Loading...
Planning Comm MINS 05-18-2011 K:\Planning Commission\2011\Meeting Summary 05-18-11.doc CITY OF FEDERAL WAY PLANNING COMMISSION May 18, 2011 City Hall 7:00 p.m. Council Chambers MEETING MINUTES Commissioners present: Merle Pfeifer, Hope Elder, Wayne Carlson, Tom Medhurst, Lawson Bronson, Tim O’Neil, and Sarady Long. Commissioners absent: None. Staff present: Planning Manager Isaac Conlen, Principal Planner Margaret Clark, Senior Planner Janet Shull, Assistant City Attorney Peter Beckwith, and Administrative Assistant Tina Piety. CALL TO ORDER Chair Pfeifer called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes of April 20, 2011, were approved as presented. AUDIENCE COMMENT None ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT Mr. Conlen announced the next Planning Commission meeting will be June 15th, which will be a public hearing on a citizen requested changes to the Office Park (OP) zone. COMMISSION BUSINESS PUBLIC HEARING – Proposed Amendments Related to Allowing Animal Kennels and Animal Care Facilities in the Neighborhood Business (BN) Zone Ms. Clark delivered the staff report. This is a request from a citizen (Jon Moore) to allow animal kennels, dog day care, and pet training in the Neighborhood Business (BN) zone. The proposed amendments include regulations that are intended to mitigate any adverse impacts associated with outdoor uses for animals and noise. The proposed amendments also include a definition for animal kennel. Commissioner O’Neil asked staff to explain how the noise regulations work. Ms. Clark responded the regulations are set by the state and it is her understanding they are based on measuring from where the noise originated to where it ends. A chart is used showing acceptable dBa (decimal levels) for certain zones. The length of time the noise continues is also taken into account. At night, the dBa limitation is reduced by 10. Commissioner Bronson was able to add to the explanation. The meter measures at the receiving end of the noise. Noise is dissipated by the square root of the distance. If you are ten feet away it is one number, if you are 20 feet away it is one-fourth of that. This is done on a log scale. Dropping dBa by 10, halves the sound level. Commissioner Carlson asked if the noise regulations would pertain only to outdoor dog runs. He is concerned that some businesses that only have animals inside will still be too noisy. Commissioner Medhurst expressed concern about night time noise. Do other jurisdictions have time limits for outside runs? Commissioner O’Neil expressed concern over the number of animals. What about the noise if they have 50 to 60 animals? Ms. Clark responded that other jurisdictions do not have time limits. She went on to state that all businesses must comply with the city noise ordinance, which uses the same language as Planning Commission Minutes Page 2 May 18, 2011 K:\Planning Commission\2011\Meeting Summary 05-18-11.doc the state’s noise regulations. There are some dog kennels in other zones of the city and the city has not received any noise complaints about them. Jon Moore – He is the owner of a grooming facility. He stated that dog day-care and dog kennel are two different things. Some dog day-cares will have an outdoor component. Generally, the animals are brought in at night. The business and animal owners do not want the animals left in an uncontrolled situation. If animals are left out at night, the night-time staff will calm the animals if they act-up and make a lot of noise. His business (and none of the others he is in contact with) has not received any noise complaints. He suggested the proposed amendments separate out breeding kennels. A breeding kennel may have up to 50 dogs and many unneutered males. They are very noisy and are not suited for the BN zone. Commissioner Bronson agreed that the breeding language should be removed from the amendments. Chair Pfeiffer noted that the city has not received any complaints about veterinary offices and they have many animals. Commissioner Carlson moved (and it was seconded) to adopt the proposed amendments with a change to the BN zone notes that breeding kennels are prohibited. The motion passed unanimously. The public hearing was closed STUDY SESSION – Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan Ms. Shull delivered the staff presentation. The citywide Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan is a component of the Cities Putting Prevention to Work (CPPW) grant. The overall goals are to: • Make it easier for citizens to choose active transportation; • Replace the existing non-motorized section of the comprehensive plan; • Improve overall connectivity of neighborhoods with commercial centers and recreation areas; • Improve connectivity of Federal Way with the regional bike and trail system; and • Address areas where fewer citizens have access to cars and have fewer dollars to spend on transportation and higher rates of health issues. As stated above, the plan will replace the current non-motorized section of the Federal Way Comprehensive Plan transportation chapter. This section was last updated in 1994. An advisory committee was formed to help guide development of the plan. So far they have met three times. Their next meeting is May 23, 2011. The Commissioners are invited to attend. Staff is also gathering citizen input from an on-line survey and open-house meetings to be held in June. The city does have a number of biking routes, but they are disconnected. To date, the city has received approximately 50 responses to the on-line survey. The results show that those walking and biking mainly do so for exercise. Walkers and bikers are discouraged by traffic volume/noise and safety concerns, with bikers also discouraged by the lack of bike routes and facilities. Emerging themes include: improved overall network for biking and walking; integration with the regional system; supporting an active community; improved safety; and education. ADDITIONAL BUSINESS None ADJOURN The meeting was adjourned at 7:55 p.m.