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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12/09/2003 COW minutes REVISED MINUTES COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE DECEMBER 9, 2003 I. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 7:04 p.m., in the Mt. Prospect Park District Community Center, 1000 West Central Road, by Mayor Gerald Farley. Present at the meeting were: Trustees Timothy Corcoran, Paul Hoefert, Michaele Skowron, Irvana Wilks and Michael lade!. Absent from the meeting was Trustee Richard Lohrstorfer. Staff members present included: Village Manager Michael Janonis, Assistant Village Manager David Strahl, Village Attorney Everette Hill, Community Development Director William Cooney, Deputy Community Development Director Michael Jacobs, Public Works Director Glen Andler, and Solid Waste Coordinator Lisa Angel!. APPROVAL OF MINUTES II. Approval of Minutes from November 25, 2003. Motion made by Trustee Hoefert and Seconded by Trustee Skowron. Minutes were approved. III. CITIZENS TO BE HEARD None. IV. PRIMECO INFRASTRUCTURE MAINTENANCE FEE (IMF) LITIGATION Village Manager Michael Janonis stated that in 1997, the State adopted legislation to address Franchise Fee agreements among towns and phone service providers. The IMF is a rental fee for the use of public. right-of-way. The law was challenged by the wireless providers and was overturned by the Illinois Supreme Court. Landline providers are also preparing to challenge the legislation at this time. The Village has an opportunity to participate in a consolidated defense of a Class Action Suit with members from the Northwest Municipal Conference. The proposal for the cost of the defense for the Village would be approximately $14,000. Village Attorney Hill stated that the Village would not prevail with the wireless providers since the case is quite specific and on point but there is a need to deal with the landline carriers. He stated the legislation is related to the municipalities obtaining a fee for the use of the right-of-way of these providers. He stated the majority of the revenue to the Village is from the land line companies. He stated the Village would have to defend itself to protect the revenue that it has already collected so it would make sense to participate in the Class Action Suit with other municipalities. He stated the costs are assigned on a per capita basis and this amount is only the initial contribution. He stated the Village is not bound to pay additional fees throughout the case unless so desired. He stated the Village would have the opportunity to reconsider participation when future fee requests are made. Village Manager stated the revenues previously collected have been in escrow since the challenge was made by the wireless providers. 1 Consensus of the Village Board was to approve participation in the legal defense fund with the Northwest Municipal Conference. V. ABANDONED SHOPPING CART AMENDMENT Village Manager Janonis stated the Village has incurred approximately $80,000 in expenses picking up shopping carts over the years and has undertaken several different approaches to address the problem. He stated there still does not appear to be any end in sight regarding the need to change behavior in order to avoid this expense. He feels that nothing short of drastic action would address the problem and there is a need for a harsher response. He stated there is also an unusual situation by an out of town business that borders Mount Prospect and the need to try and get enforcement with such an out of town business. He stated the legal research has yielded an opportunity to withhold the Business License from the corporate entity in an effort to force compliance of the business on the Village border. General comments from Village Board members included the following items: It was suggested that abandoned shopping carts should be treated the same as abandoned cars and there is a need to get more serious with the enforcement. General consensus of the Village Board was to consider an Ordinance requiring compliance with stiffer penalties as proposed by staff at a future Village Board meeting. VI. STAR LINE CONSULTING CONTRACT Village Manager Janonis stated that discussions have been underway for several years to expand the train line from the Blue Line in Rosemont out to Hoffman Estates along the Northwest Corridor and connect to the outer circumference railroad commonly known as the EJ and E Railway. He stated the project would need to coordinate land acquisition and the actual plans which are being coordinated through the Northwest Municipal Conference. He stated the Village would need to consider committing approximately $20,000 over a four- year period with $4,000 committed for 2004. He stated the project is at least ten years out from any kind of construction work starting with the proposed corridor running adjacent or very near the Northwest Tollway corridor. He said the Village would benefit from a station on the south end of town and would assist in the economic viability of the south end of the community. He stated there would be opportunities in the future to determine future financial commitments. Village representatives have participated in the Task Force process to date and have been involved in the planning stages. General comments from Village Board members included the following items: It was mentioned that this is an opportunity to improve the transportation modes between suburbs without the expansion of existing roads, which does not always address the volume issues. Consensus of the Village Board was to participate in the funding request in the amount of $4,000 for 2004. 2 VII. POTENTIAL CODE AMENDMENTS Community Development Director Bill Cooney stated this discussion is a continuation of the previous Code potpourri discussion which took place almost two months ago. Administrative Subdivisions Staff occasionally encounters properties that may appear to be a single lot but in actuality they consist of two or more parcels. When reviewing any type of development proposal for these properties including additions, deck projects, etc., it is often difficult for staff to apply the required setbacks due to the property's configuration. Due to these circumstances, staff has traditionally required that the property owner apply for a Plat of Consolidation that would create a single lot of record from the existing multiple lots. The Plat of Consolidation process, however, currently requires review and recommendation by the Planning and Zoning Commission and final approval by the Board of Trustees. This review and approval process can create delays and additional expenses for the property owner. As a result, staff is requesting the Village's Development Code be amended to allow administrative subdivisions under specific circumstances. The process would still require the preparation and recordation of the Plat of Consolidation but under certain circumstances would eliminate the need for review by the Planning and Zoning Commission and approval by the Village Board. The existing regulations and proposed amendments are as follows: Existinq Requlations Preliminary PlaUFinal Plat approvals require review and recommendation by the Village's Planning and Zoning Commission and final action by the Board of Trustees. Proposed Amendments Staff proposes that an Administrative Subdivision is a subdivision that may be approved by the Director of Community Development and does not require a public meeting before the Planning and Zoning Commission or approval by the Village Board of Trustees. The definition of Administrative Subdivision is: Administrative Subdivision shall be: A. An adjustment of a lot line between two (2) adjoining lots; and B. The consolidation of two or more lots, parcels or tracts of land, either in whole or part, into a single lot of record, when all of the properties are under the same ownership. With respect to Administrative Subdivision be permitted, it shall be permitted only if; (1) no non-conformities are created with respect to these regulations; and (2) the entire length of the subdivision fronts on an existing street. 3 Consensus of the Village Board was to accept staff recommendation for Administrative Subdivision review. Conversion of Garaqes into Livinq Space It is not uncommon to see property owners convert garages into living spaces. In reviewing the requests for conversion, it was found that there are no provisions to remove the garage door as long as all applicable building and health safety regulations are met. Staff is recommending that the Building Code be amended to require removal of the garage door and the use of exterior building materials that are consistent in both material and color with the remaining portion of the home's exterior. Previous discussion included the possibility of driveway pad removal, however, there would be coordination issues necessary as documented by staff. Consensus of the Village Board was to accept staff recommendation for conversion of attached garages into living space. Commercial Trailers in Residential Districts Village Code currently contains specific regulations regarding the storage of commercial vehicles and trailers within Residential Zoning Districts. Staff is recommending the Village Code be amended to specifically prohibit the outdoor storage of commercial trailers within any of the Village's Residential Zoning Districts. To help clarify the regulations, staff is also recommending specific definitions for both commercial vehicles and commercial trailers. The proposed amendment would allow for outdoor storage of no more than one commercial vehicle within a residential zoning district and prohibit the outdoor storage of commercial trailers. The definition of a commercial trailer is any trailer (1) containing work equipment such as ladders, snow plows and/or mechanical tools to carrying of work machinery on or affixed to the outside of the trailer, (3) containing a refrigeration unit or other motorized compressor, or (4) being used for storage shall be considered commercial trailers. None of the following shall be considered a commercial trailer: (a) recreational trailer that is not included within the above categories, (b) government trailers, or (c) police or fire trailers. General comments from Village Board members included the following items: It was suggested that staff consider utilizing an envelope size for consideration of trailer size similar to what is utilized for commercial vehicles and residential properties. Consensus of the Village Board was to direct staff to create a definition defining trailers within a specific measurement envelope. Arbors and Trellises The Village Code currently does not contain any regulations regarding arbors or trellises. Currently, staff is utilizing fence regulations and applying Code requirements to installation of arbors and trellises. Staff is proposing specific regulations defining arbors and trellises which also limits their size and location. Staff is requesting arbors and trellises be a maximum one arbor or trellis not exceeding eight feet in height or ten feet in width and shall be permitted except in any required front yard. 4 General comments from Village Board members included the following item: There was a question whether trellises should be even considered for a regulation. It was also suggested that a clearer definition separating what is a fence from what is a trellis should be considered. It was also suggested that additional location elements be considered and specific materials. Consensus of the Village Board was to request additional staff review to further hone the definitions for clarification purposes. FAR and Related Definitions Staff continues to see a large amount of construction activity related to single-family dwellings including additions and construction of new single-family homes. The recent trend in development has been to maximize the amount of living space within single-family homes often pushing the edge on a variety of bulk regulations including setbacks, height and floor- area-ratio (FAR). Part of the clarification necessary is the need to consider the entire bulk on the property along with the entire footprint upon the property. Such definition would include garages, basements and attics. General comments from Village Board members included the following items: It was suggested that since the basement is part of the living space, it should be considered in the overall bulk square footage for the property based on the ceiling height of the basement. It was also suggested that there is a need to address the massing of the house including the porch as part of the FAR. It was questioned whether the basement should be part of the FAR since it is already part of the building mass even though it is below grade. There were comments that there would still need to be some kind of regulation on the depth of the basement. There was also discussion regarding the definition of an attic and story within the building as determined by usable livable space now or in the future. Consensus of the Village Board was to direct staff to consider a porch as part of the FAR possibly at a reduced percentage of the total and get additional Planning and Zoning Commission input. The Village Board further directed staff to review basement and story (attic definitions) to address massing concerns. VIII. VILLAGE MANAGER'S REPORT Village Manager Janonis stated that Winter Festival Parade on December 6 was successful and the next Coffee with Council is December 13. IX. ANY OTHER BUSINESS Trustee Wilks commented on the recent passing of former Senator Paul Simon and requested the Village Board consider a Resolution of Condolences to the family. 5 x. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 9:03 p.m. Respectfully submitted, / () ~~ ~~u DS/rcc DAVID STRAHL Assistant Village Manager 6