TO: Mayor Collins and Town Council Members
FROM: Brian Dalke, Interim Town Manager
Andrew M. Miller, Town Attorney
DATE: September 13, 2018
DEPARTMENT: Town Attorney
Staff Contact Andrew M. Miller, Town Attorney 480-348-3526
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AGENDA TITLE:
Title
Discussion of Ordinance 2018-15, Amending the Hillside Development Regulations in Article XXII of the Zoning Ordinance
Body
Town Value(s):
☐ Primarily one-acre, residential community
☐ Limited government
☐ Creating a sense of community
☐ Partnerships with existing schools and resorts to enhance recreational opportunities
☒ Improving aesthetics/creating a brand
☒ Preserving natural open space
The Town of Paradise Valley makes every effort to enhance the community's unique character for its residents and people from around the world.
Council Goals or Statutory Requirements:
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Town Council review and recommend edits, if any, to Ordinance 2018-15, proposed amendments to Hillside Development Regulations, Article XXII, of the Town Zoning Ordinance.
SUMMARY STATEMENT:
History
Hillside related matters can be found throughout the Town Code, but most of the regulations specific to the Hillside Development Area overlay are contained in Article XXII of the Zoning Ordinance, the Hillside Development Regulations. The Town updated the Hillside Development Regulations on May 10, 2018 (per Ordinance No. 2018-08). Thereafter, the Town made changes to Article V of the Town Code (on June 14, 2018; Ordinance No. 2018-09) relating to safe development and construction practices for properties in the Hillside Development Areas, including the adoption of a Hillside Safety Improvement Measures and Process Manual. Also, subsequent to the adoption of the revised Hillside Development Regulations, the Town adopted a new Strom Drainage Design Manual (on June 14, 2018; Ordinance No. 2018-14), which included some specific provisions relating to property located within a Hillside Development Area. Based on these other subsequent changes in Town Codes and Manuals, some minor updates/amendments to the Hillside Development Regulations are now recommended.
A draft ordinance (Ordinance No. 2018-05; copy attached) has been prepared and reviewed by the Planning Commission at two work study sessions and at a public hearing conducted on August 21, 2018.
Scope of Hillside Development Regulations Update:
The updated provisions of the Hillside Development Regulations addressed in the draft ordinance touch upon four areas, namely: 1) updating several definitions to reflect only those terms and definitions that are used in the Hillside Development Regulations; 2) identifying the requirement for a pre-application submittal as part of the hillside review process; 3) identifying the expiration periods for hillside applications; and 4) providing clarification regarding the process to remove a property from the “hillside development area” designation.
Definitions
After the Hillside Safety provisions were determined to be best added to Article V of the Town Code (in the Building Permits section), some of the definitions in the Hillside Development Regulations were no longer needed, so they have now been struck. Also, some additional technical definitions, such as the “Storm Drainage Design Manual” have now been added for clarity.
Pre-Application Submittal Requirement
Since the Hillside Safety Code/Manual was adopted after the recent amendments to the Hillside Development Regulations, there is a slight discrepancy in the required submittal process between the two. The Hillside Safety Code/Manual identifies that the applicant must submit a pre-application as part of the hillside review process; however, the pre-application requirement is not addressed in the Hillside Development Regulations (Article 22).
Therefore, language has been added to the Hillside Development Regulations to identify the requirement of a pre-application submittal and review. The first step in the process is pre-application submittal; where staff will perform a preliminary review of the project and inform the applicant of the applicable Hillside Development Regulations, the appropriate hillside review process (e.g. chair, combined, concept, or formal review), and the applicable safety improvement plan requirements. The pre-application submittal is a new requirement, but is similar to the current process in which staff typically has a preliminary meeting with the applicant to go over the project and outline the hillside review process.
Expiration of Hillside Application
The Hillside Development Regulations identify that an applicant must submit a building permit within 12 months from the date of the Hillside Committee approval. However, the Hillside Development Regulations do not clearly identify how much time an applicant has to receive Hillside Committee approval. As a result, staff is proposing to add provisions to clarify the expiration limits for a hillside application (with said provisions being essentially the same as the current staff policy on the expiration of hillside applications).
Similar to the treatment of building permit applications, hillside applications have an expiration. Therefore, a hillside application that fails to receive Hillside Building Committee or Hillside Building Committee Chair approval within eighteen months from the date of submittal will expire and will be null and void.
However, extensions may be granted. An applicant may apply for a one-time automatic six-month extension. After that six-month extension, the Town Manager or designee may grant up to two additional extensions based upon circumstances beyond the applicant’s control. The applicant must identify the circumstances in writing for Town Manager review. The Town Manager has discretion to deny the extension request, but if granted, there may be up to two additional extensions granted, each limited to a maximum limit of one hundred eighty days each.
Request to Remove a Property from Hillside
This update was recently added by staff. Clarifying language has been added to the Hillside Development Regulations so that it is clear that the Council has discretion to deny a request to remove a property from the “Hillside Development Area”.
Conclusion
The Planning Commission reviewed the Hillside Development Regulations amendments at the July 17, 2018 work session and the August 7, 2018 Citizen Review session. There were no recommended edits from the Commission during both meetings and no public comment giving during the Citizen Review work session. The Commission held a public hearing on August 21, 2018. After the public hearing, the Commission recommended adoption of the draft ordinance. Council input on the draft ordinance is desired at this time.
BUDGETARY IMPACT:
None.
ATTACHMENT(S):
Draft Ordinance 2018-15