
Also Present: Michael Hall, Angela Snyder, Maxwell Nader, and Tom Parko, Department of Planning
Services; Lauren Light, Department of Health; Evan Pinkham and Mike McRoberts, Public Works; Bob
Choate, County Attorney, and Kris Ranslem, Secretary.
Motion: Approve the November 5, 2019 Weld County Planning Commission minutes, Moved by Gene
Stille, Seconded by Tom Cope. Motion passed unanimously.
Tom Parko, Planning Director, presented the Planning Commission Hearing Dates for 2020.
Motion: Approve Consent Agenda for the 2020 Planning Commission Hearing Dates, Moved by Gene
Stille, Seconded by Bruce Johnson. Motion carried unanimously.
CASE NUMBER: USR19-0054
APPLICANT: WESTERN EQUIPMENT & TRUCK, INC., C/O SUNSHARE, LLC
PLANNER: MAXWELL NADER
REQUEST: A SITE -SPECIFIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN AND USE BY SPECIAL REVIEW
PERMIT FOR A MEDIUM SCALE SOLAR FACILITY (12MW) IN THE A
(AGRICULTURAL) ZONE DISTRICT.
LEGAL DESCRIPTION: LOTS A AND B REC EXEMPT RECX19-0140, PART W2NW4 SECTION 15, T4N,
R66W OF THE 6TH P.M., WELD COUNTY, COLORADO.
LOCATION: SOUTH OF AND ADJACENT TO CR 46; EAST OF AND ADJACENT TO CR 31.
Maxwell Nader, Planning Services, presented Case USR19-0054, reading the recommendation and
comments into the record. The Department of Planning Services recommends approval of this application
with the attached conditions of approval and development standards.
Commissioner Cope asked where the substation is in reference to this site. Mr. Nader said that the
substation is in the northwest corner of the property.
Evan Pinkham, Public Works, reported on the existing traffic, access to the site and drainage conditions for
the site. A Road Maintenance Agreement will be required.
Lauren Light, Environmental Health, reviewed the public water and sanitary sewer requirements, on -site
dust control, and the Waste Handling Plan.
Richard Miller, SunShare, LLC, 1151 Bennet Street, Denver, Colorado, stated that they are proposing a
medium scale solar facility of 12 MW (megawatts). The site is approximately 79 acres. Mr. Miller said that
this site will be phased with the initial installation of a 2MW followed by two additional phases of photovoltaic
power generation plants for a total of 12 megawatts. He added that 12 MW facility is enough to power 2280
single family residences.
Mr. Miller provided visual slides on the views of the surrounding properties from the site. He identified the
2 MW facility for Phase I, the 3 MW facility for Phase II, and the 7 MW facility for Phase III. He added that
the phased development will occur over the next three to five years.
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The Chair asked if there was anyone in the audience who wished to speak for or against this application.
No one wished to speak.
The Chair asked the applicant if they have read through the Development Standards and Conditions of
Approval and if they are in agreement with those. The applicant replied that they are in agreement.
Motion: Forward Case USR19-0054 to the Board of County Commissioners along with the Conditions of
Approval and Development Standards with the Planning Commission's recommendation of approval,
Moved by Bruce Johnson, Seconded by Tom Cope.
Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 8).
Yes: Bruce Johnson, Elijah Hatch, Gene Stille, Lonnie Ford, Michael Wailes, Richard Beck, Skip Holland,
Tom Cope.
CASE NUMBER: USR19-0058
APPLICANT: ORRLANDO LLC, C/O BUCKLEN SERVICES COMPANY
PLANNER: ANGELA SNYDER
REQUEST: A SITE SPECIFIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN AND USE BY SPECIAL REVIEW
PERMIT FOR OPEN MINING (SAND, GRAVEL, AND STONE) IN THE A
(AGRICULTURAL) ZONE DISTRICT.
LEGAL DESCRIPTION: PART W2SW4 SECTION 29, T6N, R66W OF THE 6TH P.M., WELD COUNTY,
COLORADO.
LOCATION: NORTH OF AND ADJACENT TO CR 64, EAST OF AND ADJACENT TO CR 27.
Angela Snyder, Planning Services, presented Case USR19-0058, reading the recommendation and
comments into the record. She stated that the proposed aggregate mining is anticipated to disturb
approximately 25 acres of the 62 -acre property. Unmined areas will be used for stockpiles, internal access,
waterways and offsets from existing structures.
Ms. Snyder noted that a letter from the Whitney Irrigation Company and a surrounding property with
interests in that company were received regarding the applicants proposal to realign the ditch and added
that both parties indicated that conversations between the applicants and the Whitney Irrigation Company
was occurring and requested that an agreement be in place as a condition of approval for this USR. The
Greeley Irrigation Company maintains an interest in the open ditch as well and indicated intentions to
connect with the applicant but did not specify any concerns in their response. Additionally, the Storms Lake
Drainage District returned a response yesterday; therefore, it was not included in the staff report. Ms.
Snyder added that they applicant has proposed either crossing over the open ditch or over a buried line of
the ditch to get between the mine and the stockpiling area and there is some concern with the buried line
being fragile so they would like to have an agreement in place with the applicant as well.
Ms. Snyder noted that three responses were received from surrounding property owners. One neighbor
was associated with the Whitney Irrigation Company, and one phone call and one email were received from
a representative from the Bracewell HOA which indicated a desire for adequate berming of the site and
appropriate nuisance abatement as well as consideration that the danger of the hazardous curve on 83rd
Avenue not be increased as a result of this project.
The Department of Planning Services recommends approval of this application with the attached conditions
of approval and development standards.
Mike McRoberts, Public Works, reported on the existing traffic, access to the site and drainage conditions
for the site. Mr. McRoberts requested to remove Condition of Approval 1.E as this item has been completed.
Lauren Light, Environmental Health, reviewed the public water and sanitary sewer requirements, on -site
dust control, and the Waste Handling Plan.
Jared Dains 1490 West 116th Avenue, Westminster, Colorado, stated that he is representing Bucklen
Services Company as the applicant. He stated that this property was initially permitted under an existing
USR obtained by Aggregate Industries to mine this property; however, the site was inactive for a long
amount of time. The applicant requested that the landowner release the USR to begin a new permit for
mining of aggregate. Mr. Dains said that it is a heavy agricultural area and noted the two ditches going
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through the site. He said that Bucklen is not proposing to realign Storms Lake Drainage in any way, but
will have 200 foot setbacks from it and will not impact that drainage. He noted that the Whitney Siphon will
need to be realigned as it is the underground pipeline that goes through the site and as they are mining
they will disrupt that. He added that the applicants are currently working on an agreement with the Whitney
Irrigation Company.
Commissioner Holland asked how large the siphon is. Mr. Dains replied that it is an 18 -inch pipeline. Mr.
Holland asked what kind of material the pipeline is. Mr. Dains said that the discussions with the Whitney
Irrigation Company are still ongoing but he believes it will be a reinforced concrete pipeline and will be
rerouted.
Commissioner Johnson asked if augmentation will be required. Mr. Dains said that as long as they
discharge the water without use there is no requirement for augmentation. If they do make use of it, for
instance dust control purposes around the site, then they will need a substitute water supply plan to replace
those depletions.
Commissioner Stille asked how long the mining will occur and what the use of the sealed pond will be. Mr.
Dains said that he believes Bucklen is anticipating this would be a 10 -year mining operation and after mining
is completed there will be a sealed gravel pit reservoir. He added that the ultimate intent is to operate this
as part of a water supply system with deliveries from New Cache or Whitney system delivered to the
reservoir with releases to the Poudre River.
The Chair asked if there was anyone in the audience who wished to speak for or against this application.
Randall Feuerstein, 4050 West CR 2, Berthoud, Colorado and Larry Feuerstein, 13621 CR 64. Randall
Feuerstein stated that he and his brother, Larry Feuerstein, own property downstream that is supplied
irrigation water through this siphon pipeline. He said that they have met with Bucklen and have requested
a written agreement to mitigate their concerns. He added that they have requested to install manholes
where the corners will be to clean out the relocated pipeline. He said that they are working toward an
agreement, but feels an approval would be premature at this time until there is an agreement on how the
relocated line will provide the same amount of water that they have received historically.
Randall Feuerstein noted that it is not only the Whitney Irrigation Company but the landowners that are
affected because this particular siphon is to be maintained and operated by the downstream landowners
and not the Whitney Irrigation Company.
Commissioner Holland asked if the siphon cross the county road. Randall Feuerstein replied that it does
go under County Road 64. Mr. Holland asked Staff if they are aware that the siphon goes under the county
road. Mr. McRoberts said that he has not reviewed that.
Commissioner Beck asked if there is an engineered drawing of the proposed pipeline realignment. The
Feuersteins stated that they are not aware of or have seen any drawings.
Commissioner Stille asked the Feuersteins if they would be satisfied with the USR if a condition of approval
was added. Randall Feuersteins replied yes and added that hopefully it will work as it is designed. Mr. Still
asked Staff where this condition of approval is in the resolution.
Mr. Snyder referred to Condition of Approval 1.B which reads "The applicants shall address the
requirements of the Whitney Irrigation Company, as stated in the referral response dated October 14, 2019.
Written evidence of such shall be submitted to the Weld County Department of Planning Services".
Randy Feuerstein said that the Whitney Irrigation individual shareholders are responsible for the
maintenance and operation of the siphon line so they would like to have the agreement not only cover the
Whitney Irrigation Company but also the shareholders downstream.
Bob Choate, County Attorney, said that laterals are ran by users and will work with Ms. Snyder to come up
with language to address that.
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Chrys Hinze, Counsel for the Storms Lake Drainage District, 355 Eastman Park Drive, stated the applicant
did contact them last year as they were originally proposing to cross the open ditch. She added that they
do have a drainage easement through the open ditch and is shared with the Greeley Irrigation Company.
Ms. Hinze said that there are still some concerns that Storms Lake Drainage District has based on the
amendment that they found out about recently.
Ms. Hinze said that Storms Lake Drainage District has a drainage tile north and west of this property and
the underground clay tile line was installed in 1910 and is pretty fragile and runs under 83rd Avenue. It is
still underground at the proposed crossing on the north point of the property. She said that they are
concerned with the proposed expansion of the road that there could be some problems with the tile line.
Therefore, the applicant needs to engage with the Storms Lake Drainage District on a crossing agreement
that will address their concerns. Additionally, Storms Lake Drainage District operates and maintains the
ditch across this parcel and also wants to ensure that there won't be any interference with the ditch road.
Commissioner Wailes referred to the open ditch and asked if it is a drainage ditch. Ms. Hinze replied yes
and added that it is a seep ditch that collects decreed water rights in favor of Greeley Irrigation Company.
Commissioner Cope asked how large that tile line is. Ms. Hinze stated that it is a 24 -inch tile line.
Ms. Hinze requested that the applicant enter into an agreement with the Storms Lake Drainage District.
Star Waring, attorney for Greeley Irrigation Company, 2060 Broadway, Boulder, Colorado, said that the
applicants have coordinated with the Greeley Irrigation Company and they were generally satisfied with
their proposal. However, with this new development with the proposed crossing over the drain tile
potentially affects the amount of water flowing into the supply ditch would be of concern. Therefore, they
would want to participate in whatever agreement is reached between the Storms Lake Drainage District
and the applicant so they can be satisfied that there will not be an impact.
Commissioner Holland asked the attorneys if they feel it is possible to reach an agreement with the
applicant. The attorneys agreed that it is possible.
Kevin Schumacher, 12710 Shiloh Road, stated that he is the President of Bracewell HOA and is
representing the 10 property owners of that subdivision. He added that they are concerned with the noise
and visual concerns. The noise is proposed under the industrial noise standard which is 80 decibels
compared to the residential/commercial noise standard of 55 decibels. His home is directly across the road
from the proposed site and they are asking to take noise control into consideration. The surrounding mining
operations in the area have berms to help with noise and visual obstruction. Mr. Schumacher said that they
would like to see a landscaping buffer required and create some kind of landscape berming.
Mr. Schumacher said that the Bracewell turn going eastbound there has been frequent accidents and
fatalities and they fear that if there is continued activity on that corner creating additional distractions it will
cause further accidents, so a large berm would hopefully defer that as well.
Mr. Dains said that they have met with the users of the siphon to discuss the proposed realignment and
engineering for that has not been prepared yet as the realignment in question is still up in the air.
Mr. Dains said that they contacted Storms Lake Drainage District and the Greeley Irrigation Company to
discuss the use the Storms Lake ditch. They were seeking a crossing agreement to install a new crossing
over the ditch as well as the ability to discharge the dewatering water into the ditch which would then flow
down to the Poudre River. He added that there were some additional meetings and agreements were
drafts, but ultimately the operator and landowner were not able to come into agreement and they are still
attempting to work out an arrangement to use the ditch as a drainage. If they can't come into an agreement
the water will be hauled to the Bucklen pit and discharge it to their existing facility. There is an existing
landowner crossing over the drain tile and rather than construct a new crossing Bucklen is proposing to use
that existing crossing. There is some question of the strength of it, but Mr. Dains said he is informed by
Bucklen that the ditch company does drive an excavator across that to clear out the ditch prior to the
irrigation season. He added that Bucklen is willing to reinforce that crossing as needed, but it does currently
serve the purpose to allow heavy traffic to cross the ditch.
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Commission Cope asked what the depth of groundwater is at that location. Mr. Dains replied that it is
roughly five (5) feet. Mr. Cope asked what the final depth of the pit will be. Mr. Dains said that it will be 20
to 30 feet deep. Mr. Cope asked if he would know approximately how much water would be trucked. Mr.
Dains said it would be a sizeable amount which is why Storms Lake Drainage District is their first priority.
Mr. Cope said that he is concerned with the trucking of the water if an agreement can't be made.
The Chair asked the applicant if he had met with the Bracewell homeowners. Mr. Dains said that this
concern was recently raised so they have not met with Bracewell, however, Bucklen is planning to install
screening berms around the site. The initial mining will be on the surface and the noise will be the greatest
and as they get into the pit it will become less. He added that they are in compliance with the industrial
noise regulations. The Chair asked if a noise study was completed. Mr. Dains said that they evaluated the
typical decibel level with the equipment they plan to use and the location on the site relative to where the
nearest home is and found that at that distance they are within the industrial noise regulations.
Commissioner Cope referred to the siphon and said that he is concerned that this is a bigger challenge that
what they think. He asked the applicant if they are confident that they can run that siphon with the same
equivalent flows that are presently there. Mr. Dains said that they are confident that they can get an
engineering design that will tap into where it is existing and continue to carry the same amount of flow that
it has historically.
Commissioner Cope asked what precautions will be taken to protect the existing clay pipe with the trucks
going over it. Mr. Dains said that Bucklen is willing to reinforce the crossing throat base. Initially Bucklen
proposed to install a new reinforced concrete crossing over the Storms Lake Drainage Ditch that would
have handled the increased truck traffic but ultimately they didn't come into agreement. Mr. Cope
recommended staying away from clay pipe.
The Chair asked Staff for their changes to the resolution. Commissioner Beck said in his opinion the
applicant is not far enough along to give them substantial answers on things or indications that everything
is happening according to plan and that everything is going to get done. He is reluctant to approve this
without having more of these issues settled and appearing to have the applicant to have a grasp of what is
happening and when. The Chair said that Mr. Beck could make a motion to continue this case if that is his
desire. Mr. Beck said that he doesn't want to make that motion but just wanted to express his thoughts on
this project.
Ms. Snyder recommended amending Condition of Approval 1.B "The applicants shall address the
requirements of the Whitney Irrigation Company shareholders who are the users of the downstream siphon
lateral, as stated in the referral response dated October 14, 2019. Written evidence of such shall be
submitted to the Weld County Department of Planning Services".
Motion: Amend Condition of Approval 1.B, as stated by Staff, Moved by Tom Cope, Seconded by Bruce
Johnson. Motion carried unanimously.
Ms. Snyder recommended adding a new Condition of Approval 1.C to read "The applicants shall address
the requirements of the Storms Lake Drainage District, as stated in the referral response dated November
18, 2019. Written evidence of such shall be submitted to the Weld County Department of Planning
Services".
Ms. Snyder recommended adding a new Condition of Approval 1.D to read "The applicants shall address
the requirements of the Greeley Irrigation Company. Written evidence of such shall be submitted to the
Weld County Department of Planning Services".
Motion: Add Conditions of Approval 1.C and 1.D, as stated by Staff, Moved by Gene Stille, Seconded by
Bruce Johnson.
Commissioner Cope asked if it should be tied down more and asked if it should read that an approved
agreement between the two parties should be approved or executed. Mr. Choate said that the applicant
has presented an alternative to the use of the drainage ditch which would be trucking offsite. He added
that you can add that there needs to be an agreement if you don't agree with the trucking offsite.
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Mr. Cope said that he is concerned with the volume of water to be trucked offsite and the wear and tear of
the roads. It would have an impact to truck all of the water from this site to their existing discharge point.
Mr. Choate said that if you require an agreement, then you need to amend the motion. Commissioner
Johnson said that he is concerned that if we require that they have to come to an agreement with Storms
Lake Drainage District and they find an alternative of discharging that water, then we have restricted their
ability to find an alternative. He is strongly against the impact of trucking the water offsite. Mr. Cope agreed
and said that we can add a note that specifically states that any trucking of the water needs to be approved
through the County Commissioners. Commissioner Hatch asked if we remove the trucking option is that
taking away some of their negotiating power. Commissioner Stille said that we should leave the motion as
it stands.
The Chair called for the vote. Motion carried unanimously.
The Chair referred to Staffs request to remove Condition of Approval 1.E. Mr. McRoberts added that the
applicant has submitted a drainage narrative with a qualifying exception and it has been reviewed and
approved.
Motion: Delete Condition of Approval 1.E, as recommended by Staff, Moved by Bruce Johnson,
Seconded by Elijah Hatch. Motion carried unanimously.
Mr. McRoberts said that in the application there was 34 truck round trips per day and 10 passenger vehicles
and there was no mention of trucking water offsite. Therefore, if there was going to be a requirement for a
substantial number of additional trucks he would need to know so if he needs to upgrade the Road
Maintenance Agreement to an Improvements Agreement with triggers or something of that nature. Ms.
Snyder said that if this gets approved and the applicant wants to do some additional trucking, then they
would have to do an amendment for the increase in trucking.
Commissioner Johnson asked for discussion on the noise concern. The Chair said that there is a noise
study in the application and it is listed under the industrial noise limit. He asked if the Planning
Commissioners want to change it. Ms. Light said the noise limit for industrial is 80 decibels during day and
75 decibels during nighttime. The consensus of the Planning Commission was not to change the noise
limit.
The Chair asked the applicant if they have read through the amended Development Standards and
Conditions of Approval and if they are in agreement with those. The applicant replied that they are in
agreement.
Motion: Forward Case USR19-0058 to the Board of County Commissioners along with the amended
Conditions of Approval and Development Standards with the Planning Commission's recommendation of
approval, Moved by Gene Stille, Seconded by Elijah Hatch.
Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 8).
Yes: Bruce Johnson, Elijah Hatch, Gene Stille, Lonnie Ford, Michael Wailes, Richard Beck, Skip Holland,
Tom Cope.
Commissioner Stille commented that he is very familiar with this location and in his opinion the highest and
best use of this property is mining. He added that 83' Avenue and O Street need to be fixed for the traffic.
Commissioner Cope said that Staff needs to be very well aware that once everything gets resolved and
gets approved that everything gets followed very closely as there are some items up in the air. He said that
as long as permit and agreements are followed correctly, this is a very viable project and won't impact the
area very much.
Commissioner Beck agreed with Mr. Cope and said that the applicant needs to be aware that they will have
to make a lot more contact and more head way with the problems they are facing to get this done
satisfactorily.
Commissioner Holland had reservations that there is a lot of work that should be done and it places a huge
burden on Staff to make sure that it is done.
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The Chair called a recess at 2:37 pm and reconvened the hearing at 2:50 pm.
CASE NUMBER: USR19-0049
APPLICANT: NATHAN TROWBRIDGE AND GROVES FARM, LLC
PLANNER: MICHAEL HALL
REQUEST: A SITE SPECIFIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN AND USE BY SPECIAL REVIEW
PERMIT FOR ANY USE PERMITTED AS A USE BY RIGHT, AN ACCESSORY
USE, OR A USE BY SPECIAL REVIEW IN THE COMMERCIAL OR INDUSTRIAL
ZONE DISTRICTS, (OUTDOOR STORAGE OF RVS, ATVS, BOATS, CAMPERS,
TRAILERS, AND VEHICLES) PROVIDED THAT THE PROPERTY IS NOT A LOT
IN AN APPROVED OR RECORDED SUBDIVISION PLAT OR LOTS PARTS OF
A MAP OR PLAN FILED PRIOR TO ADOPTION OF ANY REGULATIONS
CONTROLLING SUBDIVISIONS IN THE A (AGRICULTURAL) ZONE DISTRICT.
LEGAL DESCRIPTION: AMENDED SUBDIVISION EXEMPTION 1AMSUBX19-08-1128; BEING A PART
OF THE S2 OF SECTION 34, T7N, R65W OF THE 6TH P.M., WELD COUNTY,
COLORADO.
LOCATION: NORTH OF AND ADJACENT TO CR 74; APPROXIMATELY 0.44 MILES EAST
OF CR 43.
Gene Stille and Bruce Johnson noted that they know the applicants but feel they can be impartial in this
case. The Planning Commission had no concerns.
Michael Hall, Planning Services, presented Case USR19-0049, reading the recommendation and
comments into the record. The Department of Planning Services recommends denial of this application
based on incompatibility of the proposed business with the comprehensive plan and surrounding property
owners letters. Mr. Hall noted that there were three (3) letters in opposition to the storage facility received
from surrounding property owners outlining concerns decreasing property value, visual nuisances,
possibility of the site becoming a junkyard, not being properly maintained, request for screening and blowing
trash. Should the Planning Commission recommend approval, Staff recommended that the conditions of
approval and development standards in the staff report be included.
Evan Pinkham, Public Works, reported on the existing traffic, access to the site and drainage conditions for
the site.
Lauren Light, Environmental Health, reviewed the public water and sanitary sewer requirements, on -site
dust control, and the Waste Handling Plan.
Nathan Trowbridge, 21543 CR 74, Eaton, Colorado, understands the concerns that this facility will be taking
agricultural land out of production, however, there is currently no irrigation water on this property and it has
a dry up covenant in place. He added that it is grass pasture and is not eligible for CRP.
Mr. Trowbridge stated that the land that they are purchasing provides a buffer from other landowners in the
area. He said that the storage facility provides a means to financially own and maintain the land. In regard
to the surrounding property owner letters, two of which are absentee with one being a farm and the other
is a rental property. The third property owner is a farmer. All three mention the concern of the trash and
lack of upkeep. Mr. Trowbridge said that he believes their concern is in regard to the rental property that is
east of their residence. He added that he has also made complaints as well to the owner of the property
with regard to the trash.
Mr. Trowbridge believes it is a good business plan that benefits Weld County. He added that it is close to
Eaton and the property is not an active farm or being used for agricultural purposes. The Weld County
Code prefers to have a business likes this off of a main roadway rather than driving through farmland or
less maintained roads, per Section 22-2-100.
Commissioner Cope referred to the property east of his site and asked if it is owned by the Groves Farm,
LLC. Mr. Trowbridge said that it is owned by the Groves Farm, LLC and that the renters who allowed the
property to get that bad have since moved out and the property is looking better.
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Commissioner Wailes said that there were some changes to the County Code that this type of facility is no
longer eligible as a Use by Special Review. Mr. Hall said that Ordinance 2019-02 was effective July 25,
2019 and removes this category allowing a commercial or industrial use as long as it was outside a
subdivision to be an allowed use and considered as a USR. Mr. Hall stated that this code change is not
the reason for this denial since this application was received prior to July 25, 2019.
The Chair asked if there was anyone in the audience who wished to speak for or against this application.
No one wished to speak.
The Chair asked the applicant if they have read through the Development Standards and Conditions of
Approval and if they are in agreement with those. The applicant replied that they are in agreement.
Commissioner Beck asked to hear some reasons why they shouldn't approve this case. Commissioner
Johnson said that he has been talking about the nonagricultural activities in the County for a long time. He
added that it is a transition situation with less impact to some other things that they have approved before.
He is willing to allow this to fall under the previous code with the other items that have less impact.
Motion: Forward Case USR19-0049 to the Board of County Commissioners along with the Conditions of
Approval and Development Standards with the Planning Commission's recommendation of approval,
Moved by Bruce Johnson, Seconded by Richard Beck.
Commissioner Stille referred to Section 23-2-220.A1 and Section 23-2-220.A.3 and said that he is familiar
with this property and doesn't recall that this land was farmed. He added that the highest and best use of
the property along with the way the Trowbidges take care of their properties, he believes the facility is
compatible with the surrounding area.
Commissioner Wailes said that he is not a fan of the code changes that took place in July with removing
this use from the agricultural zone. In this particular instance, this land doesn't have any water on it and to
try and preserve it as agricultural land becomes very difficult. He referred to Section 22-2-20.A.2 Policy 1.2
to support the development of creative policies for landowners to voluntarily conserve agricultural land and
added that the fact that they are not going to use all of the land for this storage facility and use some of it
for possible agricultural use, this provides them the income to be able to do that. He believes that is where
the code changes were short sided because they looked at some specific geographically based instances
and in doing so they jeopardized the smaller farms and small tracts of land that people would like to keep
agricultural as best they can.
Commissioner Cope referred to Section 22-2-20.G.2 A.Policy 7.2 regarding conversion of agricultural land
and added if it is not productive agricultural land for quite a while, in his opinion there really isn't a
conversion. He added that now you are going to put something on the property that will control the weeds
and other things that you are fighting and dealing with. In regard to Section 23-2-220.A.3 the uses will not
be compatible with the existing surrounding land uses, Mr. Cope said that he doesn't think these types of
storage units are a very high impact and there are three properties in disagreement with allowing this use
of which two of them have already gone to their own kind of business by renting out the place and no longer
living there themselves. He said that because they have made the choice to make it almost a business on
their end they are trying to preclude these people to make their land a business. Mr. Cope stated that he
believes this is compatible with the area.
The Chair called for the vote.
Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 8).
Yes: Bruce Johnson, Elijah Hatch, Gene Stille, Lonnie Ford, Michael Wailes, Richard Beck, Skip Holland,
Tom Cope.
Commissioner Wailes stated that he believes the applicant has shown that they are able to meet the seven
items in Section 23-2-220.A and included his previous comments referring to Section 22-2-20.A.2 Policy
1.2.
The Chair asked the public if there were other items of business that they would like to discuss. No one
wished to speak.
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The Chair asked the Planning Commission members if there was any new business to discuss. No one
wished to speak.
Meeting adjourned at 3:26 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Kristine Ranslem
Secretary
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