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Planning Commission MINS 09-18-2019CITY OF FEDERAL WAY PLANNING COMMISSION September 18, 2019 City Hall 6:30 p.m. City Council Chambers MEETING MINUTES Commissioners present: Wayne Carlson, Tom Medhurst, Hope Elder, Lawson Bronson, Dawn Meader McCausland, Tim O'Neil, Diana Noble-Gulliford, Eric Olsen, and Dale Couture. Commissioners absent: (ex). City Staff present: Principal Planner Margaret Clark, Senior Planner Ryan Medlen, Deputy City Attorney Mark Orthmann, and Administrative Assistant E. Tina Piety. CALL TO ORDER Chair Carlson called the meeting to order at 6:30 P.M. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Commission O'Neil moved (and Commissioner Medhurst seconded) that the July 17, 2019, minutes be corrected to state "professional" engineer and not "certified" engineer. There was no debate and the motion carried. AUDIENCE COMMENT None ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT Principal Planner Clark announced that Surface Water Manager Teresa Thurlow will be attending the October 2, 2019, meeting to present a study session on proposed change to the code in regards to mitigation and fees to add a system development charge; this is a one-time fee paid at the time of development. The public hearing is scheduled for October 16, 2019. Planning staff is continuing to work on the housekeeping amendments. In response to a question, Attorney Orthmann clarified that the system development charge would be assessed on new development (a connection charge), or development that cause a significant burden to the surface water system. Chair Carlson commented that we have had uneven quality of presentations from public works; sometimes they have difficulty explaining complex topics. Principal Planner Clark will relay the concerns to SWM Thurlow. COMMISSION BUSINESS BRIEFING/DISCUSSION: Sound,Transit Link Extension Projects in Federal Way Senior Planner Medlen delivered the staff presentation. The purpose of this briefing is to update the Planning Commission on the status of three core areas of interest: * Federal Way Link Extension; * Operations & Maintenance Facility site selection process; and * Tacoma Dome Link Extension. Planning Commission Minutes Page 1 September 18, 2019 And to inform the Commission of an upcoming planning effort related to potential South Federal Way station areas. He first discussed the Federal Way Link Extension. The permitting process is in the early stages. An open house is scheduled for November. Sound Transit is expected to approve a grant for $730,000 for the city to install a traffic light and pedestrian improvements at 21St and 320th. He then opened the floor to any Commissioner questions. Commissioner O'Neil expressed concern about the proposed traffic light and street level pedestrian crossing at 320th and 21 ". He doesn't believe it will prevent traffic accidents. He expects a large number of pedestrians using the crossing after each train. Why not a pedestrian bridge? How was this decision made? Commissioner Bronson agrees. The Federal Way Station is not the end of the line. The train will cross 320' at an elevated level. Why not widen that to include a pedestrian crossing lane? Senior Planner Medlen commented that the decision was considered the one most practically and feasible. Commissioner Noble-Gulliford agrees with both Commissioners. She noted that the Northgate facility has a pedestrian bridge, so why not Federal Way? She commented that a bridge would be Transit Oriented Development (TOD), a pedestrian -friendly facility, something Sound Transit strongly encourages. We have a J -walking problem in Federal Way. A bridge would help. A street -level pedestrian crossing doesn't best serve Federal Way. Commissioner Meader -McCausland asked if there might be an opportunity in the future to re -visit the pedestrian bridge question. She also asked an explanation of where the funds are coming from and the benefits for the city. Senior Planner Medlen explained that the $730,000 for the signal and pedestrian crossing comes from a $10 million grant pool for jurisdictions in Sound Transit's jurisdiction for mitigating the Link Extension. This is a project that Public Works has been considering, but no funding has been available. It is expected to improve both vehicle and pedestrian circulation. He also commented that there will always be opportunities to reconsider a pedestrian bridge. Chair Carlson commented that his concern is having yet another signal between I-5 and Pacific Highway South. The area is highly congested with vehicles and pedestrians. He also feels there are pedestrian crossings in the area close enough to walk to. Commissioner Medhurst commented that he agrees with the other Commissioners. As he has heard, the funding has not been approved and the official approval has not yet been made. As such, he feels the city can re -visit the issue in a way that brings a different result. Senior Planner Medlen will have to pass this along to Public Works. Commissioner Bronson asked if this will comply with the Americans With Disabilities Act. Senior Planner Medlen commented that will happen during the design phase. Commissioner Couture commented that it might be more beneficial to the city to spend the funds on a different part of the Link Expansion project further south. Senior Planner Medlen stated that since the funds are coming from a grant, he doesn't believe that will be allowed under the terms of the agreement. Senior Planner Medlen will respond to the Commissioner regarding the background of the decision not to move forward with a pedestrian bridge. Senior Planner Medlen went on to discuss the Operations & Maintenance Facility site selection process. A preferred alternative is estimated to be identified in mid -2020. The city supports the Midway Landfill site in Kent (only the alternative on I-5 was moved forward by Sound Transit). The two Federal Way alternatives are at the Christian Faith Center and 344th and 1-5. The city is planning to have a fiscal impact analysis prepared for the two Federal Way alternatives. He then opened the floor to any Commissioner questions. Senior Planner Medlen went on to discuss the Tacoma Dome Link Extension. Three station location alternatives in South Federal Way have been identified. For all options the guideway follows the alignment of 1-5 through Federal Way. The Draft Environmental Impact Statement is expected to be released for comment in 2021. The preferred alternate is at Enchanted Parkway and 352' because while it will impact a larger number of businesses it has broader TOD potential. He also explained the design options for the Belmor Mobile Home Park. He then opened the floor to any Commissioner questions. Commissioner O'Neil commented that he is concerned that in the future many Federal Way jobs will be located on the east side of I-5, while people live on the west side. Has there been discussion/analysis of how people will be able to travel from west to east? Is there a plan for this? Senior Planner Medlen commented that this is a concern of the city and the city is talking to Metro Transit about offering more east -to -west bus service (ideally in conjunction with the light rail). Commissioner Noble-Gulliford noted Planning Commission Minutes Page 2 September 18, 2019 that the Federal Way transit stations are being planned in areas that are already over-burdened with car traffic. She also commented that the 352nd area is one of the few areas the city has that is available for industrial zoning. Is the city considering allowing more residential uses in this area? How will TOD fit into the current zoning? Senior Planner Medlen commented that this question is a good segue into his next discussion point on an upcoming Vision Framework Exercise. He asked if there any further questions/ comments on the Tacoma Dome Link Extension before he went into his next discussion point. Commissioner Bronson noted that when the proposed alternatives were discussed last year, it was stated that the currently preferred alternative the rail guideway will have to cross the cloverleaf (Highway 18) intersection. Is there a plan in place for this and if so, what is it? How high will the rail guideway have to be? Senior Planner Medlen commented that issue will be in the preliminary plan, which is not yet available. Commissioner Bronson commented in regards to the Belmor plan, he is concerned about the speed of the trains in the planned curves of the proposed design. Senior Planner Medlen replied that staff will make a note of the concern and will check the draft environmental impact statement when it is available to be sure the concern is addressed. Commissioner Meader McCausland asked if there is any section of the track in Federal Way,will be at grade? Senior Planner Medlen replied that most of the track will be elevated, but small areas in the I-5 section will be at grade. Senior Planner Medlen went on to discuss the upcoming Vision Framework Exercise. City staff will lead an effort with the support of Sound Transit staff and resources to do a community vision exercise for the South Federal Way area. The exercise is far ahead of the actual South Federal Way station in part so that Sound Transit can use the findings to help inform their early design work. The information will be used to inform future planning efforts, such as zoning considerations, design considerations, etc. The exercise may lead to a sub-area plan or updates to the comprehensive plan during the next major update. The details of the exercise are currently being designed. Once the details are clear, staff will be informing and receiving information from the public on the future of the area. Staff is planning a kick-off workshop, a stakeholder group, an online open house with a survey, and a lot of advertising and outreach. Staff hopes to have the kick-off workshop before the end of the year. Chair Carlson encourages the staff to include residents, business owners, environmental community, etc. in the stakeholder group. Commissioner Bronson commented that he was one of the original stakeholders for this effort, he feels that he wasn't listened to because he is "just" a citizen. Senior Planner Medlen commented that he will take these comments into consideration as part of the design of the exercise. Commissioner Noble-Gulliford asked if the current comprehensive plan and zoning will be used as a guideline of how the vision will be developed. Senior Planner Medlen replied that staff wants to know how people envision the future of this area without being influenced by the current comprehensive plan and zoning (are they looking for something different from the current plan and zoning? Do they envision residential being a part of the area?). Commissioner Medhurst commented on the proposal to add an additional traffic light to 320`''. Who can the Commissioners go to at this point to express their concerns about adding a traffic light to an already "dangerous" overly burden street. The idea needs to be revisited. He feels this is the most glaring problem out of what the city can control in this light-rail process. Attorney Orthmann commented that ultimately it will come down to what Sound Transit is willing to pay for under their budget. He suggested Commissioners send their concerns in an email to Assistant Piety and staff will send them on to Public Works and Sound Transit as appropriate. ADDITIONAL BUSINESS Commissioner Noble-Gulliford asked about the status of the 2019 work plan. Principal Planner Clark responded that plan will be done once the housekeeping amendments are completed. Staff has started to prepare the 2020 work plan. Commissioner Noble-Gulliford continued that at the City Council meeting last night there was discussion of funding for the PAEC and one suggestion for funding was using some Planning Commission Minutes Page 3 September 18, 2019 from Community Development permit fees. This concerns her because the department is doing a lot of work with a small number of staff and needs that funding. She would rather the money stay within the department. She asked Principal Planner Clark to pass on her concerns to the department's director. ADJOURN The meeting adjourned at 7:50 P.M. M KAPlanning Commission\2016Nceting Summary 09-18-19.&c Planning Commission Minutes Page 4 September 18, 2019 i"