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A-3. Discuss Proposed Code Amendments �\ Y °,n — S CITY OF CHANIIASSEN 9 S Chanhassen is a Community for Life-Providing for Today and Planning for Tomorrow H...A. MEMORANDUM TO: Todd Gerhardt, City Manager FROM: MacKenzie Walters, Assistant Planner DATE: September 25, 2017 SUBJ: Proposed City Code Amendments to Chapters 1, 6, 7, 13, 18, 19, and 20 Background Staff periodically reviews areas of the City Code that could potentially be amended to close loopholes, remove obsolete provisions, improve clarity, or allow for increased flexibility. Our practice is to bring these issues and potential solutions to the City Council's attention. If the council upon reviewing these items directs staff to amend the City Code, items requiring a Public Hearing will go before the Planning Commission on October 17, 2017 and/or November 21, 2017 before returning to the City Council with the Planning Commission's recommendation for a vote. Staff has attached issued papers on the following topics to this report: • Pervious Pavers • Diseased Trees • Drive Through • Parking Lot Sweeping • Water Structures • Attached Structures • PUD Setbacks • Street Guidelines • Private Street Signs • Adult Daycare A brief summary of each item and staff's recommendation can be found in the following section. Recent legislation passed at the state level has changes how wireless communication infrastructure is treated within the right of way. The city must determine if it wants to pass a comprehensive right of way ordinance and to what extent it wants regulate the installation and permitting of small cell infrastructure within the right of way. Staff requires direction from the City Council on this policy item. PH 952.227.1100• www.ci.chanhassen.mn.us• FX 952.227.1110 7700 MARKET BOULEVARD • PO BOX 147 • CHANHASSEN • MINNESOTA 55317 Todd Gerhardt Proposed City Code Amendments to Chapters 1, 6, 7, 13, 18, 19, and 20 September 25,2017 Page 2 of 5 SUMMARY OF ISSUES Pervious Pavers Issue Summary: Currently the City Code defines pervious pavers as impervious surfaces and as such,they count towards parcel's maximum lot coverage. The technology has been proven to allow for significant stormwater infiltration when properly installed and maintained;however,they do not provide the same benefits as vegetative cover. Additionally,the city uses lot coverage to limit the intensity which a property can be used and allowing the unrestricted use of pervious pavers would allow significantly alter the appearance and intensity of development within Chanhassen's neighborhoods. Proposed Solution: Staff believes allowing single family and two family dwellings in low and medium density residential districts an additional 5 percent lot coverage comprised of pervious pacers would strike a reasonable balance between allowing homeowners to utilize this new technology and preserving vegetative cover and the character of the city's neighborhoods. Staff believes that requiring homeowners to provide designs in line with accepted professional standards,requiring contractors installing these systems to be appropriately certified, and requiring homeowners to enter into a maintenance agreement,will ensure the systems function as intended. Diseased Trees Issue Summary: The city's existing diseased tree ordinance targets specific diseases which hinders the city's ability to proactively address emerging threats to the city's trees. Of particular concern,are Emerald Ash Borers and other epidemic insect pests. Similarly, dead and dying trees can threaten public safety through their fall risk. Currently, staff does not have the ability to address residents' concerns about the risks to their property caused by hazard trees. Proposed Solution: Staff believes that by altering the language in the diseased tree ordinance to include invasive pests and remove references to specific diseases we will be better able to address the multitude of threats to our community's trees. Similarly,by creating provisions allowing us to remove diseased and dying trees that pose a threat to people and property the city will bring its treatment of these items in line with how other nuisances are treated by the City Code. Drive Through Issue Summary: Spack Consultant recently published a report which indicated that the stacking lengths currently required by the city may be inadequate. Staff has received multiple inquiries from parties interested in developing properties with drive through facilities throughout the city, and wants to make sure Todd Gerhardt Proposed City Code Amendments to Chapters 1, 6, 7, 13, 18, 19, and 20 September 25, 2017 Page 3 of 5 that new drive through facilities will not negatively impact traffic due having insufficient stacking length. Proposed Solution: Staff believes that Spack's numbers are somewhat larger than are required by a suburban community;however, we do believe that our existing requirements are too low. Engineering proposes increasing the city's drive through requirements by 50% of the difference between existing requirements and Spack's recommendation. Staff believes it may be appropriate to change drive throughs to a conditional uses in order to ensure that the city can require stacking studies when there is reason to believe that their location would require higher or lower stacking standards. Parking Lot Sweeping Issue Summary: City Code prohibits most noise generating activity before 7:00 a.m. with exceptions for necessary activities such as snow removal. Occasionally,the city receives complaints about business cleaning their parking lots before 7:00 a.m. It is often not practical for commercial and industrial properties to clean their parking lots during normal business hours. Proposed Solution: Staff believes that parking lot sweeping should be exempted from the quiet hours provisions. Water Structures Issue Summary: City Code currently requires individuals seeking to install water obstacles (ski jumps,diving towers, etc.)in the lakes receive a 1-year permit from the City Council. In practice,the city allows the DNR and sheriffs offices to handle these requests. Proposed Solution: This section of the City Code appears to be obsolete and is not enforced. Staff believes that it should be removed in order to avoid confusion. Attached Structures Issue Summary: The City Code established different size and setback requirements for primary and accessory structures. Occasionally individuals circumvent the intent of these ordinances by nominally attaching the accessory structure to the primary structure so that they both fall under the ordinances governing primary structures. Todd Gerhardt Proposed City Code Amendments to Chapters 1, 6, 7, 13, 18, 19, and 20 September 25, 2017 Page 4 of 5 Proposed Solution: Staff believes that defining the phrase"attached structure"to require common walls will close this loophole. PUD Setbacks Issue Summary: Planned Unit Developments are designed to allow the city to customize a projects zoning to both its needs and the surrounding environmental features. As currently written these developments have fixed project setback that require a variance to alter. Requiring a variance for these developments is redundant as all aspects of the project's zoning are subject to review by the Planning Commission and approval by the City Council. Proposed Solution: Staff believes that language should be added allowing the City Council to approve increases or reductions of the project's setbacks when environmental protection or development design will be enhanced. This will be more in line with the intended flexibility of the PUD ordinance. This language currently exists for some,but not all, categories of PUDs. Street Guidelines Issue Summary: Chapter 18 establishes street guidelines,but these guidelines are derived from other sources that occasionally change. Proposed Solution: Staff believes that Chapter 18 should reference the official manual as its standards so that they automatically change along with it. Private Street Signs Issue Summary: The city has no official standards for the signage located on private streets. Proposed Solution: Staff believes language should be added to the City Code requiring that signage along private streets meets state guidelines for street signage. Adult Daycare Issue Summary: The City Code does not differentiate between child oriented and adult oriented day care. These two populations have different needs and the City Code should reflect this. Todd Gerhardt Proposed City Code Amendments to Chapters 1, 6, 7, 13, 18, 19, and 20 September 25, 2017 Page 5 of 5 Proposed Solution: A definition for adult day care should be added to the City Code and it should be make a permitted use with the appropriate zoning districts. Discussion Item Small Cell Issue Summary: The Minnesota Legislature recently passed a bill classifying small cellular towers and antenna as allowed right of way uses. This legislation also requires the city to allow wireless providers to colocate equipment on city owned infrastructure and establishes small cell towers and antenna as allowed uses in all zoning districts. Under the legislation,the city may charge rent, classify them as conditional uses in single-family residential and historic districts, and establish a permit process by amending its right of way ordinance. Proposed Solution: The city may wish to adopt a right of way ordinance and establish a permit process for work in the right of way, along with establishing appropriate fees and rents. The city should also consider making small cell systems a conditional use in single family residential districts and developing conditions to mitigate their impact within these districts. RECOMMENDATION Staff requests City Council direction on how they should address these issues. ATTACHMENTS 1) Pervious Pavers (062617 cc ws pp KFS) 2) Diseased Trees (Amendment to Chapters 13 cc report Revl) 3) Issue Drive Through 4) Issue Parking Lot Cleaning Noise 5) Issue Water Obstacles 6) Attached Structure 7) PUD Setbacks 8) Road Design Standards 9) Private Street Signs 10)Adult Day Care G:\PLAN\City Code\2017\Various\2017_CC Worksession Summary.doc