Boundary County Planning and Zoning Commission
Minutes
June 19, 2014 Regular Meeting
Attending: Matt Cossalman, John Cranor, Ron Self, Caleb Davis, John Moss, Kim Peterson, Scott Fuller, Marciavee Cossette; staff, Dan Studer.
At 5:30 pm Cossalman, opened the regular meeting and read through the agenda, and introduced the members of the commission.
The first agenda item was review and approval of minutes of the May 15, 2014. There were no additions or changes to the minutes. A motion by Self to approve the minutes was seconded by Fuller; the motion passed unanimously.
Cossalman read through the next agenda item script – public hearing for conditional use permit 14-040 by Carbo Trading Co. LLC to open and operate up to 16 one bedroom cabins on their 21 acre Rural Community/Commercial property next to Blue Lake RV Resort, Naples.
There were no members of the commission who have a conflict of interest or ex-parte contact.
At 5:38 Cossalman opened the public hearing. Heidi Carson gave the opening applicant remarks. Carson went over the business plan and the application. She explained that if the application is successful the property will have to be split to satisfy Panhandle Health District requirements for septic development on the site. A 2500 gallon permit is allowed per 10 acres.
Cossalman asked about the recreational cabins... they will have bathroom and kitchen, one bedroom design. Carson explained they have two existing cabins which are popular, and prove there is a market for these. When constructed they will not be permanent, so if market goes down they can sell them.
Cranor asked about how long a term rental they would have? Carson said this would allow people to stay into or through the winter – where RVs have to pull out before due to weather.
Self inquired about the railroad crossing where Highway 95 approaches. Carson said they currently have 2000 vehicle crossings estimated, and a high number are RV's. Some RV spots will be eliminated by their plan, and reduce the number of RVs. Cars are expected to increase some, but not significantly overall.
Cossalman commented that the land area appeared sufficient for their plan. He did not have an issue with the rail road.
Carson showed a map of the project, indicating where the septic would be located and the roads and cabin layout. Cossalman noted that the land use will not change from what is currently occurring on the land. A double wide trailer and up to six RV sites will be removed to make room for the cabins. Cossalman asked Carson, if approved, what change would the neighbors notice? Carson showed that there was dense woods separating neighbors from their current park, and felt there would be essentially no change or impact due to the plan.
Cranor asked about the well location. Carson indicated that that has not been determined yet, and that it may be on a neighboring property. They do not plan to join the Twenty Mile Water Assoc. at this time. Moss asked about emergency vehicle assess ingress and egress. Carson said they had done a walk through with the fire district chief. There was no concern or adjustment needed from the proposed plan. Cossette asked about the size of the cabins; they will be around 400 sq.ft.
Following Carson's opening remarks, Studer gave his staff report.
Cossalman opened the hearing for public remarks. There was no testimony for or against the application. Speaking uncommitted was Tony Rohrwasser, South Boundary District Fire Chief. Rohrwasser confirmed he had been on site to evaluate the plan. He testified that access around the proposed cabins would be good. The primary concern was a fire hydrant; a dry hydrant system is planned to be installed, which can serve around the entire lake. A fire engine will suck out of their system and set up a hose lay. Across the highway is a pressurized fire hydrant.
For closing remarks Carson said the proposal is good for the community. There is a need for the cabins as shown by current demand. Moss asked if Carson plans on building 16 cabins all at once? Carson indicated they will start with 1 – 2 cabins and grow gradually. The area has cell phone coverage. Peterson asked if they will have employees; Carson said as the business increases so will their employment. Cossalman closed the hearing and opened for discuss.
Going down the Considerations in Section 7.7 the commission felt the full scope of the plan was shown in the application. Although Self felt the railroad crossing may be an issue, the commission agreed that RVs crossing the tracks was a larger issue than cars, and RVs may decrease due to the plan. The recreational land use fits with the current zoning and past land use. The change to cabins vs. RVs may reduce the highway/rail crossing concerns. All felt that agency concerns were covered and appreciated the presentation by Chief Rohrwasser. The economic benefit to the community was also recognized.
Two letters on file with concerns were valid and answered satisfactorily: the 20 Mile Water Assoc. concern was not an issue due to the plan for a well, and the nearby farm odor concern has been there since the park was established, so there is no change.
Studer was asked about setbacks in this zone. Studer said there are setbacks in Section 15, and also standards in Section 10 that they can look at. Cossalman felt that the setbacks were not a real issue when looking at the overall scale of the proposed project. Studer felt that setbacks would be adequate from his zoning perspective, and would only investigate if other departments brought up concerns (ie. fire/ambulance).
The commission also felt the project would have a neutral to positive benefit to taxpayers, and would not be a burden on the county.
Following discussion Moss made a motion to grant the conditional use development permit without conditions. Davis second, there was no discussion; the motion passed unanimously.
The next agenda item brought up by Cossalman was an interview for commission member to replace Bruce Behrman. Adam Issac was asked questions by the commission members.
The commission members asked Studer for more people to interview; Studer indicated there was another person expected to show up this evening, however, they didn't show up. Studer will seek more candidates.
Recorder
Dan Studer