RIPON PLANNING COMMISSION MINUTES
RIPON CITY HALL
TUESDAY MARCH 13, 2007 - 7:00 P.M.
Pledge of Allegiance: Commissioners pledged allegiance to the flag
Roll Call: Commissioners Garry Krebbs, Donald Berg, Stan Hall, Debra Van Essen,
Mark Winchell, and James
Others Present: Director Ken Zuidervaart, Deputy City Attorney Stacy Guthmiller,
Andy Varian, Engineering, Loraine Goff, Bernice Finley, Jeff Cecil, Emily
Hester, Gaynl Trotter, Britny Miller, Ginger Eskes
Minutes: Approval of the minutes of the regular Ripon Planning Commission
meeting of February 13, 2007
MOTION: MOVED/SECONDED (VAN ESSEN/WINCHELL) AND CARRIED BY ALL TO APPROVE THE
MINUTES OF THE FEBRUARY 13, 2007 PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING
Public Discussion: Chairman Lewis explained the public discussion process and
asked if anyone would like to speak.
Gaynl Trotter (428 Orange Ave.) voiced concern about the City’s old historical
homes. She said that she has recently seen one be torn down when they had said
they were going to save it. Ms. Trotter said that she hoped another committee
could be formed to create a plan to preserve our historical area.
1.0 PUBLIC HEARING
Chairman Lewis explained the Public Hearing process.
Director Zuidervaart requested that General Planning item 2.1 be heard after
Public Hearing item 1.1 so that the applicant does not have to wait through the
Zoning Text Amendments. Chairman Lewis approved the change of the agenda order
1.1 CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT (UP07-01) for Paul Anema - 350 E. Milgeo, This is a
request to construct a 690 square foot detached garage with storage and vary the
setback to allow it to be placed within three feet of the rear property line
located on a 11,383 square foot parcel in the R1 district. This project is
Categorical Exempt from CEQA.
Director Zuidervaart introduced the staff report into the record along with the
findings and conditions of approval. Director Zuidervaart said that the
applicant wishes to construct a 690 square foot detached garage with storage at
his residence in the R1 zone. Director Zuidervaart explained that the residence
does not currently have a garage and the reason for the Use Permit is because he
wishes to place the garage within three (3) feet of the rear property line.
Director Zuidervaart said that the applicant complies with all other
requirements.
Commissioner Van Essen asked if the detached garage would have rear windows and
Director Zuidervaart referred this question to the applicant.
Commissioner Hall asked what the dimensions of the structure was and Director
Zuidervaart said that according to the plans it is 31 x 23.
Commissioner Winchell asked if the storage area would be partitioned off from
the garage and Director Zuidervaart replied yes and that there are currently no
residential units behind this.
Commissioner Hall asked if this would be constructed on one parcel and Director
Zuidervaart replied yes.
PUBLIC HEARING OPENED
Applicant Doris Anema (350 E. Milgeo) said that the driveway width is
twenty-three feet. Mrs. Anema said that she would like to use the shed as a
planting shed and storage area for her garden stuff.
Commissioner Krebbs asked if the shed was a permanent part of the garage and
Mrs. Anema replied yes and said that there were no windows in the back.
Commissioner Van Essen asked if this was for commercial use and Mrs. Anema
replied no, that it was intended just for hobbies.
Commissioner Hall asked about the pitch of the garage and what direction it
would flow and Mrs. Anema replied that it would go toward the road.
Commissioner Krebbs asked if it would have the same exterior elements as the
existing house and Mrs. Anema replied that the front would match the character.
Commission Winchell said that he drove by the residence and can see why a
detached garage was needed.
Commission Hall asked what the minimum allowable distance was from the main
house and Director Zuidervaart replied six (6) feet.
Proponents: None
Opponents: None
PUBLIC HEARING CLOSED
MOTION: MOVED/SECONDED (BERG/HALL) AND CARRIED BY A 5-0 VOTE TO APPROVE
CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT (UP07-01) FOR PAUL ANEMA BASED ON THE FINDINGS AND
SUBJECT TO THE CONDITIONS OF THE STAFF REPORT
2.1 MAJOR SITE REVIEW (SR07-01) FOR VILLAGE INVESTMENT c/o ARKTEGRAF, INC. Jeff
Cecil – 1551 W. Main Street This is a request to construct a 7,0000 square foot
Kragen Auto Parts with off-street parking located on a .72 acre parcel in the C2
(Community Commercial) district. This project is Categorical Exempt from CEQA
(Sec. 15300).
Director Zuidervaart introduced the Staff Report into the record along with the
findings and conditions of approval. Director Zuidervaart said that the project
is an automotive parts retail business and the application is for a site plan
permit to construct a 7,000 square foot Kragen auto Parts with off-street
parking and landscaping. Director Zuidervaart said that all frontage
improvements already exist along the street for this lot and access will be from
two driveway approaches, one on Roxie and the other on W. Main Street which is
shared with Walgreens. Director Zuidervaart said that additional off-street
parking and improvements will be done to City standards. Director Zuidervaart
said that although no bike stalls have been indicated on the plans, the
applicant will be required to provide them per City Standards. Director
Zuidervaart said that the applicant has indicated that 26% of the site will be
landscaped which exceeds our minimum requirements of 10%.
Director Zuidervaart said that exterior of the building appears to be stucco
with columns and wainscoting. The colors will be earth tones.
Director Zuidervaart said that the project was taken to the project review
committee and all comments have been incorporated into the staff report where
appropriate.
Director Zuidervaart said that the project is Categorical Exempt from CEQA and
staff recommends approval subject to the conditions of the staff report.
Commissioner Hall asked if staff was concerned that the back driveway would
become a thru fare for Jack Tone and Director Zuidervaart said that if in the
future this becomes and issue then the city can require the developer to install
speed bumps.
Commissioner Van Essen asked if cars would be using this entrance also and
Director Zuidervaart replied that it is not just for delivery trucks and that
cars may opt to use this exit if they are going into that neighborhood.
Commissioner Winchell asked if we couldn’t get the Kragen’s to be more
attractive and Director Zuidervaart explained that the applicant is trying to
create a common design similar to Walgreens and that there is no existing design
criteria for this site.
Chairman Lewis said that creating a design theme for an area was a good idea.
Applicant: Jeff Cecil (1800 27th Street, Sacramento, CA) approached the podium
to answer any questions.
Commissioner Krebbs said that his biggest concern was that we were getting a
corporate design and that he knows that the color on the submitted drawing is
not a true color as it is computer generated.
Mr. Cecil replied that the true color is more of a light tan and they wanted to
stay consistent with Walgreens.
Commissioner Krebbs said that it appears that it was designed to blend in with
the Walgreens and Mr. Cecil replied that this is correct.
Commissioner Krebbs said that he likes the landscaping being done around the
site.
Chairman Lewis asked if Mr. Cecil would be running the facility and Mr. Cecil
replied no, that he was the architect.
Chairman Lewis asked if Mr. Cecil was agreeable to all the conditions of the
staff report and Mr. Cecil replied yes, that they are satisfied with the
conditions.
Commissioner Krebbs asked how many employees the store would have and Mr. Cecil
replied that there would be approximately four employees per shift, with three
shifts per day and the hours would be either 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. or 9:00 p.m.
` Commissioner Berg asked if this was a franchise or a corporation and Mr. Cecil
replied that it was a Corporation.
Commissioner Winchell asked if this was a standard size Kragen and Mr. Cecil
replied that a standard Kragen is usually six or seven thousand square feet.
Commissioner Berg asked if there are any CC&R’s or rules with auto parts store
that would not allow people to be working on their cars in the parking lots and
Mr. Cecil said that it is an auto parts store, they do not work on cars there
and they try to deter this.
Commissioner Hall asked if there would be an oil recycle collection facility on
site and Director Zuidervaart replied yes, that there would be a container
located inside at the rear of the store and a truck would come and pick it up.
Commission Krebbs explained that this is now a requirement to have this
facility.
Commissioner Berg asked if the Planning Commission could require that no one
works on their cars in the parking lot.
Attorney Guthmiller said that you have to see what is in the zone and that she
has not seen anything in the code regarding this.
Commissioner Krebbs said that he has not seen anyone working on their cars in
front of an auto parts store other then maybe replacing their windshield wipers
or changing their battery. He has not seen anyone changing out an alternator or
anything like that.
Director Zuidervaart said that C2 (community commercial) talks about auto repair
shops but this is retail sales.
Attorney Guthmiller said that if there was an issue, someone could call the
police but that we can’t burden Kragen with this because it would not be the
employees that would be working on the vehicles rather customers.
MOTION: MOVED/SECONDED (VAN ESSEN/HALL) AND CARRIED BY A 5-0 VOTE TO APPROVE
MAJOR SITE REVIEW (SR07-01) FOR ARKTEGRAF INC. BASED ON THE FINDINGS AND SUBJECT
TO THE CONDITIONS OF THE STAFF REPORT
Chairman Lewis said that the Commission would now go back to the remaining
public hearing items.
1.2 ZONING TEXT AMENDMENT (TAZ07-01) for City of Ripon a public hearing on a
request to consider an amendment to Chapter 16.140 Dimension Regulations; 16.152
Fencing and Screening and Table 16.16.3 as it relates to lot coverage percentage
for covered patios, covered porches, shade structures and small storage sheds. A
Negative Declaration (PEA07-07) is recommended for this project.
Director Zuidervaart introduced the Staff Report into the record along with the
findings. Director Zuidervaart said that over the course of twelve months, staff
has received many inquiries into the detached accessory structure regulations.
Director Zuidervaart said that a workshop was previously held between City
Council and Planning Commissioners and he then displayed the presentation that
was presented at the time of the workshop. Director Zuidervaart said that
changes to 16.140 were made because it was difficult to follow and so the
revision breaks things into different categories and definitions.
Commissioner Lewis asked if a resident wants an exception could they apply for a
use permit and Director Zuidervaart explained that it is only what we specify in
the code. If they want to deviate from the code, then they would need to apply
for a variance. Director Zuidervaart then said that a variance would also come
before the Planning Commission for approval too. Director Zuidervaart then gave
an example of a property that may wish to have their fence higher then the
allowed 6’ in their zone but because the property rears to an overpass they may
be able to get a variance because their property has something unusual that
their neighbors don’t have.
Director Zuidervaart then continued to read through the slides.
Commissioner Krebbs referring to the height limitations for an attached shade
structure asked if the shade structure could be the same height as the house and
Director Zuidervaart replied yes. Commissioner Krebbs asked if this was measured
from the peak of the roof and Director Zuidervaart replied that if the builder
wanted to do an attached patio and wants to match the roof line, they could.
Director Zuidervaart explained that these regulations also apply to new
construction and someone may want to incorporate a shade structure into the
house.
Commissioner Krebbs said that we currently have problems with big motor home
covers and Director Zuidervaart replied that there is a section in the code that
addresses these. Director Zuidervaart said that RV covers are defined as having
no enclosed walls and having a footprint no larger then 500 square feet. These
are also not permitted in the rear yard. They must be placed behind the front
setback and can be no higher than fourteen feet as specified in the code. These
also count against the maximum lot coverage.
Director Zuidervaart then said that Chapter 16.140.070 deals with swimming pool
setbacks where they are allowed to be placed with three feet of the rear
property line, three feet of the side property line and five feet to any
structural supports or structure. Director Zuidervaart said that accessory
mechanical equipment for pools, spa or other similar structures shall not have a
minimum setback but can be placed no closer then ten feet from any dwelling on
an adjacent property.
Director Zuidervaart then said that the next section for review was Chapter
16.152 which refers to Fencing and Screening. Director Zuidervaart then reviewed
the slide and indicated where the modifications were made.
Director Zuidervaart said that the Commission could recommend that the City
Council approve the changes or could recommend additional changes.
Commissioner Berg asked if a resident needed a permit for a fence and Director
Zuidervaart replied that if it was a wooden fence that was six feet or lower, a
permit was not required but if the fence was of stucco, it would require a
permit because engineering would come into play.
Commissioner Hall said that at the workshop there was a discussion on allowing a
one (1) foot lattice on top of a six foot fence and that he did not see this
included. Director Zuidervaart replied that there had been discussion but that
there was not consensus on this and so it was left out but that the Commission
could chose to add it if they so desired.
Commissioner Krebbs said that he does not want to see this allowed for two
reasons: the first reason is because the fences would not be uniform and the
second reason is because people will add them on themselves and within ten years
they will be tilting and not look pleasant.
Commissioner Berg said that he is also opposed to this being added.
Commissioner Winchell said that this would increase the need for maintenance of
a fence and agrees with Commissioners Krebbs and Berg. Commissioner Van Essen
said that she was also in agreement.
Chairman Lewis said that he thinks the lattice is a good idea as some people do
not want to go in their backyards and see their neighbors, they would prefer to
have some privacy in their yards.
Attorney Guthmiller suggested that the Commission could make a motion to
determine if it should be added and after a discussion it was decided that it
would probably not pass.
Chairman Lewis said that there was a grammatical error in Chapter 16.140.050
section b. where the word “it’s” should be “its”.
MOTION: MOVED/SECONDED (VAN ESSEN/HALL) AND CARRIED BY A 5-0 VOTE TO RECOMMEND
THAT THE CITY COUNCIL ADOPT THE NEGATIVE DECLARATION (PEA07-07) AND APPROVE
ZONING TEXT AMENDMENTS (TAZ07-01) SUBJECT TO THE FINDINGS IN THE STAFF REPORT
1.3 ZONING TEXT AMENDMENT (TAZ07-02) for City of Ripon, a public hearing on a
request to consider an amendment to Title 16 (Development Code) Chapter 16.16
Residential District as it relates to R1(A) and R1U districts. A Negative
Declaration (PEA07-08) is recommended for this project.
Director Zuidervaart introduced the staff report into the record along with the
findings and then informed the Commission that he had placed a new Chapter 16.16
in front of them.
Director Zuidervaart said that staff had discovered a clerical error in the
Chapter and another section needed further clarification. Director Zuidervaart
said that the R1 and R1A zoning had a 1,500 square foot difference when the
other zones only had a 1,000 square footage difference between the lots with and
without alleys. Director Zuidervaart then said that the R1U district required
more definition and indicated that the language in bold was the new language.
Director Zuidervaart said that it was not the intent of the City to require the
entire project in the R1U zone to be done as a Planned Unit Development (PUD).
Chairman Lewis said that this description requires a minimum of 100 acres and
asked if this is within the General Plan and Director Zuidervaart replied that
it is within an area and that it does not have to be all one project. Director
Zuidervaart then explained that within and R1U it states that no more than 25%
will be the R1 lots, no less than 25% will be the R1C, R1L/R3/R4 and R4U would
make up the remainder of the project in order to achieve a maximum density of
seven (7) units per gross acre. Director Zuidervaart then said that no more than
15% of the total acre of the project can be R3; R4 or R4U and if the project is
proposing to exceed five (5) gross acres in any one location it shall be
developed as a PUD.
Commissioner Krebbs said that he was happy to see this mixture in a zone.
Chairman Lewis asked what the source of this zone was from and Director
Zuidervaart jokingly replied that Ernie did it.
Commission Van Essen said that she thinks it is a smart choice to eliminate
sprawl.
Director Zuidervaart said that we are currently working with a Developer and
they are doing this zoning and it appears to be coming together very nicely.
MOTION: MOVED/SECONDED (KREBBS/VAN ESSEN) AND CARRIED BY A 5-0 VOTE TO RECOMMEND
THAT THE CITY COUNCIL ADOPT THE NEGATIVE DECLARATION (PEA07-08) AND APPROVE
AMENDING ZONING TEXT AMENDMENT (TAZ07-02) SUBJECT TO THE FINDINGS IN THE STAFF
REPORT
2.0 GENERAL PLANNING
2.2 CHANGES/ADDITIONS TO CITY STANDARDS for City of Ripon, this is an
application to amend standards 17-00, L-1, L-2, L-4, L-5, M-15, M-16
and to add new drawings SWPP-1, SWPP-2, SWPP-3, SWPP-4A, SWPP-4B, SWPP-5, and
SWPP-6 to the book of Standards. This project is categorical exempt from CEQA.
Director Zuidervaart said that these changes to the City Standards were at the
direction of the City Engineer and that Andy Varian would be able to discuss
these changes and additions
Mr. Varian said that some of these changes were the result of a State
Requirement for Storm Water Prevention and some were due to the rising costs for
street lighting. Mr. Varian then said that the old street lights cost $6.50 to
$10.00 per month to operate and the new type will run $2.00 - $4.00 per month
which is a 50% energy savings. Mr. Varian also said that it is the City’s goal
to switch out all the lights in Ripon.
Mr. Varian said that the City is including the parking lot standard for compact
vehicles which was not previously specified.
Commissioner Winchell asked if the City was pushing compact stalls and Director
Zuidervaart said that Developer can have up to 10 percent of their required
parking as compact and they will sometimes put in their landscaping in the
parking lot with this approach.
There was a brief discussion about the stripping color of the parking stalls and
was determined that white is the standard.
MOTION: MOVED/SECONDED (VAN ESSEN/KREBBS) AND CARRIED BY A 5-0 VOTE TO SUBMIT A
REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL TO ADOPT THE NEW CHANGES TO THE CITY STANDARDS
Commissioners= Reports: Commissioner Van Essen encouraged the other Planning
Commissioners to read the monthly Planning magazine that was given to each as
there was a great article on Roseville.
Commissioners Krebbs and Van Essen both stated that they would be absent from
the April Planning Commission meeting.
City Attorney=s Reports: None
Director=s Reports: Director Zuidervaart said that he hoped that the next
Planning Commission meeting would be held in the new Council Chambers and that
there are a couple of items scheduled on the agenda.
Adjournment: There being no further business the meeting was adjourned at 8:40
P.M. to the next regular meeting of Tuesday, April 10, 2007 at 7:00 P.M.
(Signed) James Lewis, Chairman
ATTEST:
____________________ ______
(Signed) Ken Zuidervaart, Secretary