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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12162025 Planning & Zoning Work Session NotesWORK SESSION NOTES PLANNING & ZONING Called by: Brenan Hornseth Time: 6:00 p.m. Date: 12/16/2025 Purpose: 2026 Priorities Present: Daniel Meuninck Courtney Bringhurst Jamie Crocker Commission Members Present: Brenan Hornseth Nathaniel Charbonneau Vanessa Verhey Rhonda Hubbard Clare Sullivan June Pemberton Andrew Wilder Meeting called to order at 6:00 P.M. Planning & Zoning Commission Work Session Summary Meeting Purpose The Planning & Zoning Commission convened a work session to provide commissioner training, review the commission's powers and responsibilities, and establish 2026 priorities for planning processes and development codes. Topics included housing, zoning, subdivision regulations, and public engagement practices. Key Discussion Highlights • Staff reviewed the dual roles of the commission, distinguishing between legislative/advisory functions and quasi-judicial decision -making responsibilities. • Commissioners received a detailed overview of conditional use permits, variances, appeals, and code interpretation under City Code Titles 14, 15, and 16. • Significant emphasis was placed on legal and ethical obligations, including ex parte communications, conflicts of interest, and statutory timelines governing appeals and reconsiderations. • Public engagement and transparency were identified as essential to maintaining public trust and ensuring legally defensible decisions. • The commission discussed neutrality versus advocacy, rules of procedure, and the critical distinctions between legislative actions and quasi-judicial determinations. • Staff reviewed the draft 2026 priority list, including missing middle housing, comprehensive plan updates, parking and zoning code amendments, temporary and seasonal housing, and subdivision regulation updates. • Commissioners emphasized the need to balance community priorities, strategic plan alignment, and evaluation of past and future actions, including code enforcement advocacy and marijuana code recommendations. WORK SESSION NOTES PLANNING & ZONING Major Issues and Range of Opinions • Commissioners discussed the benefits of ongoing incremental training compared to single, one-time sessions, with general agreement that regular mini training would be most effective. • There were varied perspectives on the appropriate circumstances and limitations for reconsideration of quasi-judicial decisions, recognizing constraints imposed by state law and local code. • Ongoing concern was expressed regarding balancing long-term community needs —such as housing availability, services, and accessibility —against short-term convenience or development pressures. • Commissioners expressed interest in evaluating best practices from peer communities, including form -based codes and enhanced design standards, and adapting them to local conditions. • Discussion highlighted the need for clearer delineation of staff versus commission roles in enforcement, application review, and engineering or technical solutions. Solutions and Additional Ideas • Improve accessibility to training materials by distributing printed and electronic handouts and maintaining a centralized archive of procedural resources. • Enhance public transparency by clearly documenting the reasoning behind decisions, including explanations for dissenting or negative votes. • Continue annual reviews of commission procedures and update them as legislative, quasi-judicial, or operational needs evolve. • Explore innovative approaches to zoning, housing, senior accessibility, and code enforcement, informed by commissioner input, community feedback, and external best practices. Action Items and Next Steps • Distribute training materials to commissioners and establish a system for accessing past work session documents (Assigned to: Courtney Bringhurst and Daniel Meuninck). • Prepare and distribute revised parking code update materials for the January meeting (Assigned to: Courtney Bringhurst). • Incorporate commission feedback into comprehensive plan drafting and distribute draft materials for additional review (Assigned to: Daniel Meuninck). • Add marijuana code updates and work session notes to the agenda and materials for the planned joint session with City Council, including clarification of the recommendation process (Assigned to: Daniel Meuninck). • Clarify reconsideration procedures within the commission rules and review them during the annual update, addressing any timing or procedural ambiguities (Assigned to: Daniel Meuninck). • Encourage continued mini -training and solicit commissioner feedback to guide future training topics. • Maintain commission involvement in relevant strategic and community planning efforts and ensure ongoing communication with City Council and administration. Meeting adjourned at 6:58 P.M.