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Home My WebLink About03042025 Planning & Zoning MinutesCity of Seward, Alaska Planning & Zoning Commission Meeting Minutes March 4, 2025 Volume 8, Page 104 CALL TO ORDER The March 4, 2025, regular meeting of the Planning & Zoning Commission was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Chair Carol Griswold. OPENING CEREMONY Commissioner Pemberton led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. ROLL CALL There were present: Carol Griswold, presiding, and Nathaniel Charbonneau Vanessa Verhey Clare Sullivan June Pemberton comprising a quorum of the Commission; and Daniel Meuninck, Community Development Director Courtney Bringhurst, City Planner Clara Brown, Executive Assistant Jodi Kurtz, Deputy City Clerk Excused—Hornseth, Verhey, Hubbard Absent — None Vacant — None PUBLIC COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT - None APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (Charbonneau/Sullivan) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda Motion Passed Unanimous The clerk read the following approved consent agenda items: Approve February 4, 2025, Planning & Zoning Commission Meeting Minutes Approve February 18, 2025, Planning & Zoning Commission Special Meeting Minutes City of Seward, Alaska Planning & Zoning Commission Meeting Minutes March 4, 2025 Volume 8, Page 105 SPECIAL ORDERS, PRESENTATION, AND REPORTS City Administration Report Community Development Director Daniel Meuninck congratulated the newest commissioner, June Pemberton, as well as the reappointed commissioners Hornseth and Hubbard. He was excited to have a full commission. Meuninck provided the newly updated P&Z Rules of Procedure to the commission. He noted the City Planner and himself will be attending the National Planning Conference in Denver, Colorado and they were excited to bring back new ideas. Meuninck announced the next work session on April 22, 2025 will be canceled due to three town halls meetings scheduled for that week. He lastly reminded everyone of the surveys for the comprehensive plan remain open until May 31, 2025. PUBLIC HEARINGS Resolutions Requiring Public Hearing Resolution 2025-009: of the Planning and Zoning Commission of the City of Seward, Alaska, Recommending City Council approval of the land use amendment to rezone the property located at 1604 Phoenix Road from a Two -Family (R2) zoning district to an Auto Commercial (AC) zoning district Motion (Charbonneau/Sullivan) Resolution 2025-009 Griswold explained this resolution should be postponed because the applicant could not be present tonight, and because more Commissioners would likely be present at the April 8 meeting. The commission postponed Resolution 2025-009 to the meeting on April 8, 2025. Motion to Postpone Passed Unanimous Resolution 2025-010: of the Planning and Zoning Commission of the City of Seward, Alaska, Recommending City Council approval of the land use amendment to rezone Spring Creek Park and the tidelands to the north; Located at 403 Nash Road and 3007 Bette Cato Avenue, from an Industrial (I) zoning district to a Park (P) zoning district Motion (Sullivan/Pemberton) Approve Resolution 2025-010 City Planner Country Bringhurst summarized from page 35 of the agenda packet. This proposed rezone was based on the recommendation from the 2023 update to the Municipal Lands Management and Inventory Plan. The goal of this rezoning is to preserve these recreational areas for public use, including activities like fishing, beach access, camping, and other suitable recreational purposes. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened. City of Seward, Alaska Planning & Zoning Commission Meeting Minutes March 4, 2025 Volume 8, Page 106 Mark Nelson, outside city limits, was interested in the intent behind this rezoning effort from industrial zoning to park land. Mark expressed concern about Spring Creek, which had been closed off by gravel due to the breakwater, affecting salmon escapement. He had tried to address the issue with the State of Alaska. He was worried about the impact on the salmon habitat. Griswold suspended the rules to explain the creek reopened naturally due to heavy rains and flooding. No one else appeared and the public hearing was closed. Motion Passed Unanimous Resolution 2025-011: of the Planning and Zoning Commission of the City of Seward, Alaska, Recommending City Council approval of the land use amendment to rezone Fourth of July Beach Park; Located at 3311 Sorrel Road, from an Industrial (I) zoning district to a Park (P) zoning district Motion (Pemberton/Charbonneau) Approve Resolution 2025-011 Bringhurst explained how the replat separated the Fourth of July Beach parking and beach area, along with the adjacent tidelands, from the larger parcel, making it its own separate parcel. She added that the replat action also separated out an area for parking across Sorrel Road. She highlighted that the rezoning is specifically for the beach area, the tidelands, and the current parking area, which will be rezoned to park to ensure the preservation of this recreational area. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened. No one appeared and the public hearing was closed. Motion Passed Unanimous Resolution 2025-012: of the Planning and Zoning Commission of the City of Seward, Alaska, Recommending the City Council amend Seward City Code § 15.10.140 definition of an efficiency apartment; Seward City Code § 15.10.226 Land Uses Allowed Table, adding attached and detached accessory dwelling units; and updating Seward City Code §15.10.215 Parking for accessory dwelling units Motion (Sullivan/Charbonneau) Approve Resolution 2025-012 Bringhurst spoke to the proposed resolution and code change issues with the definition of "efficiency apartment." She addressed some issues when individuals wanted to build detached efficiency apartments. A way to resolve these issues was to amend Seward City Code and replace "efficiency apartment" with "accessory dwelling unit" (ADU). Bringhurst also mentioned that the parking code is updated accordingly, but the parking requirements remain unchanged for now. City of Seward, Alaska Planning & Zoning Commission Meeting Minutes March 4, 2025 Volume 8, Page 107 Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened No one else appeared and the public hearing was closed. Sullivan appreciated how this resolution helped clarify what could be put on one's property. Motion Passed Unanimous NEW BUSINESS Other New Business Select Chair and Vice Chair for 2025 Pemberton nominated Carol Griswold as Chair. There were no other nominations. Motion (Pemberton/Charbonneau) Select Griswold as Chair for 2025 Motion Passed Unanimous Charbonneau nominated Brenan Hornseth as Vice Chair. There were no other nominations. Motion (Charbonneau/Sullivan) Select Hornseth as Vice Chair for 2025 Motion Passed Unanimous Work Session topics for Tuesday, March 18, 2025 The topics were determined to be Building Height and a Mini Training: How to read a plat INFORMATIONAL ITEMS AND REPORTS Reminder of upcoming P&Z Meetings Work session on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, at 6:00 pm in the Council Chambers at City Hall Work session on Tuesday, April 8, 2025, at 6:00 pm in Council Chambers at City Hall Topic: Presentation regarding the status of the Safe Streets and Roads for All projects Regular meeting on Tuesday, April 8, 2025, at 7:00 pm in Council Chambers at City Hall PUBLIC COMMENTS — None COMMISSIONERS AND ADMINISTRATION COMMENTS & RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS City of Seward, Alaska Planning & Zoning Commission Meeting Minutes March 4, 2025 Volume 8, Page 108 Meuninck thanked the commission for an efficient meeting. The ADU discussion has been ongoing for a while, so it was great to finally have that formal recommendation in place. He was excited to see a full commission. Bringhurst said it was great to work with all the commissioners and she appreciated their service. Charbonneau thanked everyone for their hard work. The commission had been working on some of these resolutions for a while and it felt good to wrap them up. Sullivan appreciated the concept of a mini training session because trying to learn everything at once can feel overwhelming. She also acknowledged Meuninck's work as Community Development Director had been impressive. She also described how Meuninck and Bringhurst had made the transition smooth, especially during those tumultuous times with staffing changes and the lack of commissioners. It's been a job well done! She also thanked the Clerk's Office and Clara Brown for their support. Pemberton thanked the commission and appreciated the hard work they do. She appreciated the warm welcome that city staff has given her. Griswold appreciated how Pemberton jumped right in during her very first meeting. She stated that this was the shortest P&Z meeting in history, so Pemberton was getting off easy. Griswold welcomed Pemberton aboard and thanked her for stepping up. She gave a big thanks to the Community Development staff and the acknowledged the work that goes into preparing these agendas. She thanked the Clerk's Office and Clara Brown for all the behind -the -scenes work to make everything look so polished and professional. Lastly, she thanked to the audience for attending and appreciated their presence. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 7:33 p.m. cevu)-( Jo/Kurtz Carol Griswol Deputy City Clerk Chair