TOWN OF GILBERT PLANNING & ZONING COMMISSION, SPECIAL MEETING

1025 S. GILBERT ROAD, GILBERT, ARIZONA

JUNE 20, 2001

COMMISSION PRESENT:

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger, Commissioner Stan Strom, Commissioner Daniel Dodge, Commissioner Brigette Peterson, Commissioner Susan Preiss, Commissioner Michael Monroe

COMMISSION ABSENT:

Chairman Karl Kohlhoff, Commissioner James Beene, Alternate Commissioner Todd Hanson

STAFF PRESENT:

Planning Director Jerry Swanson, Planning Manager Maria Cadavid, Planning Manager Linda Edwards, Planner Suzanne Gunderman, Senior Planner Geir Sverdrup, Senior Planner Dan Fairbanks, Planner Aruna Vasudev

ALSO PRESENT:

Town Attorney Kelly Schwab, Town Traffic Engineer Bruce Ward, Gilbert Independent Editor Wayne Bryant, Recorder Trasie Johns

I N D E X

PLANNER CASE PAGE VOTE

Ms. Cadavid S545 2 Approved
Mr. Fairbanks S552 3 Approved
Mr. Sverdrup General Plan Update 4 Approved

CALL TO ORDER:

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger called the meeting to order at 6:00 P.M.

ROLL CALL:

Ms. Johns called roll and a quorum was determined to be present.

APPROVAL OF AGENDA:

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger requested approval of the agenda.

A motion was made by Commissioner Susan Preiss, seconded by Commissioner Dan Dodge to approve the agenda.

Motion Carried 6-0.

COMMUNICATIONS FROM CITIZENS:

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger announced that members of the public could comment on items not on the agenda. She stated that the Commissionâ??s response was limited to responding to criticism, asking staff to review a matter commented upon or asking that the matter be put on a future agenda. She asked if anyone would like to speak.

No one came forward.

PUBLIC HEARING

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger announced that if anyone wanted to speak during the Public Hearing, they needed to fill out a blue slip and bring it forward. She opened the Public Hearing.

S545 - Preliminary plat for parcel 5 of the Gardens PAD, an approximate 34.71 acre parcel zoned Planned Area Development with the underlying zoning designation of R-3 (Multi-Family Residence) located north of the northeast corner of Ray and Recker Roads. The parcel is subdivided into 41 lots for condominiums with a minimum lot size of 20,000 square feet and a density of 11.58 du/ac.

Planning Manager Maria Cadavid explained that S545 was a preliminary plat for parcel 5 of the Gardens PAD. She showed a map of the general location of the project and informed the Commission that they had seen the project last month. The Town Council approved it on May 29, 2001. She described the highlights of the project, stating that parcel 5 was 35.7 acres with 41 lots of ½ acre size which met the minimum size of the R-3 (Multi-Family Residential) district. She stated that the density was 11.47 dwelling units per acre, distributing 398 units in 286 buildings.

Ms. Cadavid announced that there were no major pending items on the preliminary plat of the development. She explained that there were only two technical items pending. The first was to amend the open space plan for that portion of the PAD, which had different development requirements than what was originally approved. Secondly, she stated that technical cleanups needed to be done on the plat document prior to final plat action by Council. She concluded by asking for questions from the Commission.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger asked if there were any questions. Seeing none, she asked the applicant to come forward.

Reed Porter, 2020 N. Arizona Ave. Suite G-62, Chandler with Key Construction Inc. came forward. He informed the Commission that the presentation would be identical to what was discussed a month ago when they approved the zoning. He added that all they were doing that evening was approving the map on top of the zoning, which was included in the last submittal. He concluded by asking for questions.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger opened the Public Hearing and asked if anyone wanted to speak on the issue. Seeing no one come forward, she asked if the Commission had any comments or questions they wished to discuss.

Commissioner Dan Dodge asked Mr. Porter if he reviewed the conditions and agreed to them.

Mr. Porter replied that he agreed to the conditions listed in the Staff report.

Commissioner Dan Dodge commented that the project was very innovative and he liked the creativity that had gone into the project. He announced that he was very much in support of the development.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger agreed with Commissioner Dodge and asked for a motion.

A motion was made by Commissioner Dan Dodge, seconded by Commissioner Susan Preiss, to approve S545 subject to Staff stipulations.

Motion Carried 6-0.

a. The developer of parcel 5 shall comply with all the development requirements established by Ordinance Nos. 1238 and 1346 .

b. The open space for the Gardens master plan shall be amended to include revisions to parcel 5 and shall be submitted for Design Review

Board action prior to final plat approval and issuance of a building permit for any condominium unit in any portion of parcel 5. The amendment to the open space plan shall include the amenities in the common areas of parcel 5 per ordinance requirements including the plant palette, the design of the multi-use trail along the San Tan freeway and the type of enclosure that delineates the boundaries of this parcel next to the public access trail.

c. The plat document shall be revised to address the development requirements for Parcel 5 only, and shall note clearly the setback details, placement of condominium units on lots, and notation for the use and nature of the public access easement along the San Tan Freeway, as prescribed by stipulations tt uu, and ww of ordinance No. 1346. Said revisions shall be implemented prior to approval of the final plat.

S552 - Preliminary Plat for TH Ranch, an approximately 10.5-acre residential subdivision zoned PAD (Planned Area Development) with an underlying zoning classification of R1-15 (Single Family Residential). The proposed minimum lot size is 15,000 square feet and the project density is 1.6 units per gross acre. The property is located approximately 2000â?? south of the southeast corner of Elliot Road and Greenfield Road.

Senior Planner Dan Fairbanks explained that S552 was a request for preliminary plat approval for TH Ranch located approximately 2000â?? south of the southeast corner of Elliot Road and Greenfield Road. He stated that this was a companion subdivision to the TH Ranch PAD that had underlying R1-15 zoning. He reminded the Commission that they had recommended approval of that PAD at the hearing on April 4, 2001 and subsequently Council approved the zoning on May 1, 2001.

Mr. Fairbanks explained that he would be giving a brief overview of the project. He stated that the project was a small subdivision with 17 lots with a minimum lot size of 15,000 square feet. It will be a gated access subdivision with private streets. The applicantâ??s intention was to develop the property with custom homes. The plat met all the zoning requirements approved through the PAD and the platting requirements contained within the Uniform Land Development Code.

There was only one technical issue discussed with the plat. Mr. Fairbanks described the minor comment that the Engineering Department had about the landscape crescents that were located in the private streets. He explained that it was stipulated as part of the Staff report that the engineering details would be approved through the construction plan review process. He concluded the presentation and asked for questions from the Commission.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger asked if anyone had any questions. Seeing none, she asked if the applicant wanted to add to the presentation.

Mr. Fairbanks informed the Commission that the applicant was present, but didnâ??t have anything to add to the presentation.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger opened the public hearing and asked if anyone would like to come forward. Seeing none, she closed the public hearing and brought it back to the Commission for discussion and action.

Since there was not any discussion, Vice Chairman Joan Krueger asked for a motion.

A motion was made by Commissioner Stan Strom, seconded by Commissioner Brigette Peterson, to approve S552 subject to Staff stipulations.

Motion Carried 6-0.

1. Except as modified herein, the developer shall comply with all stipulations of Council Ordinance No. 1339

2. The active and passive open space shall provide plant materials, amenities, wall structures, monumentation, and ramada structures as identified on the attached landscape plans and as approved by staff through construction document review.

3. The internal landscape crescents shall provide for safe access for Fire Department apparatus, as approved by the Engineering and Fire Departments during construction document review.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger announced that she was closing the Public Hearing section of the meeting and moving into the Public Meeting section on the agenda.

PUBLIC MEETING

Commission discussion and possible recommendation to the Town Council of the updated General Plan, which encompasses all required elements from the Growing Smarter and Growing Smarter Plus Legislation plus additional elements added by the Town, including a revised land use map.

Senior Planner Geir Sverdrup announced that he intended to keep his presentation short that evening since they had heard the issues at previous public hearings. He stated that they were bringing forward the General Plan with revised documents that addressed the issues they had discussed over the last two public hearings.

Senior Planner Geir Sverdrup discussed the two remaining issues that needed to be addressed. The first issue was with the Filmore property. He reminded the Commission that they had requested some information with regard to the zoning under the County Island. He showed a map of the County zoning at Water Tank and Gilbert Roads. He explained that the corner of Water Tank and Gilbert Road was zoned as C-2 and the Farmers Insurance building was also zoned C-2. The land south of there was zoned C-3. He stated that the rest of the property was zoned Rural 43. He showed the General Plan land use categories that were proposed for the area.

Mr. Sverdrup discussed the second issue that the Commission wanted to review. The Ed Lamereoux property had been recommended by the Planning Department to go to a Business Park designation to help increase the industrial and employment base at the northeast corner of Lindsay and Germann Roads. The Economic Development Department had written a memorandum, which was located in the Commissionâ??s packet. This letter supported Staffâ??s recommendation. He explained that Mr. Lamereoux would like to have a High Density Residential designation, but Staff felt it was more appropriate for an employment use due to the proximity next to the freeway.

Mr. Sverdrup explained everything that had been done to the Draft. He stated that they had realigned things to make them read a lot better, specified policies, and removed redundancies. The only place that they had done any extensive revisions had been under the Parks, Open Space, and Trails element. He asked Planner Suzanne Gunderman to come forward to explain the updates.

Planner Suzanne Gunderman explained that the changes that had occurred with the Parks, Open Space and Trails Plan were predominately reorganization changes. She explained that the Staff had cleaned up typos, reworded sentences, and reorganized tables so Staff would better utilize them. She also cataloged the comments from the active citizens that were involved in the process. Owen Bagnham presented some comments and Dan Shelton, who had been very active in equestrian issues, had made comments.

Planner Suzanne Gunderman described that they had done changes based on the Dyett & Bhatia peer review, which was very helpful in showing some areas that needed to be clarified. One of the areas was in the park designations, particularly the neighborhood park and how it related to what they were trying to get from new development. She explained that they wanted to have a clear idea of what was actually needed to fulfill neighborhood park needs in new subdivision development. So instead of getting 10% open space distributed in any way across the development, residents would get for a more centralized functional open space that would actually operate as a neighborhood park. Private development is expected to fulfill the future needs for neighborhood parks. She informed the Commission that there were not any other substantive changes.

Planner Suzanne Gunderman discussed two comments that had come in since the draft the Commission had been given. One comment came from Dan Shelton, who was an active participant and on the advisory committee. She stated that he was concerned that a policy should be added that would specifically allow for equestrian crossings across the San Tan Freeway. Staff concurred with that recommendation because the policies in the Plan tended to be more geared toward pedestrian uses and this issue was an oversight. He also wanted to add an implementation strategy that they would research existing trail linkage problems and work to resolve those that were important to complete connections to the canals or other portions of the public access trail systems. Part of the implementation strategies included the formation of an equestrian advisory committee, similar to the bike advisory committee. She envisioned this committee to have the task of coming up with some additional research and goals.

Planner Suzanne Gunderman discussed the other comment that had come in from Kathy Lopez, who was with the Finley Farms Homeowners Association. She described Ms. Lopezâ??s recommendation to not see language in the plan under the role of private development, those policies that were specifically geared toward the role of private development. Ms. Lopez didnâ??t want to encourage the Town of Gilbert dictating the use of private land for public access trails. Ms. Gunderman explained that Ms. Lopez also had problems with making the role of private development mandatory due to many issues, including the costs that only the homeowner would contribute to; insurance, trash and vandalism. Ms. Gunderman concluded that those were the only comments that she had heard since the update that she had provided for the Commission.

Commissioner Dan Dodge verified that there were three distinct points that Ms. Gunderman had covered. He listed them as the equestrian crossing over the San Tan, the implementation plan issues and the trail issues with Finley Farms HOA. He asked her if their recommendation was to incorporate an equestrian aspect to the trails crossing over the freeway.

Ms. Gunderman replied that Commissioner Dodge was correct.

Commissioner Dan Dodge asked what the Staff recommended for the implementation plan issues.

Ms. Gunderman explained that the implementation strategy to research existing trail linkage problems would be an appropriate goal for the equestrian advisory committee. She suggested that they incorporate that in the implementation strategies in the General Plan. It would be appropriate to place this following the policies that talked about the importance of linkage to the central and Gilbert trail systems. With respect to the Finley Farms comment, she explained that the Town does rely on private development to provide those important access links. She added that a homeowners association that carried some of the costs benefited by the usage of that trail and usage of trails on property that they donâ??t own. It also allowed people to cross neighborhood borders without being restricted to access. She concluded that the Staff didnâ??t recommend a change to the policies requiring new development to provide public access where it was appropriate.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger asked if Ms. Lopez was a representative of the homeownerâ??s association of Finley Farms.

Ms. Gunderman replied that she wasnâ??t sure, but knew she was affiliated with the homeownerâ??s association in some way.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger announced that they had two blue slips that had been submitted to speak on the issue. She asked for clarification from the citizens if they wanted to speak. Seeing that they did, she stated that as a matter of protocol in public meetings they didnâ??t have to entertain the comments from the public. She asked if anyone else in the audience wanted to speak.

Commissioner Dan Dodge stated that since they only had two speakers and if they limited them to three minutes, he would be acceptable to hearing them speak.

Someone in the audience stood up and stated that he also wanted to speak.

Commissioner Susan Preiss explained that people that were present that evening did not expect to be allowed to speak at the meeting. She stated that if they allowed two people to speak, they might end up with twenty speakers.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger agreed with Commissioner Preiss and informed the Commission that it was up to them on whether to hear speakers or not.

Commissioner Stan Strom stated that he would like to hear Mr. Hollar speak and ask him some specific questions. He didnâ??t wish to hear from anyone else.

Commissioner Dan Dodge agreed that he would only like to hear from Mr. Hollar. He explained that if anyone was trying to change the direction of the plan at that late of date, he didnâ??t feel like it would be appropriate for him or her to speak.

Planning Director Jerry Swanson suggested that they adopt criteria for speakers to present only if they were giving testimony that had not yet been given.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger agreed with Mr. Swanson and stated that that was the direction in which they were going. She announced that she would call people forward to speak for three minutes only if they were presenting new testimony that hadnâ??t already been heard in previous public hearings. She asked them to decline her offer if they didnâ??t have new information to share with the Commission.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger called Suzanne Nie to come forward.

Suzanne Nie, 1455 E. Sagebrush Street came forward. She explained that the property she wanted to talk about was the changing in the General Plan of the SRP land at Warner and Val Vista Roads from Multi-Use Employment to General Industry. She stated that it was her understanding that the General Plan was the vision of Gilbertâ??s future zoning and that the Growing Smarter initiative called for properties to be zoned how the land was presently being used.

Ms. Nie informed the Commission that the SRP property on the corner of Val Vista and Warner Roads was currently zoned as agricultural. She stated that many who bought their homes in the communities around this property, including over six master plan communities, had no idea that in Arizona a power plant could be built on agricultural land. She described the Kaufman and Broadâ??s disclosure statement that she reviewed on January, 2001 for the development on the northeast corner of Lindsay and Warner Roads. She put the statement on the overhead projector for the Commission to see and read the statement which was written that to the south and to the east of the KB Homes property was farming. Therefore, she stated that if someone were just looking at the disclosure statement, they would think they were moving next to a farm. Nowhere in the statement did it say there was an SRP power plant within ¾ of a mile of the property.

Ms. Nie explained that in the Gilbert zoning map, the SRP property was zoned as AG. She added that there was a tiny sign on Val Vista Road that stated San Tan Generating Facility. She explained that the plant was presently a peaking power plant and was very unobtrusive. She reminded the Commission of Mr. Sverdrup purpose statement for the General Plan was to provide predictability and to protect the citizens. She announced that the proposed changes to the Multi-Use Employment to the General Use Industrial would not hold predictability nor would it protect the citizens. General Industrial was intended to encourage an efficient environment for general uses including but not limited to heavy utility, truck terminals and manufacturing facility. Furthermore, she stated that General Industrial would be required to adequately buffer adjacent land uses. Circulation must account for heavy traffic expected with this intensity of use. She explained that the plant was not currently being used this way. She explained that the same type of power plant was proposed in Kyrene and they fought it, allowing for use only 1% of total capacity at any time. She concluded by stating that they would like to fight this based on zoning and if they pushed it through, they would loose that opportunity.

Commissioner Stan Strom asked if Ms. Nie lived near the power plant and had bought her home in 1999.

Ms. Nie agreed that her roommate had bought the home in 1999 and showed the home on the map and described where she lived in relationship to the plant.

Commissioner Stan Strom explained that they shouldnâ??t get confused with zoning and the General Plan. He stated that the existing General Plan that they had been approved in 1994 was zoned Multi-Use Employment. He read the zoning classification for Multi-Use Employment; â??The intent for Multi-Use Employment classification was to provide for high intensity uses with employment emphasis, designation may include commercial, high residential, hotel, motel, office and industrial uses.â?? He stated that he was dismayed that she was the first person that had come to any of the three public meetings that they had regarding the General Plan update that had talked about the issue.

Ms. Nie replied that they were just recovering from the fight against the plant in line sighting with the Arizona Corporation Commission. She added that APS had a power plant at Cooper and Warner Roads and the zoning on that was Public Facility Institutional. She asked why the SRP plant wasnâ??t classified the same way.

Commissioner Stan Strom answered that the SRP plant was built in 1976, prior to any of the houses being built. The intent of the General Plan to include it as General Industrial, which was the most intense commercial district in the Town, was appropriate for that area to change it from a Multi-Use Employment that they had before.

Ms. Nie argued that presently it was a 300-megawatt peaking plant and it was not used full time as they were proposing to using it. She showed a visual aid of the plant usage and explained that from 1992 to 1997 it had only a 10% increase and from 1997 to 2000, there was a 75% increase. She concluded by stating that she thought they were backdooring the issue by changing it to General Industrial and were not protecting the citizens.

Commissioner Stan Strom replied that they were trying to look at future planning for the Town of Gilbert and part of that would be forward thinking with the General Plan document. He added that it was evident that people did not look at the General Plan when they bought their homes and it wasnâ??t a mechanism to make up for the deeds of the past. He added that the SRP plant was there in 1994, when all the homes were built around it and that the plant would expand under new criteria. The General Industrial designation was the most intense in Gilbert and was the most appropriate for that area.

Commissioner Dan Dodge added to Commissioner Stromsâ?? comments. He stated that the citizens opposed to the San Tan were choosing not to recognize the difference between zoning and the General Plan. He explained that the zoning was not changing from agriculture. The General Plan was just depicting the usage of the area by stating that it was General Industrial. Since the Multi-Use Commercial designation no longer existed, it must be replaced with something else. He added that there was not a General Plan designation of agriculture, but there was a zoning classification of agriculture, which was how the property would remain zoned.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger agreed with Commissioner Dodge. She asked if anyone else would like to comment on the issue. Seeing no one, she asked Mr. Hollar to come forward.

Paul Hollar, 3940 E. Park Ct., Gilbert came forward. He stated that he only had one point to make. The current General Plan Update that the Commission had still did not address the Urban Heat Island element with respect to the Environmental element or the Public Facilities and Services element. He informed the Commission that he had submitted some thoughts on the item and asked them to give it some consideration. He added that he had other thoughts that he had submitted in writing to the Commission.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger stated that in her opinion, Senior Planner Geir Sverdrup had presented a number of items to the Commission to ensure they were comfortable before they went forward. She reminded the Commission about the items he addressed earlier in his presentation, adding the four issues that they had addressed in the other public hearings. She asked if anyone wanted to go through any of the items.

Commissioner Brigette Peterson stated that she had a question about the Filmore property. Since Mr. Filmore didnâ??t receive the zoning from the county that he wanted just recently, she asked Mr. Sverdrup if he was still coming to the Town requesting this change.

Mr. Sverdrup replied that Mr. Filmore was interested in a commercial designation on his property.

Commissioner Brigette Peterson asked if the neighbors in the area knew that he was pursuing this designation on the property, since she had not heard any of the neighbors speak on the issue. She added that she knew it had been a very big issue with the neighbors in the area.

Mr. Sverdrup answered that they had not received a formal application from Mr. Filmore, it was a part of the Staff initiated land use change to designate the entire section south of Water Tank to a more cohesive set of land use classifications to create a better corner.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger asked if there were any further questions regarding any of the other issues. She listed the issues that were outstanding and asked if anyone wanted to comment on them.

Commissioner Dan Dodge asked Mr. Sverdrup if Mr. Hollarâ??s comments had been included in the General Plan regarding the Urban Heat Island effect issue.

Mr. Sverdrup replied that if it were the direction of the Commission, he would make sure that they would get integrated as part of their recommendation in the document that went to the Town Council. He apologized for omitting the item.

Commissioner Dan Dodge stated that he felt the Commission was in pretty strong support of this inclusion. He added that anyone that had lived in the area for some time was aware that Gilbert used to be at least ten degrees cooler than Phoenix, and it was no longer that way. He felt that the suggestions that Mr. Hollar had made to help with the Urban Heat Island effect would be beneficial and asked to have them incorporated into the motion for Staff.

Commissioner Stan Strom stated that under the Water Resources element, 1.6 on the policy, they had asked whether they could define that temporary idea. He stated that the language had not changed from the prior draft. He asked if they could define what a temporary use could be in terms of extending water services to an unannexed parcel in Gilbert.

Senior Planner Geir Sverdrup replied that they could include some language that would clarify that issue. He stated that it would be considered temporary prior to annexation and they would need a pre-annexation agreement prior to giving an extension.

Commissioner Stan Strom recommended that they state that â??temporaryâ?? would be defined as being pending an application for annexation. He explained that he would feel more comfortable with making it clearer.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger asked Planner Suzanne Gunderman for clarification on the implementation process, so they could include it in the motion.

Planner Suzanne Gunderman explained that the implementation strategy was to research existing trail problems and resolve those that were important to complete to the canal or other public access trail systems.

Commissioner Dan Dodge asked for clarification from Commissioner Strom on how he would characterize the water issue for the motion.

Commissioner Stan Strom replied that under the Water Resources element, 1.6 on the policy, they needed to define â??temporaryâ?? as an application for annexation that was pending or on an emergency use.

Commissioner Michael Monroe addressed the issue at Lindsay and Williamsfield Roads concerning the General Plan amendment. He explained that even though the General Plan listed the designation as residential, if someone were to come before the Commission they would have to change the zoning if they wanted to change the use of the parcel. He asked for clarification on the process.

Commissioner Dan Dodge stated that they would have to obtain approval for a General Plan amendment and also change the zoning if they wanted to change a land use designation that was stated on the General Plan.

Commissioner Stan Strom stated that he and Chairman Karl Kohlhoff were the only two Commissioners that wanted to bring the issue forward again. He thought that by changing the General Plan, it would be more in line with the traffic patterns that were changing. He added that on Lindsay and the Superstition Freeway they were working on a half diamond interchange. He stated that there werenâ??t enough votes on the Commission to bring it up that evening, but he felt that the area would not stay rural residential with the increased traffic flow.

Commissioner Michael Monroe stated that from looking at the maps, they were looking at a major and minor street at that intersection. He stated that he was disappointed in that particular designation in the General Plan. He added that they needed to look at the future and where they would need to be tomorrow, not yesterday. He agreed with Commissioner Stromâ??s comments and the comments that Chairman Karl Kohlhoff made the previous week.

Commissioner Brigette Peterson commented that the neighborhoods around the area would feel more comfortable bringing the issue up as a separate issue and not a part of the General Plan. Changing the issue, she stated that she did not think they had made a decision on Mr. Lamerouexâ??s property at the previous hearing because he had to leave the meeting.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger agreed with Commissioner Peterson and stated that they needed to address the issue.

Commissioner Brigette Peterson explained that in the matrix that was given to them by the planners, it specifically did not say that it was voted on.

Planning Manager Linda Edwards agreed that the summery was correct. They had provided a letter from Economic Development. She reminded the Commission that the Staff had given a fairly concise recap of Mr. Lamerouexâ??s position in asking for consideration for Medium High Density Residential on his property.

Commissioner Dan Dodge stated that he thought both the Lamerouex property and the Williamsfield and Lindsay property would be appropriately handled in a separate General Plan update process. He added that it would be a fairly significant change at the last minute to change the designation on the Lamerouex property. He stated that he had not heard enough information to make a change or decision on the request.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger agreed with Commissioner Dan Dodge and stated that she would also like to have had more of a presentation from the applicant directly.

Planning Director Jerry Swanson stated that he thought there might be a misunderstanding. He stated that the property was currently designated as Low Density Residential. The property owner, Mr. Lamerouex, had in the past expressed a desire through the preapplication process to have High Density Residential on the property. Staff believed that given the proximity to the freeway and the fact that they faced the possibility of some industrial acreage in that neighborhood that the most appropriate use of that land would be for a business park. He added that it was adjacent to a high school, a freeway and across the street from a proposed very large religious institution. He informed the Commission that in Staffâ??s opinion, it was not an excellent environment for residential uses at any intensity.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger stated that if she were going to disagree with Staff about their recommendation, she would want to hear from someone that would give her that perspective. She added that the Staffâ??s recommendation would stand in her opinion unless someone gave her a reason to change it.

Commissioner Stan Strom stated that when they looked at the 1994 General Plan, everything on the south side of the proposed freeway was yellow, indicating Low Density, which was the most glaring part of the plan that stood out for him in terms of the growth changes in Gilbert. The reason he wanted to hear the Lamerouex case was that he thought they had made the preapplication case eight months ago and was afraid that this change was in the midst of something that they had spent considerable time on. He explained that in looking at it, they would have had to change the zoning anyway since the applicant was requesting a High Density Residential designation. He agreed with Staff that it made sense to keep the property as Business Park and that it would be the most appropriate land use there.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger agreed with Commissioner Stromâ??s comments.

Commissioner Stan Strom discussed the issue at Gilbert and Germann Roads. He stated that it was a difficult decision based on the information provided from Economic Development. He thought they had looked at the industrial inventory within the Gateway area and the Town. He felt that the land use that the Staff had recommended made perfect sense on the south side of Germann and moving the business park to the Lamerouex site also made good land use sense.

Commissioner Dan Dodge agreed with Commissioner Stromâ??s comments.

Senior Planner Geir Sverdrup clarified that the Stitler and Nothum property at Gilbert and Germann Roads was one of the nineteen applications from the general public to make a change to the land use. In response to their request, the Staff had gone with the Lamerouexâ??s property as Business Park to make up for inventory. He stated that Staff had also felt as others had stated earlier that it made more sense to have a Business Park designation next to a major freeway. He added that they believed Residential next to the freeway wasnâ??t a good idea.

Planning Director Jerry Swanson asked the Commission to make a realignment with one of the policies. He directed their attention to 6.6, the Environmental Planning element, Goal 1.0, Policies 1.5, 1.6, and 1.7 all related to the policy on the extension on the domestic water, sanitary sewer and reclaimed water service. He recommended that those items be located to the Public Facilities and Services element. He also requested that they be replaced by the following under Goal 1.0, policy 1.5; â??Conserve scarce water resources through the management of domestic water, waste water and reclaimed waste water services.â??

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger asked if there was any other discussion. Seeing none, she asked for a motion.

A motion was made by Commissioner Dan Dodge, seconded by Commissioner Susan Preiss, to recommend to the Town Council approval of General Plan 2001, June 20, 2001 draft as presented to the Commission. He moved that they direct Staff to make the following changes in the draft prior to presenting to Town Council; add a component to the Open Space and Trails Plan element addressing equestrian crossings over the San Tan Freeway; add to the implementation strategies a task to research trail link issues; incorporate the Urban Heat Island Effect issue into the Environmental element and the Public Services element; update the water resources policy 1.6 to define the temporary and emergency use; update the Environmental Planning element, Goal 1, Policies 1.5, 1.6, and 1.7 to be placed in the Public Facilities element and replace 1.5 to state, â??Conserve scarce water resources through the management of domestic water, waste water and reclaimed waste water services.â??

Motion Carried 6-0.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger thanked everyone for a task well done.

The Commissioners agreed and commended the Staff for all the hard work they did on the General Plan update.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger also thanked the public for all the hard work they put into the issues.

Planning Director Jerry Swanson thanked the Commission for their support and participation over the past months. He reminded the public that the process was not complete. He informed the audience that they would have a public hearing with the Town Council on June 26. It would then be scheduled for a final vote with the Town Council on July 10. Under the Growing Smarter legislation, they must refer the General Plan to a vote of the people. That vote was tentatively set for November 6, 2001. It would not become final until mid November when the results of the vote were tallied. Until that time, Mr. Swanson explained that they would be operating under the existing General Plan. No jurisdiction, with the exception of Peoria and Surprise had to undergo a limbo period. He stated that they would be accepting development applications that were consistent with the current General Plan through the time that the new General Plan becomes law. He added that they would not be accepting General Plan amendment applications. He explained that after the vote, assuming that the plan was accepted, they would have an annual major amendment process toward the end of the year. Minor amendments would be accepted at any time through the normal General Plan amendment process. He thanked the Commission, the advisory committees, property owners, and members of the public to make the General Plan an excellent document. He also thanked Senior Planner Geir Sverdrup for all his work on the Plan.

COMMUNIATIONS

A report from the Chairman on current events.

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger announced that it was Commissioner Susan Preissâ?? last meeting. She thanked her for serving a four-year term and stated that she had been an important part of the Commission and would be missed.

Commissioner Susan Preiss announced that she was only leaving because she had family obligations that she had to fulfill. Otherwise, she stated that she would stay on the Commission. She stated that she was grateful that she had been given the opportunity to serve the community.

Commissioner Dan Dodge stated that he had always respected her commitment to the Commission.

Subcommittee Reports.

There were no subcommittee reports given.

Commissioner Dan Dodge asked if Town Attorney Kelly Schwab had put on the Town Council agenda that the Planning and Zoning Commission would attend the June 26, 2001 meeting.

Town Attorney Kelly Schwab replied that they would notice the Town Council meeting as a special meeting to allow the Commission to participate without any concerns about open meeting law violation.

Commissioner Dan Dodge recommended that the Commission attend this meeting with the Town Council to represent their work over the past year. He added that their input might be valued since they might be able to respond to specific questions based on the issues they had addressed.

Report from the Planning Director on current events.

Planning Director Jerry Swanson announced that he didnâ??t have any new progress on the ULDC. Once they got the General Plan adopted, he stated that they would be able to refocus on the ULDC. He asked Planner Suzanne Gunderman to give them an update on the meeting of the trails committee.

Planner Suzanne Gunderman informed the Commission that they had the last Parks, Open Space and Trails advisory committee meeting to conclude the process and also to take a look at the final draft design guidelines which would be standard details that could be provided for developers involved in trail construction. In addition, there was text that further described the expectations that they would have for the trail cross-sections. She hoped to bring the draft back to the Commission in August to go through a public hearing process for an adoption by the Council for the design guidelines. She added that the consultant had also provided some strategic funding opportunities. The strategic funding table listed the grants and other money sources that could be used to fund the systems that were in the plan.

Planning Director Jerry Swanson announced that after the meeting adjourned, the Commission was invited to join the Staff for a small celebration on the completion of the Plan.

Future Planning Commission meetings:

Wednesday, July 11, 2001 at 6:00 p.m., Council Chambers
Election of Officers at July 11, 2001 meeting
Vice Chairman Joan Krueger informed the Commission that they would be holding the election for the Commission officers at the next meeting on July 11, 2001.

Commissioner Dan Dodge asked if they were going to have a month without a meeting during the summer, as it had been done in the past depending on the workload.

Planning Director Jerry Swanson stated that the decision had not been made as to whether they would have a meeting in August. He commented that they would respect the wishes of the Commission on the meeting.

Commissioner Dan Dodge stated that they couldnâ??t make this determination without knowing what the workload would be.

Planning Director Jerry Swanson replied that they would let the Commission know about the August meeting and the workload at the July 11, 2001 meeting.

ADJOURN REGULAR MEETING

Vice Chairman Joan Krueger adjourned the meeting at 6:55 P.M.

ATTEST:

Recorder Trasie Johns

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